Sex Trafficking Laws and Penalties

Sex trafficking is a crime in all 50 states and under federal law. It may fall under provisions prohibiting human trafficking, promotion or advancement of prostitution, commercial sex acts, or similar laws. Most often, sex trafficking convictions carry lengthy prison sentences, harsh fines, and additional penalties. Learn how federal and state laws define and penalize sex trafficking of adults and children.

What Is Sex Trafficking?

Sex trafficking occurs when someone:

• uses force, threats, fraud, or coercion to exploit an adult for commercial sex acts, or
• exploits or induces a minor younger than 18 for commercial sex acts.

Commercial sex acts can include prostitution, pornography, and sexual performances done in exchange for, or under the promise of receiving, anything of value, including money, drugs, alcohol, shelter, food, or clothes.

Common types of force, threats, fraud, and coercion used in sex trafficking include actual or threatened force or violence, physical restraint, threats to harm family members, withholding drugs or food, threats of deportation, isolation, economic or emotional abuse, and confiscation of identity documents.

Is Sex Trafficking Different From Human Trafficking or Smuggling?

Sex trafficking is a type of human trafficking. Human trafficking involves the exploitation of a person for labor, services, or commercial sex acts. It's distinct from human smuggling, which involves bringing persons across international borders. Human trafficking doesn't require any movement to be a crime.

Human trafficking can be defined broadly as:

• persuading, recruiting, harboring, or transporting a person
• through means of fraud, force, or coercion
• to exploit or compel the person to provide labor, services, or commercial sex acts.

When the victim is a child, most trafficking laws don't require proof of fraud, force, or coercion.

How Common Is Sex Trafficking in the U.S.?

Hard statistics are difficult to come by in sex trafficking. In recent years (2020 to 2023), the National Human Trafficking Hotline identified around 16,000 human trafficking victims in the United States. A large majority of these victims involve sex trafficking. However, these statistics only represent reports made to the hotline. Other estimates suggest as many as 1.1 million people in the U.S. are human trafficking victims (labor, services, and sexual servitude).

Misconceptions Regarding Sex Trafficking

It's a common misperception that sex trafficking is an underground industry involving kidnapping and violence. Rather, sex trafficking occurs in broad daylight. Common settings for sex trafficking include escort services, fake massage services, street solicitation, restaurants, bars, dance and strip clubs, hotels, pornography production, and internet live streaming.

Who's at Risk for Sex Trafficking

Anyone can be at risk, though the most vulnerable tend to be persons experiencing housing insecurity, substance abuse, domestic violence, or child abuse or neglect, as well as runaway youth, persons without legal immigration status, and anyone in a marginalized community, such as LGBTQI+ individuals, people of color, Indigenous persons, and persons with disabilities.

Most victims know their traffickers as romantic partners, friends, peers, employers, or family members. They can be pimps, gang members, business owners, celebrities, or part of a criminal enterprise. Victims might not even realize they're being trafficked. Traffickers recruit and groom their victims and then use coercion and control to maintain power over the victim.

Traffickers and Patrons Drive the Industry

Traffickers aren't the only ones responsible for sex trafficking. The industry thrives on demand, which means buyers of commercial sex acts increase the demand and incentive for traffickers to exploit individuals.

Is Sex Trafficking a Federal or State Crime?

Federal and state laws make sex trafficking a serious felony offense. A state has jurisdiction to prosecute sex trafficking when any part of the offense occurs in the state. For federal jurisdiction to apply, the crime must occur in or affect interstate commerce. Interstate commerce can involve physical movement across state lines, economic transactions, or other activities. In one case, the court found a defendant's actions affected interstate commerce when he used text and electronic means to recruit victims and facilitate meetups for commercial sex.

In sex trafficking cases, state and federal authorities may have jurisdiction over the same criminal act. They may confer and decide whether to prosecute the person or enterprise in state or federal court. Dual prosecution may occur, but as a practical matter, this situation doesn't often happen.

Federal Sex Trafficking Laws and Penalties

Federal law criminalizes:

• sex trafficking of children younger than 18, and
• sex trafficking of adults involving the threat or use of force, fraud, or coercion.

The law applies to traffickers, buyers (patrons), and anyone who benefits financially from another's sex trafficking. Generally, the prosecution must prove the defendant knew or recklessly disregarded the victim's age or that force, fraud, or coercion was used to cause an adult victim to engage in a sex act. Proof of force, fraud, or coercion is not needed if the victim is younger than 18.

