INDIANAPOLIS-In an effort to address the distressing statistics regarding sexual assaults against young Hoosier girls, State Representative Gail Riecken (D-Evansville) has authored House Resolution 12 which requests the legislative counsel authorize a study committee to investigate human sex trafficking on the Internet.
“The average age when these children are first used in commercial sex is between 12 and 14 years old,†said Riecken. “All children are at risk of being trafficked because they are vulnerable and often fall prey to predators who use them in online advertisements for sex.â€
The resolution, which passed unanimously out of the House, states that the study committee would be assigned to analyze the legal issues relating to the regulation of adult services as well as evaluate whether the Indiana courts would have jurisdiction over Internet sites that contain adult service advertisements.
Riecken said that it is common for children to be trafficked on the Internet because it is very difficult for law enforcement to find the victim or apprehend the perpetrator. Often times, these children are sold on escort sites where the trafficker takes pictures of that child scantily dressed, then advertises for customers to exploit her.
“These advertisements have the ability to reach into hundreds of thousands of Hoosier homes on a daily basis,†said Riecken. “We know that these sites have been found to involve illegal activity including sex trafficking.â€
Riecken fears that because online advertising is one of the most visible activities of business, more and more children are being victimized and becoming at risk of being a part of the staggering statistics that reveal 1 out of every 6 girls are sexually assaulted or raped.
Tasked with considering how other states have regulated adult service advertisements, the study committee would determine the appropriate sanctions for an entity that advertises services that engage underage children in sex industries.
“Human trafficking is the second largest and fastest growing criminal industry in the world,†said Riecken. “Trafficking of children is a problem in Indiana and there is a critical need to determine the scope of this problem in the age of Internet technology.â€
Am I seeing a pattern here? With Krull’s article and now this from Riecken, are the democrats creating a new strategy to derail a marriage amendment?
I hope that Riecken and the democrats are not using a serious issue as a political lever.
Human trafficking and slavery is not a new problem. It existed when the democrats were in the majority. So why the sudden urgency? maybe it should have been an Urbana urgency rather than blocking the legislature to stall a bill that benefited Hoosiers but your political pals didn’t like?
More people are working as slaves, especially sex slaves, than in the history of the world.
But you don’t need another study. Numerous organizations have already done the leg work. http://www.buzzle.com/articles/human-trafficking-statistics.html I know people involved in rescuing these victims. Drop me a line Gail and I will hook you up with some contacts.
However, studies and regulations will not solve this issue. Do you really think these criminals care about your regulations?????
I just hope you are not attempting to make political hay with this serious issue.
Another completely toothless effort from a legislator who is obviously pandering to another demographic with little or no Internet savvy.
Does Gail think the State of Indiana can pull switches to turn off websites? How can Internet sex trafficking possibly be made more illegal than it already is?
What am I missing?
My take is that she is attempting to find answers to protect and educate children. The internet and the law is a tangled mess. But we as a society should find ways to protect our children, perhaps for the pressures of conformity, of peer pressure, of the misinformation that surrounds growing up too fast in today’s world. You have a daughter Brad. How will you teach her to gradually stand on her own and then let her go. Some children get thrust into that situation much too young and with minimal self-esteem.
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