January is National Slavery and Human Trafficking Prevention Month.
The Multnomah County District Attorney’s Office remains committed to ending human trafficking in all forms and works closely with its local, state and federal partners.
On January 28, 2019, Multnomah County Senior Deputy District Attorney J.R. Ujifusa, who supervises the Human Trafficking Team for the Multnomah County District Attorney’s Office, provided law enforcement and system partners detailed training on “Legal Issues and Charging.”
Multnomah County Senior Deputy District Attorney J.R. Ujifusa | January 28, 2019. (Photo courtesy: National Center for Missing & Exploited Children).
The Human Trafficking Team for the Multnomah County District Attorney’s Office works to protect victims utilizing a three-prong approach: (1) aggressively prosecuting those who traffic victims to sex buyers; (2) reducing demand for exploitation in all forms to include a dedicated focus on a reduction of sex buyers; and (3) ensuring adequate protection and support for victims of human trafficking.
Ujifusa was joined by Washington County Deputy District Attorney Allison Brown.
The presentation that SDDA Ujifusa and DDA Brown gave focused on child sex trafficking. The multi-day training, sponsored by the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children and Motorola Solutions Foundation, was held in Beaverton, Oregon.
“Traffickers will do everything in their power to lure people from all backgrounds into commercial sex trafficking,” Ujifusa said. “They will act on threats of violence, manipulate people and take advantage of our most vulnerable community members.”
On January 17, 2019, 54-year-old Anthony Curry was convicted of 23 counts of various sex crimes following a four-day trial prosecuted by the Human Trafficking Team for the Multnomah County District Attorney’s Office.
The jury convicted Curry of one count of compelling prostitution, two counts of using a child in a display of sexually explicit conduct, four counts of attempting to use a child in a display of sexually explicit conduct, seven counts of sodomy in the third degree, eight counts of rape in the third degree and one count of attempting to commit promoting prostitution. During trial, the state presented evidence that proved the victim was 15 years old at the time of the offenses.
The Human Trafficking Team for the Multnomah County District Attorney’s Office recognizes that sex trafficking is not isolated to one socioeconomic group. It can impact families from all walks of life. Statistics show that in Multnomah County there are roughly 11,000 attempts to purchase sex online each week.
In 2011, a specialized program, known as the Multnomah County Sex Buyers Accountability and Diversion Program (SBAD), was created in an effort to reduce the demand for commercial sex trafficking. SBAD, which is only available to sex buyers who have been arrested for purchasing or attempting to purchase sex with an adult, seeks to change the sex buyer’s future decision-making by educating them about the legal, social and health ramifications of the commercial sex trade.
The Human Trafficking Team for the Multnomah County District Attorney’s Office includes two attorneys, an investigator and a victim advocate. Additionally, an attorney assigned to the MCDA gang unit is available to help prosecute cases and support the team as trafficking routinely intersects with gang violence.
In 2017, NCMEC received more than 10 million reports that were mostly related to apparent child sexual abuse images, online enticement, child sex trafficking and child sexual molestation.
- If you or someone else are in immediate danger, please call 9-1-1.
- To report a non-emergent tip about someone you know who may be involved in human trafficking, submit an anonymous tip through Crime Stoppers of Oregon or by calling 503.823.4357.
- To report a child being neglected or abuse in Oregon, call the 24 hour Child Abuse Hotline 503.731.3100.
- If you witness sexual exploitation of a child or find an online post soliciting or requesting the sexual exploitation of a child call the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children’s Cyber Tip-line at 1.800.843.5678.
Contact: Brent Weisberg, Communications Director
Phone: 503.988.6567
Email: Brent.Weisberg@nullmcda.us