The City of Long Beach approved the recommendation to become a supporter of AB 1771 in a unanimous 8-0 vote at its May 3 city council meeting. The bill, introduced by 70th District Assemblymember Patrick O’Donnell, would increase the maximum punishment for sex-trafficking from six months to one year.
“Long Beach has been leading the fight against human trafficking since my days on the council,” O’Donnell said in an email to the Signal Tribune. “As a councilmember, I passed tougher penalties to curb sex trafficking, and now I am taking those efforts statewide with AB 1771… The council’s recent vote to support AB 1771 underscores the community’s continued commitment to end human exploitation, and I appreciate them standing with us.”
AB 1771 would establish additional ways to determine if an individual is involved in a sex-trafficking offense. Suspects who consistently communicate or observe those involved in prostitution, or anyone associated with the crime and involved in a criminal street gang are at fault, according to the bill.
The maximum fine for sex trafficking would remain $1,000.
Felony prosecution of human traffickers is currently only applied on few occasions, because victims of the crime rarely cooperate with law enforcement due to fear of retaliation, according to the City of Long Beach. Only a misdemeanor charge may be filed if victims do not cooperate and provide information.
The legislation is making its way through the committee process in the assembly before it is sent to the floor for a full vote, according to O’Donnell. Once it passes, it will move on to the senate. The exact timetable for the bill is “fluid,” but the assemblymember did point out that the last day for the governor to sign a bill into law is Sept. 30.
O’Donnell said the bill would better protect residents statewide.
“Children and abuse victims are forced into the sex trade by violent gangs operating here in our communities,” he said. “These criminals are increasingly resorting to human trafficking as opposed to drugs or weapons, which carry more jail time and require greater financial investment. AB 1771 updates state law to acknowledge this growing trend so we can better protect the victims of this heinous crime.”
Eighth District Councilmember Al Austin, who submitted the request with 6th District Councilmember Dee Andrews and 1st District Councilmember Lena Gonzalez to the Long Beach City Council for the City to become a co-sponsor of AB 1771, said in an email statement to the Signal Tribune that Long Beach’s support of the bill was a significant step.
“As the chair of the city council’s State Legislation Committee, I felt it was important for Long Beach to be on record as a co-sponsor of AB 1771 to increase the penalties for human sex trafficking,” Austin said. “This will enable the City to join with the work being done by Assemblymember Patrick O’Donnell, City Prosecutor Doug Haubert and the Long Beach Human Trafficking Task Force to work in support of this legislation and help garner support from other cities.”
In addition to Haubert and the Long Beach Human Trafficking Task Force, AB 1771 is also supported by the California District Attorneys Association, the California Statewide Law Enforcement Association and the California Peace Officers Association, according to O’Donnell.
The bill also won approval from the Assembly Public Safety Committee.
At the May 3 city council meeting, Haubert said AB 1771 was influenced by a case in Long Beach in which a gang member was found at a hotel supervising a prostitute.
There wasn’t enough evidence to provide a felony charge, so a misdemeanor charge was filed instead.
Haubert said the bill would “give teeth to the city’s efforts” to combat sex trafficking.
During the same council meeting, Andrews stressed the importance of dealing with the crime.
“The bill will help us prosecute human trafficking and criminals to the fullest while protecting the victims they prey on,” Andrews said. “That is something that is prevalent in our city and all over. I hope we have a chance to show what it can do.”
Austin affirms that the legislation would do a lot of good for the victims.
“Long Beach has been at the forefront of addressing the problems with human trafficking and helping victims recover their lives,” he said. “AB 1771 is one more positive step in this effort to hold the offenders more accountable for these serious crimes.”
Visit http://bit.ly/1XmfnkG to get full details on the proposed sex-trafficking bill. Also follow O’Donnell’s Facebook and Twitter pages to get updates on the bill at facebook.com/AssemblymemberPatrickODonnell/ and twitter.com/AsmPatODonnell , respectively.
