releases: http://chrissmith.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=409033
Data license: MIT · Data source: dwillis/congress-press
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| http://chrissmith.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=409033 | <span class ="kicker">The Monitor of Trenton</span>'As trafficking law turns 20, Rep. Smith fears pandemic fosters child exploitation' | 2020-10-30 | 2020 | 2020-10 | Republican | Senate | NJ | Christopher Smith | S000522 | chrissmith.house.gov | legacy | By Julie Asher, Catholic News Service AstheTraffickingVictims Protection Act of 2000 marked its 20th year Oct. 28, the Catholic congressman who wrote it -- and four other anti-traffickinglaws in the intervening yearscelebrated the historic legislation that holds every nation on the globe "to account on humantraffickingmatters." But in celebrating thelaw's anniversary,Rep. ChrisSmith, R-New Jersey, and member of St. Gregory the Great Parish, Hamilton Square, also expressed serious concern the ongoingpandemicis putting more children and young people at risk ofexploitation. With restrictions in place to stop the spread of COVID-19, they are spending so much more time on the internet, he said. "Some of today's challenges, suchashow ever-evolving technology is being utilized by predators to lure children intotrafficking, could not have been anticipated20years ago,"Smithsaid. "Today, due to COVID-19 restrictions, young people are spending more time online and evidence suggests a huge spike in predators' access to children on the internet and the rise of online grooming and sexualexploitationwhile children are isolated and 'virtually' connected to the world," he added. In his home state alone, he said, reports of onlinechildexploitationare up 75 percent, according to the Asbury Park Press daily newspaper. "(This) can lead to humantraffickingand other abuses,"Smithsaid. He made the comments in an op-ed he distributed to media around the country, including Catholic News Service. Thelawhe wrote "to aggressively combat sex and labortraffickingboth within the United States and around the world," he said, "created a new, well-funded whole-of-government domestic and international strategy and established numerous new programs to protect victims, prosecute traffickers and to the extent possible, prevent humantraffickingin the first place." "Thousands of human traffickers have been prosecuted and jailed pursuant" under the landmarklaw, he said, including Jeffrey Epstein, a wealthy financier and convicted sex offender who federal prosecutors charged in 2019 with creating a sextraffickingoperation involving dozens of underage girls. Before he could face trial on the charges, Epstein was found dead Aug. 19, 2019, in his cell in a federal prison in New York, the victim of an apparent suicide. Smithalso pointed to Keith Raniere and Allison Mackasexamples of others prosecuted under the TVPA. Raniere was the leader of NXIVM, an organization he describedasa self-help group but what prosecutors called a sex cult. He was convicted in June 2019 on charges including sexualexploitation, forced labor and sextrafficking. This October, on Oct. 27, he was sentenced to 120 years in prison by a federal court in Brooklyn, New York. Mack, a TV actress known for her role in "Smallville," was a high-ranking member of Raniere's organization and faces multiple charges for allegedly being involved in a scheme to turn women into sex slaves. She pleaded guilty to racketeering charges in April 2019 and is awaiting sentencing. Smithsaid the TVPA "included a number of 'sea change' criminal code reforms including treatingasa victimand not a perpetrator of a crimeanyone exploited by a commercial sex act who had not attained the age of 18 and anyone older where there was an element of force, fraud or coercion." "The TVPA radically reformed the U.S. criminal code to authorize asset confiscation and jail sentences of up to life imprisonment for the predators," he continued. "Most importantly, because of the TVPA, many victims have been rescued and protected," he said, "while comprehensive prevention strategies have spared many from theexploitationand abuse of the crime that treats mostly women and childrenasmere commodities to be bought and sold." The 2000lawincluded the Campus Sex Crimes Prevention Act and the Battered Immigrant Women Protection Act and reauthorized the Violence Against Women Act. It also provided for sheltering and a national hotline available 24/7(888) 373-7888and for refugees, created a new asylum categorythe T visato protect victims and their families. The visa enables certain humantraffickingvictims to remain in the United States for up to four years if they have assistedlawenforcement in an investigation or prosecution of humantrafficking. Smithsponsored four additional laws to combat humantraffickingin 2003, 2005, 2016 and 2019. Signed intolawby President Donald Trump, the 2019lawis called the Frederick DouglassTraffickingVictims Prevention and Protection Act. Thelawfor the first time authorizes federal grants for local educational agencies "to educate school staff to recognize and respond to signs of sex and labortraffickingand provide age-appropriate information to students on how to avoid becoming victims," saidSmith, who founded the Congressional HumanTraffickingCaucus and has chaired dozens of hearings on humantrafficking. "Twenty years after the TVPA becamelaw, the nefarious trade in women and childrenmodern-day slaveryhas become more visible and a more urgent priority forlawenforcement on all levels," the congressman said. "Much remains to be done to protect victims, prosecute traffickers and prevent humantrafficking. Rep. ChrisSmith's complete op-ed can be found on the website of the Asbury Park Press,https://bit.ly/35FEqbW. https://trentonmonitor.com/Content/Default/World-Nation/Article/As-trafficking-law-turns-20-Rep-Smith-fears-pandemic-fosters-child-exploitation/-3/274/24173 | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z |