Family Involved Human Trafficking: An Analysis of State and Federal Cases

Author: Nichols, Andrea; Heil, Erin; Hudson, Stephanie & Volkl, Heidi

Abstract: Research exploring family members as perpetrators or facilitators of human trafficking is limited. The present study aimed to increase understandings of family involved sex and labor trafficking through analysis of prosecuted cases to contribute to this small body of literature. The current study is based on content analysis of 11 federal and 5 state cases of human trafficking involving family members. Data analysis involved an inductive multi-phase independent co-coding process conducted by pairs of coders engaged in selective and open coding of the cases to identify themes and subthemes. The results revealed that relatively few cases of family involved trafficking are prosecuted, most cases involve domestic sex trafficking of minor girls in the form of child sexual abuse imagery, fathers were most frequently the perpetrators, and force, fraud, or coercion were present in all the cases. Child sexual abuse was a background risk factor of sex trafficking, while poverty was a risk factor in both sex and labor trafficking involving family members. Mental health impacts were experienced by sex and labor trafficking survivors. Implications for practitioners include using screening questions specific to family involved trafficking, cross training in multiple organizational sectors inclusive of diverse case scenarios of family involved human trafficking, and policy advocacy requiring mandatory screening in child welfare systems as well as funding streams for poverty alleviation programs to reduce risk. Implications for prosecutors include resource referrals to address mental health impacts and seeking restitution for costs of therapy in prosecution efforts.

Keywords: human trafficking, labor trafficking, sex trafficking, commercial sexual exploitation, familial trafficking, family involved trafficking, prosecution