Louisiana leads fight to end sex trafficking

On Feb. 13, Kwame Morris drove a 16-year-old girl from Houston to New Orleans, where the FBI caught him arranging $500 “dates” for her. He told the FBI agents the minor was his girlfriend. A search of his vehicle uncovered several thousand dollars Morris claimed to be “holding” for the girl.

Louisiana authorities weren’t buying it. They charged him with trafficking children for sex purposes and set bond at $31,000. Morris was one of seven pimps arrested so far this year in the New Orleans area. His arrest illustrates an effort to combat trafficking in the Pelican State.

Each year, advocacy group Shared Hope issues report cards that grade states on their performance in fighting domestic minor sex trafficking (DMST). Louisiana’s score has improved from 70 in 2011 to 96 in 2014, the highest in the nation. The improvement began when Louisiana made trafficking a criminal offense.

The state’s first trafficking conviction came in 2013. Benson December Coriolant was 26 when he met 14-year-old Renee (not her real name). He showered her with attention and gave her expensive gifts. Their secret romance had all the makings of a Nicholas Sparks romance novel—except for his age and intentions.

He eventually forced her to work as a prostitute in the Orlando area, posting advertisements online. Over the next year, Coriolant forced Renee to have sex with dozens of men all across Florida. Why did she stay? Like most traffickers, Coriolant manipulated his victim to equate love with sex and loyalty with obedience.

In 2010, Coriolant took Renee back to Kenner, La., where she earned thousands of dollars for him. Louisiana authorities arrested Renee in April 2010 for prostitution and returned her to relatives in Orlando. At the time, police frequently arrested victims like Renee, treating them like criminals, while their pimps evaded prosecution. And entrance into the legal system did not always guarantee access to restorative services such as counseling.

Coriolant reconnected with Renee days later and again trafficked her in Florida. Trying to evade law enforcement, Coriolant instructed her to have sex only with “regular, familiar clients.” It’s not unusual for a trafficked girl to return to her pimp due to the unique trauma-bonding between victims and traffickers. Victims who don’t see themselves as victims often stymie prosecutors.

In May 2010, Coriolant took Renee back to New Orleans, where authorities arrested her again—but this time they went after her abuser. On Sept. 22, 2012, a federal grand jury in New Orleans charged Coriolant with conspiracy, sex trafficking of children, coercion, and enticement of an individual to travel to engage in prostitution. A jury found him guilty and in early 2013, he was sentenced to 40 years in prison—a conviction that required the coordinated efforts of

the New Orleans and Tampa divisions of the FBI, the Kenner, La., police department, and two assistant United States attorneys.

For Renee and others like her, healing will take an even larger, coordinated effort.