Press Releases
01/25/2023
Hartford State’s Attorney’s Office, Connecticut Children’s Alliance Launch Regionalized Human Trafficking Recovery Taskforce
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
(Rocky Hill, CT) – Hartford State’s Attorney Sharmese L. Walcott and Krystal Rich, Executive Director of the Connecticut Children’s Alliance (CCA), today announced the launch of the Regionalized Human Trafficking Recovery Taskforce of the Greater Hartford Region.
The mission of the taskforce is to end human trafficking in the region through a multidisciplinary response to both sex and labor trafficking cases. The Hartford State’s Attorney’s Office and CCA worked together to secure federal funding for the taskforce through the United States Department of Justice Office for Victims of Crime.
Through the OVC award, the Division of Criminal Justice has hired a coordinator for the Taskforce and the CCA has hired a victim advocate who will partner with law enforcement and the Connecticut Department of Children and Families to assist victims in obtaining needed support services.
“We recognized the need in the Greater Hartford region to strengthen our approach to human trafficking and to rethink the structure of how we address human trafficking - of all kinds,” State’s Attorney Walcott said. “It is a crime that has disproportionately impacted young women and girls of color. Now, by embracing a victim-centered, trauma-informed, multi-disciplinary approach to addressing human trafficking, maybe one day we can end it. We would like to thank the United States Department of Justice and the Division of Criminal Justice for help in securing funding for this important initiative. And I am grateful for the partnership between the Hartford State’s Attorney’s Office and the Connecticut Children’s Alliance. Together, in collaboration with local law enforcement and other agency providers, we will increase the light shone on human trafficking as we strive to combat this unimaginable crime.”
The taskforce accepts referrals from law enforcement, service providers or from community members who have concerns that someone may be a victim of human trafficking. The Chiefs of Police in Hartford, East Hartford, West Hartford, Bloomfield, Manchester, South Windsor, Glastonbury, and Windsor have committed to supporting the work of investigating human trafficking cases.
"One of the most significant things about this task force is the understanding of how we're going to define success," Rich said. "It's not always just about the arrest or the investigation or the prosecution. It's also about making sure that the appropriate services are put into place for the victims and that they get what they need in order to be able to survive and ultimately thrive. This task force is very much focused on both increasing prosecutions but also making sure much-needed services are available to victims."
To contact the Regionalized Human Trafficking Recovery Taskforce of the Greater Hartford Region, call 860-566-3190, extension 3128, or email DCJ.RHTRTaskforce@ct.gov.