Jordan Carlson
Staff Writer
A bill focusing on harsher sentences for repeat offenses of human trafficking in the state of Wyoming has been passed on all three readings in the Wyoming House of Representatives and is on its way to the Senate.
The new bill would make the minimum for a repeat offense 25 years with the maximum not exceeding 50 years imprisonment, and a fine not more than $10,000 dollars or both. It would keep however the minimum of 25 years on the first offense when involving a minor.
There are over 2,000,000 victims of human trafficking every year, according to Inter-American Development Bank. Six human trafficking cases were reported in the state of Wyoming in 2019, which is a steep decrease from 2018 which had 12 cases.
“Second degree human trafficking is defined as ‘the person recklessly recruits, transports, transfers, harbors, receives, provides, obtains, isolates, maintains or entices an individual’ for the above named offenses,” according to Oil City News.
The penalties of 2nd degree human trafficking are imprisonment for a minimum of five and a maximum of 50 years and/or a fine up to $10,000.00.
“I think the premise of the bill is good,” said Stephanie Diamond, a sophomore criminal justice major. “I think there are a lot of missing gaps though and the focus needs to be more on the first offense rather than repeat offenders.”
She said the job of the justice system should be to prevent crimes like this from recurring and making the initial punishment more harsh and implementing the harsher punishments for repeat offenses.
“They need to define reckless human trafficking better as well, as it currently stands it is confusing for the general population,” she said.
“While the premise of the bill is something I agree with, I don’t believe it is harsh enough,” said Tyler Rassmusen, a sophomore criminal justice major.
He said the balance being off on the crime committed to the sentence being given especially for 2nd degree human trafficking.
“If on the first offense you make it a minimum of 2 years, that’s not a strong enough sentence to deter someone making money off of trafficking, and the 2nd offense becoming a minimum of 5 years also doesn’t give enough of a sentence to repeat offenders to protect those being trafficked,” he said.
Human trafficking in the first degree is defined under Wyoming law as;
(a) A person is guilty of human trafficking in the first degree when the person intentionally or knowingly recruits, transports, transfers, harbors, receives, provides, obtains, isolates, maintains or entices an individual for the purpose of:
(i) Forced labor or servitude in violation of W.S. 6-2-704;
(ii) Sexual servitude in violation of W.S. 6-2-705; or
(iii) Sexual servitude of a minor in violation of W.S. 6-2-706.
(b) Human trafficking in the first degree is a felony punishable by imprisonment for not less than five (5) nor more than fifty (50) years unless the victim is a minor in which case it is a felony punishable by imprisonment for not less than twenty-five (25) nor more than fifty (50) years and a fine of not more than ten thousand dollars ($10,000.00), or both.
The bill has been approved through all three readings in the House of Representatives that it must pass in order for it to move through to the Senate. If approved in the Senate, it will be sent to the Governor for approval before being made into law. It is fairly fresh in the process so changes may be made to the bill before it reaches the Governor if at all but approval on the first reading is a great first step.
The bill itself is HB0010-Human trafficking-penalty for subsequent conviction and can be found in its entirety at Wyoleg.gov
