Adult Probation & Arizona State University Collaborative to Combat Sex Trafficking

About the Program

Category: Criminal Justice and Public Safety (Best in Category)

Year: 2016

The Maricopa County Adult Probation Department (APD) is a large agency with opportunities to make significant contributions to public safety. The problem of human trafficking, and sex trafficking in particular, has been a substantial problem in our communities and a strategic focus of local, State, and Federal Government agencies. Adult Probation in partnership and collaboration with the Arizona State University (ASU) Office of Sex Trafficking Intervention Research (STIR) sought to address this issue through training, research study, and the creation of practical tools for the field. Director of STIR, Dr. Dominque Roe-Sepowitz, and Phoenix Police Commander Jim Gallagher provided training for the entire management team of Adult Probation (over one hundred managers) related to treatment of survivors of sex trafficking and enforcement strategies of trafficking offenders. With a grant from the McCain Institute for International Leadership, ASU’s Office of Sex Trafficking Intervention Research provided similar training for over two hundred Adult Probation Officers. The officers then participated in a first of its kind study to determine the prevalence of sex trafficking (survivors and offenders) among the APD population. The grant further provided for a unique training publication for probation officers which has been shared and well received by national organizations.