{"id":2081109,"date":"2023-10-27T09:08:04","date_gmt":"2023-10-27T13:08:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/california-attorney-general-supports-restitution-for-sex-trafficking-victims\/"},"modified":"2023-10-27T09:12:06","modified_gmt":"2023-10-27T13:12:06","slug":"california-attorney-general-supports-restitution-for-sex-trafficking-victims","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/california-attorney-general-supports-restitution-for-sex-trafficking-victims\/","title":{"rendered":"CA Attorney General backs restitution for sex trafficking victims."},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">18<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fcalifornia-attorney-general-supports-restitution-for-sex-trafficking-victims%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2081109&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><blockquote>\n<h2>California Attorney General Urges Court to Reverse \u200dDecision Denying Restitution to \u200bSex Trafficking Survivor<\/h2>\n<p>After a recent Solano County Superior Court\u2062 ruling denied a survivor \u200bof sex trafficking the\u2064 right to\u2063 restitution \u2064from her trafficker, California Attorney General Rob \u200cBonta\u2014the state\u2019s chief\u2064 law officer\u2014recommended this week the court reverse its decision.<\/p>\n<p>Mr. Bonta filed an amicus brief with the\u2062 court Oct. 23 saying \u2062he has \u201cgreat interest\u201d in\u2063 the legal issue and is able\u2064 to assist \u200cwith his perspective and argument on the matter. In such a brief, the court can consider or \u2062ignore Mr. Bonta\u2019s remarks.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHuman trafficking is\u2062 a heinous \u200dcrime and\u202fsurvivors deserve our support as they \u2064heal,&#8221;\u202fsaid Mr. Bonta in a press release the same day.\u202f\u201cToday&#8217;s amicus brief\u202fdoes just that by\u202fsupporting \u200bthe right of survivors \u2063to receive restitution.\u202fThis survivor was exploited and abused by her trafficker; it goes beyond reason to deny her\u202frestitution to which she is\u2064 legally\u2062 entitled.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<div class=\"shortcode\"><!--$--><\/p>\n<div class=\"border-comp-divider mb-4 mr-4 w-full max-w-[500px] border px-5 py-4 text-[16px] leading-[20px] text-[#262626] md:float-left\" id=\"in_article_related_stories\">\n<h2 class=\"mb-3 font-sans text-[16px] font-semibold uppercase leading-[19px] text-[#2F2F2F]\">Related Stories<\/h2>\n<div class=\"mb-4 flex gap-2\">\n<div class=\"grow\">\n<div class=\"mb-1 line-clamp-4 sm:line-clamp-3\">\n<a href=\"http:\/\/www.theepochtimes.com\/us\/authorities-arrest-14-suspects-in-child-sex-trafficking-crackdown-in-california-5516915?ea_src=author_manual&#038;ea_med=related_stories\"><\/p>\n<h3 class=\"text-sm sm:text-base\">Authorities Arrest 14 Suspects in Child Sex Trafficking Crackdown in California<\/h3>\n<p><\/a>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"text-comp-caption text-[14px] leading-[18px]\">10\/25\/2023<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"shrink-0 basis-[70px] sm:basis-[120px]\">\n<a href=\"http:\/\/www.theepochtimes.com\/us\/authorities-arrest-14-suspects-in-child-sex-trafficking-crackdown-in-california-5516915?ea_src=author_manual&#038;ea_med=related_stories\">\n<picture><source type=\"image\/webp\" https:><\/source><source type=\"image\/jpeg\" https:><\/source>\n<\/picture>\n<\/a>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"mb-4 flex gap-2\">\n<div class=\"grow\">\n<div class=\"mb-1 line-clamp-4 sm:line-clamp-3\">\n<a href=\"http:\/\/www.theepochtimes.com\/article\/pornhub-sued-for-publishing-videos-of-sex-trafficking-victims-5503043?ea_src=author_manual&#038;ea_med=related_stories\"><\/p>\n<h3 class=\"text-sm sm:text-base\">Pornhub Sued for Publishing Videos of Sex Trafficking Victims<\/h3>\n<p><\/a>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"text-comp-caption text-[14px] leading-[18px]\">10\/5\/2023<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"shrink-0 basis-[70px] sm:basis-[120px]\">\n<a href=\"http:\/\/www.theepochtimes.com\/article\/pornhub-sued-for-publishing-videos-of-sex-trafficking-victims-5503043?ea_src=author_manual&#038;ea_med=related_stories\">\n<picture><source type=\"image\/webp\" https:><\/source><source type=\"image\/jpeg\" https:><\/source>\n<\/picture>\n<\/a>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><!--\/$--><\/div>\n<p>At \u2062issue is a victim who was forced to\u200b perform commercial \u2063sex acts, of which she received no payment, by a defendant,\u2063 Lamar Deshawn Hall, as well as others.<\/p>\n<p>According to Mr. Bonta, the court denied the woman restitution for her lost \u200cwages because commercial sex \u200bis illegal. But \u2064he argued in his brief \u2063to the court that \u2064its decision was a misinterpretation of law, since the\u200d victim was forced into the occupation.