What is Human Sex Trafficking in Louisiana 

Human sex trafficking is one of the world’s largest and fastest-growing criminal industries. According to Louisiana law, human sex trafficking is not defined as sex slavery or forced prostitution. Instead, Louisiana law defines human sex trafficking as someone knowingly recruiting, harboring, transporting, soliciting, or maintaining another person through fraud, deceit, or force to provide labor. This statute also includes people that facilitate the trafficking of another person for labor or knowingly benefit from the trafficking of another person. 

The facilitation of human sex trafficking includes, but is not limited to, abetting, conspiring, or aiding in trafficking another person. A person may be found guilty of human sex trafficking even if they receive nothing of value in return for the activity. 

What are the Penalties for Human Sex Trafficking in Louisiana

Louisiana human sex trafficking penalties are steep. A person convicted of human trafficking may be fined up to $10,000 and imprisoned for up to 10 years. If the conviction includes commercial sexual activities or any sexual conduct constituting a crime under Louisiana law, the fine may be up to $15,000 and imprisonment of up to 20 years. Furthermore, if the human trafficking act involves a person knowingly recruiting, harboring, transporting, providing, soliciting, selling, purchasing, receiving, isolating, enticing, obtaining, or maintaining the use of a person under the age of 21 for the purpose of engaging in commercial sexual activities, then the accused can be fined up to $50,000 and imprisoned between 15-50 years. 

Penalties for these crimes are harsh because of the cruelty of the crime against humanity. It’s also important to note that these penalties will likely worsen if a victim dies as a result of the crime. Additionally, factors such as age, health, and the torment the victim experienced can increase the severity of the case.  

Aspects of a Human Sex Trafficking Defense Case

When someone faces human sex trafficking charges, it typically means the prosecution believes they have sufficient evidence to lay charges at the accused of involvement in the servitude, forced labor, forced sexual activities, or the abductions of individuals to other locations or countries. Evidence of these crimes may exist in video surveillance, witness testimony, DNA evidence, or other evidence that ties the alleged offender to the crime. 

A legal defense attorney will need to refute the charges, challenge the evidence, or enter into a plea bargain if there is sufficient evidence to seek a guilty verdict. From a defense perspective, the accused may face an uphill battle with the greater amount of evidence available working against them in their case. Nonetheless, the job of a prosecutor is to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the accused committed the alleged crime, and there are ways for a defense attorney to create reasonable doubt or even prove that there is insufficient evidence to convict you and thereby get the case dismissed. 

A key element of a human sex trafficking charge is in the Louisiana statute definition of human sex trafficking—the word “knowingly.” The prosecutor has the burden of proof in demonstrating beyond a reasonable doubt that you know that human sex trafficking was occurring. A defense lawyer can then prove that you did not know the crime was occurring or that you did not knowingly commit the crime.