Posted: April 8th, 2013 | by Yuval Sheer

On March 11, 2013, Judge Corriero met with Carol Smolenski, Executive Director of End Child Prostitution and Trafficking-USA (ECPAT-USA), and Dr. Camelia Tepelus, State Policy and Development Director. They discussed the manner in which New York’s juvenile justice system addresses critical needs of youth victimized by the child sex trade. In an excerpt from the conversation that was published on ECPAT-USA’s website, Judge Corriero noted that:

“New York was the first state in the nation to pass Safe Harbor legislation that protects minors who are subject to commercial sexual exploitation. According to the legislation, exploited youth are not prosecuted as juvenile delinquents in the Family Court. Instead the Family Court connects them with child welfare services and protections. Because New York is one of only two states in the nation to set the age of criminal responsibility as low as 16, 16- and 17-year-old prostituted children who are arrested in our state are tried in the adult court system, where they are not protected by the Safe Harbor Act. Therefore, these exploited youth remain exposed to criminalization and adult incarceration, and have no access to services that are available under the Family Court Act.”

You may read the full interview by clicking here.

« Back to News