WVFFC Asks Senators Capito, Manchin to Co-Sponsor Senate Version of TSRA
April 12, 2024 - Today, the WV Faith & Freedom Coalition asked U.S. Senators Capito and Manchin via letter to co-sponsor and support the Senate version of H.R. 7137, the Trafficking Survivors Relief Act.
The Trafficking Survivors Relief Act of 2024 provides relief to trafficking survivors who have been unjustly criminalized as a result of their trafficking victimization. Too often, trafficking victims are arrested and convicted of criminal offenses directly related to their victimization. Though many states have a statute for human trafficking survivors to access relief from criminal records which resulted from trafficking, there is currently no legal framework at the federal level for trafficking survivors to either avoid unjust criminalization at the outset and/or address the harmful effects of having been charged and convicted of crimes resulting from their victimization. The TSRA helps to address both of those gaps.
The legislation would allow survivors of human trafficking with federal records for certain crimes committed as a direct result of their trafficking situation to vacate convictions and expunge arrest records. It would also allow for an affirmative defense for victims of human trafficking to assert at the outset of the criminal justice process. Finally, the bill would expressly permit Department of Justice (DOJ) grants to allow for legal representation for survivors including proceedings related to vacatur, expungement and other post-conviction relief measures.
We urge their immediate consideration and support of this important legislation which is the first step towards just and equitable relief for victims of the sinister trafficking industry, which currently exists as the second largest criminal enterprise in the world.
