Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel on Jan. 31 shared the Michigan Human Trafficking Commission’s 2021 Annual Report, available on the Department of Attorney General’s website.
In January – for Human Trafficking Awareness Day – the Department highlighted resources available and important work being done to combat trafficking.
The annual report is provided to the governor and Legislature each year to summarize those efforts.
“As we look ahead, I am encouraged by continued attention to the crime, its victims and survivors and efforts to prevent trafficking. I continue to be impressed with the Commission’s accomplishments, especially considering its lack of funding. Yet, through the dedication and passion of the Commission members, community partners and Department of Attorney General staff, the Commission continues to make excellent progress,” Nessel said.
Seven committees make up the Commission: Data Collection and Research; Funding and Resources; Policy and Legislation; Public Awareness; Training and Education; Victim Services; and Courts/Summit.
One of the biggest accomplishments from 2021 was bolstering public awareness resources and training that the Commission made available through its website.
Every time a new resource is available, it’s announced through the commission’s updates page online. The public can sign up online to receive updates when they go out.
The commission also approved a commission-sponsored training: Sex Trafficking Investigations for Law Enforcement: Sleuthing Force, Fraud or Coercion–Dispelling the “Consensual” Myth.” This training was a culmination of ongoing conversations across the Policy and Legislation, Victim Services, and Funding and Resources committees. The training is expected to be developed by early 2022 and offered early in the year.
Also stemming from collaboration with the Policy and Legislation Committee, early planning is underway on creating a training for the defense bar for those who may be (unknowingly) representing victims of sex trafficking with a view toward highlighting statutory protections available for sex trafficking victims.
