Message from Executive Director Jay Neal
In light of recent concerns around the spread of COVID-19 and in the interest of public safety, the Governor’s office has instructed all state agencies to suspend non-essential training, beginning March 12, 2020.
Human Trafficking Task Force
The need for coordination, communication, and collaboration on a statewide level is currently being addressed through the Georgia Statewide Human Trafficking Task Force. The importance of having a statewide response focused on eradicating human trafficking in Georgia is of the utmost priority of the Governor’s Office as well as the Georgia Criminal Justice Coordinating Council. As a result of that prioritization, the CJCC is currently carrying forward the dedicated response to addressing the need for a unified strategy that works to combat exploitation in Georgia by functioning as the backbone support and coordinating agency for the Georgia Statewide Human Trafficking Task Force.
Mission of the Human Trafficking Task Force
The mission of the Task Force is to protect the citizens of Georgia from perpetrators and systems of sexual exploitation while concurrently working to support recovery of adults and CSEC victims to ensure that they are ready for college, work, and a successful future. The Task Force operates by a targeted, strategic framework which consists of individual Work Groups addressing the five elements of the trafficking continuum: Vulnerability - Recruitment -Exploitation - Withdrawal - Reintegration.
Under this continuum, the Task Force functions based on nine key objectives: Community Awareness and Education; Youth Aware and Safe; Deterring Traffickers and Buyers; Keeping At-Risk Youth Safe; Apprehending, Investigating, and Prosecuting; Examining Underserved and/or Previously Identified Victims; Survivors Supported And Protected; Survivors Recovering and Thriving; and Examing Domestic Adult Sex Trafficking. The nine Work Groups, created and launched in 2015, operate under the umbrella of these defined objectives.