On February 23, 2017, Daederick Lacy, of Wichita, Kansas, was found guilty of child sex trafficking, sex trafficking by force, fraud or coercion, and one count of transportation with intent to engage in criminal sexual activity. (2017) The Memorandum and Order for The United State of America V. Daederick Lacy case 16-10009-EFM documents that in the winter of 2015, Lacy separately contacted two minor girls via Facebook asking them to engage in a lifestyle of travel" glamour" and celebrate. After the meeting, Lacy persuaded each girl to "meet" clients at motels and paid them for their services. At one point, Lacy took one of the victims' cell phone and car keys and took her to a meeting with a client where he forced her to perform sexual acts for money. After one victim contacted local police about Lacy, he brought another underage victim to Texas to keep a low profile and earn more money from his services. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get Original Essay On May 11, 2017, Lacy was sentenced to 24 years in federal prison for his human trafficking offenses. Currently, Lacy is serving his sentence in a United States penitentiary in Kentucky, with an initial release date of 2037. (2017) Living in Wichita, Kansas, citizens are no strangers to hearing about cases of human trafficking . Being in the center of the country has its advantages for traffickers; large cities with multiple interstate highways and universities. With the advent of social media, it is easier for traffickers to access young women and promise them nice things in exchange for a little work. In October 2017, John H. Dickerson, of Wichita, Kansas, was sentenced to 187 months in prison. Federal prison after pleading guilty to one charge of sex trafficking of a minor and one charge of unlawful possession of a firearm following a felony conviction. Dickerson was prostituting a 17-year-old girl, whom he took to a motel to meet an undercover Wichita police detective before both were taken into custody. (White, 2017) In April 2018, Roderick Martin, of Wichita, Kansas, was sentenced to 18 years in state prison after pleading guilty to two counts of commercial sexual exploitation of a child, two counts of one count of kidnapping, four counts of sexual exploitation of a child and one count of aggravated indecent liberties with a child. In 2015, Martin and another accomplice picked up two runaway girls, aged 15 and 16, then sexually assaulted and exploited them. (Tidd, 2017) We often hear about these cases in our communities, follow the trials through the sentences, then they are usually forgotten. We know what happens to bad guys, they go to prison and do time; but what happens to the victims? What happens to the victims who have become trapped in the schemes and business of the trafficking game? Many victims may be reunited with their families and live meaningful lives, while others will not be so lucky. Many of these victims come from already broken families, from homes with absent parents and from poverty. Dr. Michael Palmiotto states in his book Combating Human Trafficking that trafficking victims often suffer from anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and depression. Dealing with these debilitating disorders can really affect your everyday life and make the simplest tasks seem impossible. (Palmiotto, 2015) Victims often isolate themselves, act out, detach themselves, or avoid the family or friends they are trying to bethere for them, and sometimes they return to the streets and the lifestyle that traumatized them in the first place. Those who return to that lifestyle voluntarily, or by force, often end up as delinquents in the system. In 2004, 16-year-old Cyntoia Brown shot and killed her rapist pimp, Johnny Allen. Brown was tried as an adult in 2006 and sentenced to life in prison. While the prosecution argued that Brown was a cold-blooded killer who had planned the robbery and murder of Johnny Allen, the defense argued that Brown was a 16-year-old boy who had been prostituted, drugged and raped by several men in the days preceding the accident. Brown has reportedly been a model prisoner, has earned a college degree and is currently in the process of appealing a clemency hearing. (Allen, 2018) More often than murder, trafficking victims are often caught in the criminal justice system for charges such as drug and paraphernalia charges and prostitution/solicitation. Tia Brungardt is a parole officer with the Kansas Department of Corrections who oversees an all-female investigation caseload of offenders who have entered the community for parole supervision. Brungardt says many female offenders have been victims in the past, whether it be through childhood trauma or situations like human trafficking; many of his offenders have some sort of history of prostitution, as at some point it was a way for them to survive in life, whether it was by choice or not. When asked how many offenders he currently has with a history of trafficking, PO Brungardt said that of his 60 current offenders, only 5-6 of them have disclosed a history of trafficking, although he estimates the number is probably closer to 15-20 . offenders in 60. PO Brungardt added that very rarely, if ever, does