Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost announced Monday that increased support and additional resources are now available to victims of human trafficking in Ohio.
The Attorney General’s Human Trafficking Commission has launched the Human Trafficking Victim Services Directory, which contains Ohio-based services and resources for human trafficking victims.
According to Yost (pictured above), this directory will help expedite victims’ connections with the needed services.
“Those who are getting out of ‘the life’ are already facing considerable obstacles in their healing journeys. We want to do what we can to expedite their connection with the services they need and to ensure that the service agencies are vetted. This directory both streamlines the search process for survivors and leads them to reputable help,” Yost said.
The press release details that the directory is a searchable database of organizations and initiatives providing victims and survivors with emergency, transitional, residential, and other services. Users can search the directory by county or by keyword using the service category names:
- 24 Hour Response Line
- Emergency Response
- Case Management Victim Advocacy
- Trauma Specific Therapy
- Residential Programs for Adults
- Residential Programs for Youth
- Substance Use Treatment
- Drop-In Center
- Survivor Peer Support
- Shelter and Short-Term Housing for Adults
- Temporary Emergency Housing in Non-Shelter Setting
Yost said that the Human Trafficking Commission of the Attorney General received rigorous self-evaluations from all organizations listed in the database. According to the commission’s Victim Services Committee, the programs and services provided by these organizations adhere to Ohio’s Standards of Service for Trafficked Persons, which establishes standards across 14 different areas, from ethics to emergency response.
Michelle Hannan, anti-human trafficking director for the Salvation Army who is co-chair of the Victim Services Subcommittee of AG Yost’s Human Trafficking Commission, said it is necessary to ensure survivors have access to an expanded number of programs.
“This project is the result of a collaborative statewide effort to expand the number of programs that meet Ohio’s human trafficking service standards and to increase access to quality services for human trafficking survivors. We are pleased to see it come to fruition, knowing the agencies listed are committed to serving through best practices,” Hannan said.
According to Yost, in time, the directory will grow and become even more valuable to survivors.
“As word spreads about the standards process involved, more and more high-quality service providers will want to be a part of it – which should give trafficking survivors and their loved ones comfort. It’s a win for all involved,” Yost said.
The Ohio Star reached out to the Salvation Army for comment, but it did not respond before press time.
The Star also reached out to Yost’s office for comment but his communications director, Bethany McCorkle, said that he is traveling and unavailable for comment.
This is the most recent push in Ohio to address human trafficking in the state.
Earlier this month, two Republican Ohio Lawmakers introduced House Bill (HB) 230, known as the Saving Ohio Communities Act, which looks to increase drug trafficking charges for cocaine, fentanyl-related compounds, heroin, and methamphetamine, raises the charges for human trafficking to a first-degree felony with its expansion of the definition of human trafficking, and adds a specification that if someone is found or pleads guilty to a fentanyl-related death, there is a mandatory prison term of five years.
According to bill co-sponsor State Representative Cindy Abrams (R-Harrison), increasing the drug and human trafficking penalties will make people think twice before committing these crimes in Ohio.
“Our message is clear: don’t come to Ohio if you want to traffic illegal drugs or humans. We are ready to take legislative action and partner with our law enforcement to fight hard to keep our communities safe,” Abrams said.
The legislation is not currently in a House committee.
– – –
Hannah Poling is a lead reporter at The Ohio Star, The Star News Network, and The Arizona Sun Times. Follow Hannah on Twitter @HannahPoling1. Email tips to [email protected]
Photo “Dave Yost” by Dave Yost.
