Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children and Youth in Illinois

• NCJ Number: 226964
• Author(s): Jessica Ashley
• Date Published: January 2008
• Length: 76 pages
• Grant Number(s): 2006-JP-FX-K057
• Sponsoring Agency: Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP)
• Corporate Author: Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority
• Sale Source: Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority
• Publication Format: Document
• Publication Type: Report (Study/Research)
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America
• Note: Downloaded October 26, 2009

Annotation

This study used arrest data, interviews with law-enforcement officials, and focus groups in order to collect data on the incidence and prevalence of the commercial sexual exploitation of children in Illinois, pathways to victimization, characteristics of victims and offenders, and the needs of youth in the aftermath of sexual exploitation.

Abstract

Between 1995 and 2004, there were 45 arrests of juveniles for prostitution and 162 arrests for soliciting a juvenile prostitute. During the same period, police arrested 258 individuals for child pornography. A focus group of 19 adult women who were involved in the sex trade industry as juveniles entered prostitution at the average age of 12. They entered prostitution for basic survival needs, and some sought money for expensive clothing and accessories in order to bolster their self-worth. The women agreed that social services were not helpful to them and were sometimes harmful. The women felt misunderstood, misdiagnosed, and stigmatized. Five transgendered individuals also participated in a focus group to discuss their experience in the sex trade as juveniles. They spoke of the dangers of being a transgendered prostitute. Interviews with 10 Federal, State, and local law enforcement officials based in the Chicago metropolitan area focused on the arrests and investigations related to the sexual exploitation of children, their cooperation with social service agencies, and the characteristics of child victims of commercial sexual exploitation. Among the recommendations derived from the data obtained is the prevention of child commercial sexual exploitation through education for at-risk youth and support for runaway teens. Other recommendations pertain to a reduction in family abuse of children and youth that may lead to entry into prostitution; the identification of and assistance for exploited youth; and training for law enforcement officers to assist victims of child sexual exploitation. 4 tables, 2 figures, 83 notes, and appended resource list, definitions, State laws (all States) related to child prostitution, focus groups questions, and the law enforcement survey