Making the Grade: The U.S. Tip Report & the Fight Against Domestic Child Sex Trafficking
SMU Law Review, Vol. 67, No. 341, 2014
SMU Dedman School of Law Legal Studies Research Paper No. 172
30 Pages Posted: 24 Aug 2015 Last revised: 27 Apr 2018
Date Written: October 1, 2014
Abstract
This article argues that the Trafficking in Persons Report (“TIP Report”) has had a moderate impact on United States’ efforts to address child sex trafficking, but efforts toward more effective compliance are increasing. On the one hand, the TIP Report has yet to persuade the United States to develop an effective uniform legal response to its epidemic of child sex trafficking. On the other hand, recent federal initiatives suggest that the United States is strengthening its efforts to comply TIP standards to address the issue of child sex trafficking. This article further argues that the United States’ inconsistent legal responses to child sex trafficking undermine the United States’ compliance with the TIP Report’s 4P standards. On the one hand, the Obama administration has taken further steps to combat human trafficking on both the federal and state level, including supporting the passage of the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act (TVPRA) in 2013. On the other hand, state child sex trafficking laws do not consistently meet the TIP Report’s 4P standards. Two particular policies are problematic. First, state laws that require proof of force, fraud, or coercion in child sex trafficking cases contravene the Department of State’s minimum standards for effective anti-trafficking laws. Second, state laws that allow prostituted minors to be treated as criminals rather than crime victims contravene the TIP’s minimum standards. The Department of State must develop new strategies to compel state and local governments to fully comply with the TIP standards at home.
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