<\/p>\n<p>Mr.\u200b Bonta argued\u200d that regardless of what a person is forced to do, whether it \u200dis picking \u200cfruit, harvesting marijuana, providing salon\u2064 services, working as\u2062 a caretaker \u200cor servant, or performing commercial sex, victims \u2062in each\u2064 case lose their freedom\u2063 and \u2062are forced to work for free.<\/p>\n<div class=\"post-figure\">\n<figure style=\"width:600px\" class=\"alignnone\"><figcaption>  California Attorney General \u200cRob Bonta speaks during a news conference in San \u200cFrancisco\u2062 on Nov. 15, 2021. (Justin Sullivan\/Getty Images)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p>Assembly Bill 22, approved\u200c by then Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger in 2005,\u2062 authorized restitution\u2064 for lost wages to victims of trafficking. The court, in its decision, created an added requirement that the \u200bearnings cannot be the product of commercial sex, since it\u2019s legal, which Mr. Bonta argued against.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe superior court\u2019s \u2062interpretation swallows up the statute and misses its purpose: to allow\u2062 human trafficking victims &#8230; a \u200bchance \u200cto recover from the devastating \u200cphysical, mental and\u2062 financial harm caused by the defendant,\u201d he wrote in \u2062the brief.<\/p>\n<p>In the press release, he \u2063also stated that denying the woman in the case restitution for the\u2063 \u201cwork\u201d \u2063she \u200dwas forced \u2064to perform has implications \u200cthat she was at fault, instead of the \u2062trafficker.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s imperative that the restitution rights of trafficking victims be\u200b enforced\u200b so that they \u2062have a chance to recover from the devastating physical,\u200b mental, and financial impact of\u200d this extreme \u200dform of abuse,\u201d the press release reads.<\/p>\n<p>In 2021, the National Human Trafficking \u2064Hotline\u2014which helps connect victims to \u2064services reported 1,300 human\u200c trafficking cases in California, \u200cthe most in the nation at the time. According to the\u2064 press release, trafficking \u200bin the state is most \u200cprevalent \u2063in hospitality, commercial sex, domestic \u2062work, and construction \u2063industries, as well as \u200dwith migrants working in seasonal \u2062agricultural, residential care, and\u2062 in the garment sector.<\/p>\n<p>In\u200b response, Mr. Bonta launched the same year two teams within the California Department of Justice,\u200d with one covering\u2063 Northern California\u2064 and the other Southern California, to work with law enforcement \u2062to \u2063crack down on \u200bthe issue.<\/p>\n<p>Other efforts include the San Diego\u200b Human Trafficking \u2062Task\u200d Force, which \u2063also works with the DOJ, leading to the arrest of 627 traffickers and 647 victims helped\u2062 since the work began in 2015, according to the press release.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDenying recovery to\u202fa sex trafficking victim reinforces\u202fthe stigma that \u200dthese victims\u202ftoo often face\u2063 in coming forward in the first place. The California \u200cDepartment of Justice will continue to do its part\u2063 to\u2064 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/vp-harris-tells-illegal-migrants-do-not-come\/\" title=\"VP Harris Tells Illegal Migrants: 'Do Not Come'\">combat human trafficking<\/a>\u200b and protect California&#8217;s communities,\u201d Mr. Bonta said in the press \u2062release.<\/p>\n<p> <\/p>\n<h2> How \u2062does the denial of restitution for <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/pornhub-parent-company-denies-reports-that-employees-are-fleeing\/\" title=\"Pornhub Parent Company Denies Reports That Employees Are Fleeing\">sex trafficking survivors<\/a> undermine their rights and perpetuate their victimization<\/h2>\n<p><span>  Bonta argues is a misinterpretation\u2062 of the law. He asserts\u200b that under California law, anyone who is coerced or \u2063forced into performing \u2063labor or services is entitled to\u2062 restitution for their lost wages, regardless of the nature\u200b of the\u2062 work.<\/p>\n<p>Sex trafficking\u200b is a grave violation of human rights and a serious crime that inflicts immense physical, emotional, and\u200b psychological harm on its victims. It \u2062is an exploitative industry that\u2062 preys on vulnerable individuals, often \u2062trapping them in a cycle of abuse and degradation. Victims of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/california-attorney-general-supports-restitution-for-sex-trafficking-victims\/\" title=\"CA Attorney General backs restitution for sex trafficking victims.