Op-Ed: Sex trafficking defendants have a new face — white, wealthy and well-connected

Julie Dahlstrom, Boston University School of Law

Abstract

The new faces of sex trafficking are increasingly white, affluent and well-connected. In an indictment unveiled July 8 in the Southern District of New York, Jeffrey Epstein, the wealthy hedge fund manager, was charged with sex trafficking for recruiting numerous minors for paid sex acts. In 2018, a federal judge ruled that Harvey Weinstein, the film producer, could be sued under the federal sex trafficking law for allegedly coercing a woman to engage in sex in exchange for promises of job advancement.