Federal sex trafficking penalties carry minimum prison terms of 10 or 15 years and up to life imprisonment. Attempts and conspiracies come with similar penalties. It's also a crime to obstruct or attempt to obstruct a sex trafficking investigation. This crime can mean up to 25 years in federal prison.

(18 U.S.C. §§ 1591, 1594, 2423, 2428 (2024); 22 U.S.C. § 7102 (2024); U.S. v. Cook, 782 F.3d 983 (8th Cir. 2015).)

State Sex Trafficking Laws and Penalties

State laws also prohibit sex trafficking. Their definitions of sex trafficking vary, but many are similar to the federal definition. A state might have a separate sex trafficking law or a human trafficking law that covers labor, services, and sex trafficking. State laws also differ on whether trafficking penalties apply to the buyers of sex. In some states, patrons' acts are criminalized under lower-level offenses pertaining to paying for, or solicitation of, prostitution services.

Child Sex Trafficking and Other Aggravating Factors

Many states impose harsher penalties for child sex trafficking and sex trafficking involving other vulnerable individuals, such as persons with mental disabilities. Other circumstances that may enhance sex trafficking penalties include inflicting serious injuries to a victim, raping or physically restraining a victim, or administering intoxicants to a victim without consent.

Examples of State Penalties for Sex Trafficking

Traffickers generally face felony charges—often with the possibility of a decade or more behind bars. Take the following examples.

California makes child sex trafficking a felony punishable by up to 12 years in prison and a $500,000 fine. If the offense involved fear, fraud, deceit, violence, duress, or threats, the penalty increases to 15 years to life imprisonment. Mistake of age is not a defense. (Cal. Penal Code § 236.1 (2024).)

New York makes sex trafficking a class B felony, punishable by up to 25 years in prison. Child sex trafficking and sex trafficking of an adult using or threatening force or violence are considered class B violent felonies and carry minimum prison terms. (N.Y. Penal Law §§ 230.34, 230.34-A (2024).)

Texas has one crime called "Trafficking of Persons" which includes trafficking for labor, services, prostitution, pornography, and other sex acts. Sex trafficking offenses carry first- and second-degree felony charges. A defendant convicted of a second-degree felony faces 2 to 20 years in prison. First-degree felony offenses are punishable by life. These offenses include child sex trafficking, sex trafficking involving weapons, strangulation, or serious bodily injuries, or offenses taking place near schools, shelters, and other centers providing services to vulnerable populations. (Tex. Penal Code § 20A.02 (2024).)

How to Recognize and Report Sex Trafficking

It's important to remember that sex trafficking can happen anywhere to anyone.

Recognizing How Sex Trafficking Occurs

Organizations dedicated to stopping sex trafficking focus on context and proximity of who you know, rather than certain signs. For instance, pay attention to people you interact with or come in contact with, such as students, employees, patients, family members, friends, and co-workers. If something has changed in their appearance, behavior, or situation, take notice.

Know that traffickers commonly recognize and take advantage of vulnerable individuals—someone with an addiction problem, runaway youth, undocumented persons, and persons struggling with trauma or discrimination. They groom and control these individuals. A victim might become isolated, exhausted, tired, or scared but doesn't necessarily know they're being trafficked. Victims might receive lavish gifts for a time from a controlling partner. Trafficking can also occur online in chat rooms, multi-player games, and over social media.

Reporting Sex Trafficking or Seeking Help

If you're a trafficking victim seeking help, or you have information about a possible trafficking situation, there are several places to contact:

• Call 911 if you or someone else is in immediate danger
• Call 1-888-373-7888 (the National Human Trafficking Hotline)
• Text 233733 (the National Human Trafficking Hotline)
• Live chat at humantraffickinghotline.org/chat
• Email [email protected]
• Contact the CyberTipline for reporting child sexual exploitation

You can find more information at:

• the National Human Trafficking Hotline
• the Polaris Project
• Shared Hope International, and
• Office on Trafficking in Persons.

Getting Legal Help

If you're facing a criminal investigation or charges, contact a criminal defense attorney. For federal charges, you'll want to find an attorney who practices in federal court.

Survivors of trafficking may want to speak with an advocate or organization that provides services to victims. A survivor might also want to contact an attorney to discuss options for seeking criminal restitution or a civil judgment against the offender.