Senate Judiciary Committee set for decision-making on sex trafficking bill next week

The Senate Judiciary Committee is scheduled for decision-making next week on a House bill that would authorize sex trafficking victims to file civil lawsuits against the perpetrators of what’s been called a “form of modern-day slavery.”

House Bill 111 cites a report published in 2018 by Arizona State University and the Hawaiʻi State Commission on the Status of Women that says 1 out of 11 adult male residents in Hawaiʻi are “online sex shoppers.”

“The report also estimated that there were 74,362 potential sex buyers in Hawaiʻi,” the bill says. “Moreover, Imua Alliance, a victim service provider for survivors of sex trafficking and sexual violence, estimates that 150 establishments participate in the commercial sex trade in the state, increasing the high risk for sex trafficking.

During the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic, a service provider for sex trafficking victims in Hawaiʻi reported seeing a 300% increase in demand for victim services, the bill says.

Additionally, the measure reports a finding that Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders are disproportionately overrepresented in the state’s sex trafficking survivor population. In the 2018 study, 64% of individuals identified as victims of sex trafficking reported at least partial Native Hawaiian ancestry.

According to the report, “[t]he overutilization of Native Hawaiians to meet sex buyer demand may be directly linked to structural economic coercion and vulnerabilities connected to land dispossession, exposure to sexual violence, hypersexualization, incarceration, cultural dislocation, intergenerational trauma, mental and emotional distress, racism, poverty and ongoing inequities.”

In addition to allowing civil lawsuits in cases of sexual exploitation or sex trafficking, House Bill 111 would extend the statute of limitations for civil claims to 10 years.

Written public testimony submitted on the bill was unanimously in support of its passage.

The Hawaiʻi County Office of the Prosecuting Attorney said the bill would hold perpetrators legally responsible and “takes crucial steps toward creating a legal framework that better supports victims, holds perpetrators accountable, and prevents further exploitation. Sexual exploitation is a devastating crime that not only strips individuals of their autonomy but also inflicts long-lasting physical, emotional and psychological harm.”

The Imua Alliance supports the bill, reporting that victims suffer from complex and overlapping trauma, “including post-traumatic stress disorder, depression and anxiety, dissociation, parasuicidal behavior, and substance abuse.

“Trafficking-related trauma can lead to a complete loss of identity,” the agency said. “A victim we cared for in 2016, for example, had become so heavily trauma bonded to her pimp that while under his grasp, she couldn’t remember her own name. Yet, sadly, many of the victims with whom we work are misidentified as so-called ‘voluntary prostitutes’ and are subsequently arrested and incarcerated, with no financial resources from which to pay for their release.”

Stephen Munkelt of the Legislative Committee of the League of Women Voters said the League opposes all forms of domestic and international human trafficking of adults and children, including sex and labor trafficking.

“The League also believes victims of exploitation should be provided support and resources to assist their recovery from that harm,” he said. “House Bill 111 provides a means for victims to seek compensation from exploiters, which can promote healing. House Bill 111 also expands the potential consequences to exploiters as a deterrent to engaging in these activities.”

The Senate Judiciary Committee has deferred the bill twice — on March 11 and 18. Now, it’s scheduled to come before the committee for decision-making at 10 a.m. March 25. The agenda is available here.

Maui Now reached out via email to Judiciary Committee Chair Karl Rhoads of urban Honolulu and Vice Chair Mike Gabbard of Ewa and Kapolei to ask why the measure has been deferred twice so far. Responses are pending.

The bill was introduced by House Vice Speaker Linda Ichiyama of Salt Lake, Aliamanu, Makalapa and Pearl Harbor. It sailed through the House without a single “no” vote in committee or on the House floor.