anyone offer this information, it is usually only discovered during assessments and investigations into their criminal history and past. “This type of admission is often followed by an admission that they feel ashamed for being involved in that lifestyle, even if it wasn't a decision they made alone,” PO Brungardt said. Brungardt gave some examples of offenders from different backgrounds with similar charges, who took different paths during their supervision. Offender A is a female in her thirties with a current conviction for possession of (methamphetamine), with past convictions including felony Property Damage and DUI. Offender A has two children who were placed in the foster care system while he was addicted to illegal substances. Offender A was prostituted as a teenager against his will and ended up with a drug habit that eventually led to a prison sentence. After being released from prison this year, offender A entered inpatient treatment, where she successfully graduated and lived at the Raise My Head Foundation home which helped her with her sobriety, education, self-esteem and with the return of his children. B is a female in her 40s with a current conviction for cocaine possession, with past convictions including battery on LEO, theft, possession of THC, driving while intoxicated, forgery, sale of sexual intercourse, and anti-sex trafficking area. Offender B was introduced to prostitution in her twenties and ultimately decided to continue these behaviors to support herself and her habits. Offender B has eight children, seven of whom were adopted by his parents, while the eighth was recently taken in by the Department of Children and Families. Offender B has no contact with his parents or any of his children and hasused illegal substances while pregnant with most of her children. Due to his drug habits, Offender B lacks the support of his family and continues to turn to drugs and inappropriate relationships for support. Offender B continued to use illegal substances, went on the run, and had his supervision revoked several times in the past year. It continues to deny substance abuse treatment and resources to women who are victims of prostitution and trafficking. Offender C is a woman in her early twenties with a current conviction for manslaughter and robbery, with past convictions including selling sexual relations and several driving offences. Offender C reported that her children's father regularly beat and exploited her. On a normal evening, after completing a "job" with John, her boyfriend entered the room to rob John and ended up killing him. Offender C was convicted of manslaughter and robbery after the prosecution argued that he knew about the robbery; she claimed she didn't know what her boyfriend would do. Offender C lives with his parents and two children, uses THC occasionally, but has never had problems with other illegal substances. Offender C is in substance abuse treatment and regularly sees a Department of Children and Families case manager in an attempt to keep his children in his life. PO Brungardt spoke about the obstacles faced by this group of offenders. They often have little to no legitimate work experience, carry with them feelings of shame, have difficulty finding and fostering healthy relationships, and the biggest obstacle is that they have damaged self-esteem and have low self-esteem. “You can do horrible things when you don't believe in yourself,” PO Brungardt said. PO Brungardt explained in more detail how finding and fostering healthy relationships is vital to their success: “If they don't have a good support system, they are less likely to be successful. When you have no self-esteem and most of the people around you lately are just there to use you, you will have a hard time doing the right thing and finding what is good for you. Having family and friends who support you makes all the difference when you are vulnerable. “PO Brungardt stated that depending on how they were introduced into the world of prostitution will also determine how successful they may or may not be when they get out of prison, “In my experience, I have seen that if at any point they choose to engage in prostitution , they are more likely to return to that lifestyle to get the things they want or need. PO Brungardt spoke about the differences between Offender A and Offender C, with Offender A, she was forced into the lifestyle of prostitution, so when she made the decision to quit, she was stuck. With offender B, while she was initially forced into prostitution, later in life, she chose to go back to it because it helped her get the money she needed, so she is still struggling to get in and out of that lifestyle. “Offender A decided to do away with that lifestyle, got clean, and got into programs that she knew would benefit herself and her life. The Raise My Head Foundation saved her life,” said PO Brungardt before adding: “Offender B will continue to fight until he discovers that living a crime-free life is worth it.” PO Brungardt elaborated his favorite and little-known traffic resource, the Raise My Head Foundation. PO Brungardt explained: “They have helped some of my offenders more than I could have ever imagined. It's a two-year program,.