Prosecuting Human Trafficking Cases: Lessons Learned and Best Practices from the U.S. and Abroad

To better understand prosecutors' ability to use these to prosecute and convict traffickers while also balancing the needs of trafficked persons, Caliber and its subcontractor (the American Prosecutors Research Institute) will examine the effects of existing anti-trafficking legislation from the perspective of the prosecution and identify critical challenges and barriers to successfully prosecuting cases.

As part of this project, Caliber plans to conduct (1) a targeted survey of federal and state prosecutors in key trafficking states (N=150), (2) in-depth interviews with key subjects from the US Attorneys leading anti-trafficking task forces, attorneys in states with anti-trafficking legislation, and international prosecutors and other CJ representatives (N=25), (3) legislation and legal case analysis, including a review of relevant state and federal statutes, anti-trafficking legislation from countries identified by the State Department as partners (Tier 1 countries) in the fight to eradicate trafficking, and a sample of human trafficking cases (B=75), and (4) identification of best practices resulting from the three previous activities (n=4 to 6).
This study will provide key lessons learned and tested practices for prosecuting human trafficking for policymakers, prosecutors, and practitioners. This study also will provide recommendations for what is still needed by federal and State prosecutors in order for them to be effective in the fight against traffickers.

ca/ncf