Attorney General Stein Urges Congress to Update Sex Trafficking Law

RALEIGH, NC (August 16, 2017)…Attorney General Stein today urged Congress to clarify a law to ensure that all law enforcement agencies have the authority to fight sex trafficking. In a letter, Attorney General Stein and 49 other attorneys general ask Congress to amend the Communications Decency Act (CDA) to affirm that states, localities and territories can investigate and prosecute facilitators of sex trafficking wherever they operate, including online. The simple amendment would help ensure that citizens and children are effectively protected throughout the entire country.

“Sex trafficking is among the most heinous crimes any of us can imagine,” said Attorney General Stein. “We must fight it with every weapon in our arsenal. I am calling on Congress to make it abundantly clear that all local law enforcement agencies have the authority to track down and arrest the criminals who facilitate and profit from sex trafficking.”

In addition to North Carolina, the following states and territories signed the letter: Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Puerto Rico, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin and Wyoming.