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The Portrayal of Force, Fraud, and Coercion Within Northern Ohio Federal Sex Trafficking Trials — 2010-2013

Jesse, Bach E
http://orcid.org/0000-0001-8708-6051
http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=csu1432227255

Abstract Details

2015, Doctor of Philosophy in Urban Education, Cleveland State University, College of Education and Human Services.
Human trafficking is often considered to be one of the three largest criminal enterprises worldwide, ranking beside the sale of illegal drugs and illicit firearms (Bales, 2004, 2007; Bales & Doodalter, 2009; Hussein, 2011; Schauer & Wheaton, 2006; Skinner, 2008). National estimates suggest that 100,000-300,000 American, school-aged children are at-risk for sex trafficking (Department of Homeland Security, 2014) while there is only a one percent arrest and conviction record for traffickers (Bales, 2007). This dissertation explored the portrayal of force, fraud, and coercion within federal domestic minor sex trafficking (DMST) trials of Northern Ohio from 2010-2013 so as to gain a greater understanding of the contributing factors that make individuals vulnerable to the phenomenon. DMST occurs when a “commercial sex act is induced by force, fraud or coercion, or in which the person induced to perform such act has not attained 18 years of age” (U.S. Department of State, 2011). Data were examined via qualitative means by conducting a narrative analysis of existing court documentation of fifteen confirmed DMST cases, guided by critical theory and feminist epistemology. Findings revealed dimensions of individual agency in tension with structural and cultural conditions as well as a complex set of factors contributing to the persistence and legal response to sex trafficking. The examined episodes of DMST were initiated via factors that included fraudulent documents, economic instability, emotional dependency, drug addiction, reliance on an informal/underground economy, and lack of educational attainment. DMST continued through factors including physical force, coercion, indebtedness, feelings of belonging, the leveraging of an intimate relationship, financial arrangements, and the reliance on an informal/underground economy. The episode of DMST was terminated via law enforcement involvement, voluntary departure, familial involvement, ending the use of illegal drugs, and coming into a period of economic stability.
Brian Harper, Ph.D. (Committee Chair)
Anne Galletta, Ph.D. (Committee Co-Chair)
Joshua Bagaka's, Ph.D. (Committee Member)
Jeremy Genovese, Ph.D. (Committee Member)
George Tsagaris, Ph.D. (Committee Member)
287 p.
Education; Education Policy; Educational Sociology
human trafficking; sex trafficking; domestic minor sex trafficking; DMST; Qualitative research; Ohio court documents; human rights

Recommended Citations

Citations

  • Jesse, B. E. (2015). The Portrayal of Force, Fraud, and Coercion Within Northern Ohio Federal Sex Trafficking Trials — 2010-2013 [Doctoral dissertation, Cleveland State University]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=csu1432227255

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • Jesse, Bach. The Portrayal of Force, Fraud, and Coercion Within Northern Ohio Federal Sex Trafficking Trials — 2010-2013 . 2015. Cleveland State University, Doctoral dissertation. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=csu1432227255.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • Jesse, Bach. "The Portrayal of Force, Fraud, and Coercion Within Northern Ohio Federal Sex Trafficking Trials — 2010-2013 ." Doctoral dissertation, Cleveland State University, 2015. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=csu1432227255

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)

csu1432227255
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© 2015, all rights reserved.
This open access ETD is published by Cleveland State University and OhioLINK.