BCS Staff Attend Fordham Law School's Sex Trafficking Conference
The conference provided an in-depth look at New York’s Human
Trafficking Intervention Courts (also known as "AP-8" parts), which were implemented
in October 2013, under the leadership of New York State Chief Judge Jonathan
Lippman. One of the highlights of the day was the judges’ panel, on which Hon.
Fernando Camacho, Hon. William O’Brien, and Hon. Toko Serita spoke about their
experiences in the early days of creating “prostitution diversion” courts.
Judge Camacho shared a poignant story of a young girl who repeatedly came through
his courtroom, whom he began to recognize was not a “criminal,” but a child desperately
in need of support. By hearing the stories of the defendants in their
courtrooms and striving to understand their lives, these judges began to
implement alternative sentencing practices that led to the official creation of
the AP-8 parts. The judges discussed the challenges of the work,
emphasizing that the goal of the intervention courts is not to rescue. Rather,
the courts provide an opportunity for defendants to connect with legal and
social resources, and to find support of their choosing.
Later in the day, The Center for Court Innovation’s
Coordinator of Trafficking Programs, Miriam Goodman, moderated a panel on the
impact of trauma on trafficking victims. The panel featured women from a range
of professions, including nursing and medicine, social work, and psychology.
Dr. Veronica Ades spoke about the Empower Clinic at Gouverneur Health, which
offers low-fee services to survivors of sex trafficking and sexual violence.
Jaime Hedlund of STEPS to End Family Violence spoke about the use of yoga and
bodywork to aid in trauma recovery. Kate B. Nooner, a psychologist at the University
of North Carolina at Wilmington, gave a presentation on the effects of trauma
in the brain. Although the presentation demonstrated how deeply trauma can
impact a person’s psychological functioning and development, it offered a great
deal of hope and insight into how resilient the human brain, mind and body can
be when provided with social, familial, and clinical support.
Overall, the conference created a great deal of inspiration
and hope. While we still have a long way to go, it was incredibly encouraging
to be in a room filled with men and women from so many professional
backgrounds, all working toward the prevention of commercial sex trafficking.
With the advent of the Human Trafficking Intervention Courts, we seem to be in a time
of significant change—both in policies and attitudes. While our courts are
changing to help protect, rather than criminalize, victims of sex trafficking, they
have also begun to recognize that all individuals engaged in sex
work—regardless of whether they do so by choice or by coercion—are human beings
of great worth who deserve respect, opportunity, and empowerment.
- Charlotte Weber, MSW
AP-8 Case Manager, Bronx Community Solutions
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