Human Trafficking Defense

Oklahoma Human Trafficking Attorney

The Wyatt Law Office represents those accused of human trafficking, child trafficking for adoption kidnapping and other violent crimes. Human trafficking charges may be filed in federal or state court. We have represented dozens charged with virtually any violent crime under the State and federal criminal codes. If you are charged with a human trafficking or any other violent crime, you will need counsel. Our lawyers are familiar with the law, the defenses to these crimes, and with the criminal justice system. Whether you are guilty and need to negotiate a plea or you simply want a jury trial (whether innocent or guilty), we will defend you. Your future is our business.

Federal Crimes

The federal laws involving human trafficking include:

• Human Trafficking & Trafficking for Prostitution. See 18 U.S.C. §§ 2421, 2423 and 2251A(a) and (b).
• Traveling for Sex with Children. It is also a crime for an adult to travel across state or federal borders for the purpose of engaging in sex. See 18 U.S.C. § 2423(b).
• Solicitation of Children for Sex. 18 U.S.C. § 2425 makes it a crime to use interstate facilities (i.e., the Internet or phones) to transmit information about an individual under the age of 16, with “the intent to entice, encourage, offer, or solicit that minor to engage in any sexual activity that can be charged as a criminal offense.”

State Crimes

The applicable Oklahoma laws are described below.

Oklahoma Human Trafficking Defense

Basically, human trafficking as defined by Oklahoma law as extremely exploiting or to deny freedom or liberty for the purpose of benefitting from commercial sex acts (such as prostitution) or forced labor. This statute (21 Okl.St.Ann. § 748) and criminal charge is used often by District Attorneys in order to charge a felony (rather than misdemeanor) for pandering and pimping or even engaging in prostitution. Human trafficking is a serious felony charge that subjects the accused to lengthy prison terms and sex offender registration.

For purposes of this statute, the following terms apply to Human trafficking:

1. “Coercion” means compelling, forcing or intimidating a person to act by:

a. threats of harm or physical restraint against any person,

b. any act, scheme, plan, or pattern intended to cause a person to believe that performing, or failing to perform, an act would result in serious physical, financial, or emotional harm or distress to or physical restraint against any person,

c. the abuse or threatened abuse of the law or legal process,

d. knowingly destroying, concealing, removing, confiscating or possessing any actual or purported passport, labor or immigration document, or other government identification document, including but not limited to a driver license or birth certificate, of another person,

e. facilitating or controlling a person’s access to any addictive or controlled substance other than for legal medical purposes,

f. blackmail,

g. demanding or claiming money, goods, or any other thing of value from or on behalf of a prostituted person where such demand or claim arises from or is directly related to the act of prostitution,

h. determining, dictating or setting the times at which another person will be available to engage in an act of prostitution with a third party,

i. determining, dictating or setting the places at which another person will be available for solicitation of, or to engage in, an act of prostitution with a third party, or

j. determining, dictating or setting the places at which another person will reside for purposes of making such person available to engage in an act of prostitution with a third party;

2. “Commercial sex” means any form of commercial sexual activity such as sexually explicit performances, prostitution, participation in the production of pornography, performance in a strip club, or exotic dancing or display;

3. “Debt bondage” means the status or condition of a debtor arising from a pledge by the debtor of his or her personal services or of those of a person under his or her control as a security for debt if the value of those services as reasonably assessed is not applied toward the liquidation of the debt or the length and nature of those services are not respectively limited and defined;

4. “Human trafficking” means modern-day slavery that includes, but is not limited to, extreme exploitation and the denial of freedom or liberty of an individual for purposes of deriving benefit from that individual’s commercial sex act or labor;

5. “Human trafficking for labor” means:

a. recruiting, enticing, harboring, maintaining, transporting, providing or obtaining, by any means, another person through deception, force, fraud, threat or coercion or for purposes of engaging the person in labor, or

b. benefiting, financially or by receiving anything of value, from participation in a venture that has engaged in an act of trafficking for labor;

6. “Human trafficking for commercial sex” means:

a. recruiting, enticing, harboring, maintaining, transporting, providing or obtaining, by any means, another person through deception, force, fraud, threat or coercion for purposes of engaging the person in a commercial sex act,

b. recruiting, enticing, harboring, maintaining, transporting, providing, purchasing or obtaining, by any means, a minor for purposes of engaging the minor in a commercial sex act, or

c. benefiting, financially or by receiving anything of value, from participating in a venture that has engaged in an act of trafficking for commercial sex;

7. “Legal process” means the criminal law, the civil law, or the regulatory system of the federal government, any state, territory, district, commonwealth, or trust territory therein, and any foreign government or subdivision thereof and includes legal civil actions, criminal actions, and regulatory petitions or applications;

8. “Minor” means an individual under eighteen (18) years of age; and

9. “Victim” means a person against whom a violation of any provision of this section has been committed.

Punishment for Human Trafficking

The Legislature has added human trafficking to the 85% list. That means that if convicted of human trafficking, one must serve not less than 85% of the sentence imposed before being eligible for credits toward early release.

In addition, the punishment includes: imprisonment in the custody of the Department of Corrections for not less than five (5) years, or by a fine of not more than $10,000, or by both.

If the victim is under the age of 18 at the time of the offense, the punishment is enhanced to not less than ten (10) years or by a fine up to $20,000, or by both such fine and imprisonment.

The court shall also order the defendant to pay restitution to the victim as provided in Section 991f of Title 22 of the Oklahoma Statutes.

Experienced Human Trafficking Defense Lawyers

Call the Wyatt Law Office at 405.234.5500 for your Oklahoma Human Trafficking Lawyers and Attorneys to defend you.

*Note: Results may vary because each case must be decided on its own unique facts and the law applicable to that given case. You should not infer the likelihood of success on a given case based on past cases handled by this firm.