\">sex trafficking endure unimaginable suffering<\/a> and deserve justice\u200b and support as they \u200drebuild their lives.<\/p>\n<p>Restitution plays\u2063 a crucial role in the recovery and \u2062healing process for survivors of\u200d sex trafficking.\u200d It\u2062 not only provides them with financial compensation for the wages they were denied but also acknowledges the harm they have suffered and helps restore their dignity and \u2064autonomy. Denying restitution to survivors perpetuates their victimization\u200c and further marginalizes them,\u2064 leaving\u2062 them without the resources necessary to\u200d rebuild their lives.<\/p>\n<p>The denial of restitution\u200d in this particular case sets a concerning precedent that undermines the rights of sex trafficking survivors \u200cand fails to recognize the true nature of their exploitation. \u2062By categorizing commercial sex as \u200billegal work, the court ignores the fundamental fact that these individuals were\u200d coerced and forced into this occupation against their\u2062 will. It is \u200dunjust to punish victims for engaging in work they were compelled to do under duress.<\/p>\n<p>California has been a leader in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/white-house-releases-list-of-president-trumps-accomplishments-and-it-is-historic\/\" title=\"White House Releases List of President Trump\u2019s Accomplishments \u2013  And It Is Historic!\">combating human trafficking<\/a> and supporting survivors. Assembly \u2062Bill 22, which was enacted to provide restitution for lost wages to victims \u2063of trafficking, reflects the state&#8217;s commitment to addressing \u200cthis issue effectively. However, the \u200dcourt&#8217;s decision contradicts the spirit and intention of this legislation and hinders the progress made in protecting and \u2062advocating for survivors.<\/p>\n<p>The amicus brief filed by\u2062 Attorney General Bonta highlights the urgency and importance\u2064 of rectifying \u2063this decision. By voicing his support for the survivor&#8217;s \u2062right to\u200d restitution, he emphasizes \u200bthe need to prioritize the well-being and rights of sex trafficking\u200d survivors. It is crucial that \u200dthe court reconsider its ruling and\u2064 align its decision with the principles of justice, compassion, and\u2064 the fight against human trafficking.<\/p>\n<p>Sex trafficking is a global crisis that demands a comprehensive and united response. Governments, law enforcement agencies, \u2064and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/chinese-government-erasing-western-retailers-online-stores-locations-for-voicing-human-rights-concerns\/\" title=\"Chinese Government Erasing Western Retailers\u2019 Online Stores, Locations For Voicing Human Rights Concerns\">civil society organizations<\/a> must work together to\u2064 strengthen legal frameworks, raise awareness, support \u200csurvivors, and\u200c hold traffickers accountable. By rejecting the denial of restitution in this case, California can set an example for other states and nations in prioritizing the rights and well-being of sex trafficking survivors.<\/p>\n<p>It is essential that we recognize the inherent vulnerability \u2064and immense courage \u200bof \u200dsex trafficking survivors. \u2064Denying them the restitution they are entitled to further victimizes them and perpetuates the cycle of\u2063 exploitation.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>California Attorney General Rob Bonta urged the Solano County Superior Court to reconsider its decision denying restitution to a sex trafficking survivor. In an amicus brief filed on October 23, Bonta expressed his strong interest in the case and recommended a reversal of the ruling. He serves as the state&#8217;s top legal official.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1349,"featured_media":2081110,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/IMG_2758-scaled-1.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[543],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2081109","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-epoch-times"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/IMG_2758-scaled-1.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2081109","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1349"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2081109"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2081109\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2081110"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2081109"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2081109"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2081109"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}