Sunday, 10 July 2011 07:22
A San Antonio man faces up to life in prison after being convicted in what prosecutors say was the abduction, rape and prostituting of a 13-year-old runaway girl.
The penalty phase was scheduled Friday for 45-year-old Juan Moreno.
A jury on Thursday night convicted Moreno of human trafficking, super aggravated sexual assault of a child, aggravated kidnapping and compelling prostitution.
Sunday, 10 July 2011 07:20
Tekla Roberts has a mission in life: To rescue girls, as young as 13, from commercial, sexual exploitation.
It's a life she knows well. Until six years ago, she was a prostitute.
"I was raped. I've been raped. I've been locked in basements. I've been locked in cars, locked in hotel rooms,” Roberts said.
The number of sexually-exploited girls in Texas under the age of 18 has always been a guess.
Until now.
A new study, conducted in November, found the number of teens sold for sex by escort services and on the Internet totaled 740.
Sunday, 10 July 2011 07:19
Last year, the Texas Supreme Court ruled that children under the age of 14 could not be arrested for prostitution, a decision that frustrated law enforcement because jailing a prostitute is often the only way to get her away from her pimp and get her help.
The Department of Justice estimates as many as 800,000 child prostitutes are on the nation’s streets. The problem is growing, and authorities have no place to house children like Shellyshia Melton.
As she walks down T.C. Jester near Loop 610 North, Melton can’t help but remember what she used to endure.
Sunday, 10 July 2011 07:15
The owners of a local bar and restaurant are among 10 people accused of bringing young Mexican women and girls to Houston and forcing them into prostitution, U.S. Attorney Jose Angel Moreno said Thursday.
The 10 defendants were taken into custody during an overnight raid at the La Costenita night club and El Club Restaurante, located in the 8300 block of Clinton Drive.
Sunday, 10 July 2011 01:05
M.S. was 12 years old when she first fell in love. It was his "swagger" that attracted her, she recalled, laughing.
The pre-teen, who lost her mother at a very young age and only saw her father on holidays, said she desperately craved a father figure. All she ever wanted was to be loved, she said, and she thought she found that in the man who patrolled up and down her street wooing her.
"I just fell into his arms," said M.S., who didn't want her full name revealed because she is a minor.
One day, the man invited M.S. to go on a drive with him. She did, and she never returned home.
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The facts on sex trafficking are staggering. Very few people actually understand the gravity of the situation when it comes to how close to home this threat really is. Take some time to read over the following FAQ