We, the undersigned, are survivors of human trafficking.  We are also parents, nurses, EMTs, security guards, students and caregivers. We are survivor leaders who give back to our communities, inspiring trafficking survivors to see that another life is possible. We advocate for those, including ourselves, who deserve a fresh START.

In 2009, New York became the first state in the nation to pass a law allowing trafficking survivors to vacate or remove certain convictions, where the conviction resulted from their victimization. C.P.L. §440.10(1)(i), however, only allows for the vacatur of prostitution-related offenses and does not address the many other offenses that traffickers force labor and sex trafficking victims to commit against their will.  New York’s current law fails these victims. It failed some of us.

The START Act would remedy the current law’s limitations by allowing survivors of human trafficking, like us, to petition the court to clear convictions for offenses that were a result of exploitation by their traffickers. These convictions act as a constant reminder of the violence, terror, and loss of control that we survivors experienced at the hands of our traffickers. They are tangible reminders of our exploitation and abuse.

These convictions also make it much more difficult to rebuild our lives, creating hurdles for obtaining employment, student loans, housing, or legal immigration status. It is traumatic enough that trafficking survivors have to deal with the long term effects of being exploited. Survivors should not also have to carry the weight and burden of criminal records, while attempting to recover and rebuild their lives. Until full relief is available to all of us, survivors will live with lifelong stigma and remain vulnerable to returning to exploitative situations.   It is time for New York to join states like California, Florida, and Georgia and provide comprehensive criminal record relief for survivors of all forms of human trafficking. Partial relief is simply not enough.

READ THE FULL LETTER OF SUPPORT HERE -->  https://bit.ly/34JjqAS