Bombshell Report Leads for Calls to Toughen Anti-Trafficking Laws
Assemblyman Michael Inganamort is renewing calls to toughen New Jersey’s anti-trafficking laws after a bombshell report released Monday said the federal government has lost track of hundreds of thousands of illegal immigrant children.
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Office of Inspector General found that the Biden administration cannot account for 323,000 of the 448,000 unaccompanied migrant minors who crossed the border between October 2018 and September 2021. As of May 2024, 291,000 of those minors had never been served an immigration court date by federal authorities; another 32,000 had failed to show for scheduled hearings. The report said those numbers are likely much higher.
According to news reports, a whistleblower who worked with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services—the department responsible for caring for these undocumented minors—told a House Judiciary subcommittee that these children were released to “qualified sponsors,” who are often criminals, traffickers and members of transnational criminal organizations. Under the Biden administration, the sponsor vetting process has been reduced to an over-the-phone interview. Once released to sponsors, the government agencies have no official process for tracking children.
“The DHS report makes it clear: These children ‘who do not appear for court are considered at higher risk for trafficking, exploitation, or forced labor.’ There’s an alphabet soup of federal agencies that have released these children, an unknown number into the hands of criminals and traffickers,” Inganamort (R-Morris) said. “What’s more concerning is that the federal agents tasked with following up on these children’s whereabouts are not doing their jobs. We must step up efforts here in New Jersey to combat this scourge and act where the federal agencies have grossly failed.”
While the latest reports focused on minors, Inganamort said that in New Jersey, the National Human Trafficking Hotline has identified 3,882 victims of all ages of trafficking since 2007. There were 466 reported victims in 2021, the hotline’s most recent statistics.
Inganamort said punishments in New Jersey must expand to include anyone who knowingly gains financially from trafficking, a relatively new front in the fight against human trafficking. He introduced a bill (A198) in January that would see that these criminals are prosecuted and, depending on the circumstances, face steep fines and the possibility of life imprisonment for exploiting other human beings.
The assemblyman has also called for more focus to be placed on the dangers facing children. His Human Trafficking and Child Exploitation Prevention Act (A3819) would require that manufacturers or sellers of devices with Internet access digitally block dangerous material, especially access to escort sites and known trafficking portals, or be fined tens of thousands of dollars. Consumers ages 18 and older could request in writing to have the blocking feature turned off by verifying their age and paying a one-time digital access fee. That money would help support the state’s Commission on Human Trafficking.
“With the ever-evolving and sophisticated technology and software aimed at deceiving young people, we need to get in front of this and do what we can to prevent access to highly dangerous material,” Inganamort said.
Both bills have been referred to the Assembly Public Safety and Preparedness Committee.
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