Governor Dannel Malloy has signed into law a bill that better protects underage victims of sex trafficking, while giving police more tools to identify and prosecute traffickers.
Starting October 1, a host of measures will go into effect that will make it harder for pimps and traffickers to target minors. The law will expand the use of wire taps and computer monitoring of traffickers, and will broaden the crime of human trafficking to include compelling or inducing a minor to conduct in sexual activity.
Police departments and prosecutors will be given training on how to identify and successfully prosecute sex trafficking cases.
The law also requires the state to provide underage victims of human trafficking the same services afforded to victims of sexual assault, and purges a minor's criminal record if the crime was a result of being a victim of sex trafficking.
Malloy said the new law makes Connecticut a "national leader in protecting children from sex trafficking."
"The signing into law of this bill is establishing a smarter, more effective criminal justice system to protect Connecticut's most vulnerable population and to aggressively investigate and prosecute large-scale human trafficking cases and networks," Malloy said.
According to Malloy, there have been at least 300 victims of sex trafficking in Connecticut since 2008. The Connecticut Department of Children and Families estimates that one out of every three runaway children are approached by a pimp within the first 48 hours after leaving home.
