I 

116TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 3627 

To provide for the vacating of certain convictions and expungement of certain 

arrests of victims of human trafficking. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JULY 5, 2019 

Mrs. WAGNER (for herself, Mr. SPANO, and Mrs. BEATTY) introduced the 

following bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary 

A BILL 

To provide for the vacating of certain convictions and 

expungement of certain arrests of victims of human trafficking. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Trafficking Survivors 

5 Relief Act of 2019’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FEDERAL EXPUNGEMENT FOR VICTIMS OF TRAF7 FICKING. 

8 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 237 of title 18, United 

9 States Code, is amended by adding at the end the fol10 lowing: 


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1 ‘‘§ 3772. Motion to vacate; expungement; mitigating 

2 factors 

3 ‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section— 

4 ‘‘(1) the term ‘child’ means an individual who 

5 has not attained 18 years of age; 

6 ‘‘(2) the term ‘covered prisoner’ means an indi7 vidual who— 

8 ‘‘(A) was convicted of a level B offense be9 fore the date of enactment of this section; 

10 ‘‘(B) was sentenced to a term of imprison11 ment for the level B offense; and 

12 ‘‘(C) is imprisoned under such term of im13 prisonment; 

14 ‘‘(3) the term ‘eligible entity’ includes— 

15 ‘‘(A) a legal aid society or legal services or16 ganization that provides indigent legal services; 

17 ‘‘(B) a nonprofit organization that provides 

18 legal services to victims of trafficking; and 

19 ‘‘(C) a public defender’s office; 

20 ‘‘(4) the terms ‘employee’ and ‘officer’ have the 

21 meanings given the terms in section 2105 of title 5; 

22 ‘‘(5) the term ‘Federal offense’ means an of23 fense that is punishable under Federal law; 

24 ‘‘(6) the term ‘level A offense’— 

25 ‘‘(A) means a Federal offense that is not— 

26 ‘‘(i) a violent crime; or 


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1 ‘‘(ii) an offense of which a child was 

2 a victim; and 

3 ‘‘(B) includes— 

4 ‘‘(i) a conspiracy to commit an offense 

5 described in subparagraph (A)(i) of which 

6 a child was not a victim; and 

7 ‘‘(ii) a conspiracy to commit an of8 fense described in subparagraph (A)(ii) 

9 that is not a violent crime; 

10 ‘‘(7) the term ‘level B offense’— 

11 ‘‘(A) means a Federal offense that is a vio12 lent crime; 

13 ‘‘(B) does not include a Federal offense 

14 that is a violent crime of which a child was a 

15 victim; and 

16 ‘‘(C) includes a conspiracy to commit an 

17 offense described in subparagraph (B); 

18 ‘‘(8) the term ‘level C offense’ means any Fed19 eral offense that is not a level A offense; 

20 ‘‘(9) the term ‘victim of trafficking’ has the 

21 meaning given that term in section 103 of the Traf22 ficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 (22 U.S.C. 

23 7102); and 

24 ‘‘(10) the term ‘violent crime’ has the meaning 

25 given that term in section 103 of the Juvenile JusVerDate Sep 11 2014 18:28 Jul 11, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3627.IH H3627

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1 tice and Delinquency Prevention Act of 1974 (34 

2 U.S.C. 11103). 

3 ‘‘(b) MOTIONS TO VACATE CONVICTIONS OR EX4 PUNGE ARRESTS.— 

5 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.— 

6 ‘‘(A) CONVICTIONS OF LEVEL A OF7 FENSES.—A person convicted of any level A of8 fense (or an eligible entity representing such a 

9 person) may move the court that imposed the 

10 sentence for the level A offense to vacate the 

11 judgment of conviction if the level A offense 

12 was committed as a direct result of the person 

13 having been a victim of trafficking. 

14 ‘‘(B) ARRESTS FOR LEVEL A OFFENSES.— 

15 A person arrested for any level A offense (or an 

16 eligible entity representing such a person) may 

17 move the district court of the United States for 

18 the district and division embracing the place 

19 where the person was arrested to expunge all 

20 records of the arrest if the conduct or alleged 

21 conduct of the person that resulted in the ar22 rest was directly related to the person having 

23 been a victim of trafficking. 

24 ‘‘(C) ARRESTS FOR LEVEL C OFFENSES.— 

25 A person arrested for any level C offense (or an 


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1 eligible entity representing such a person) may 

2 move the district court of the United States for 

3 the district and division embracing the place 

4 where the person was arrested to expunge all 

5 records of the arrest if— 

6 ‘‘(i) the conduct or alleged conduct of 

7 the movant that resulted in the arrest was 

8 directly related to the movant having been 

9 a victim of trafficking; and 

10 ‘‘(ii)(I) the movant was acquitted of 

11 the level C offense; 

12 ‘‘(II) the Government did not pursue 

13 or dismissed criminal charges against the 

14 movant for the level C offense; or 

15 ‘‘(III)(aa) the charges against the 

16 movant for the level C offense were re17 duced to an offense that is a level A of18 fense; and 

19 ‘‘(bb) the movant was acquitted of the 

20 level A offense, the Government did not 

21 pursue or dismissed criminal charges 

22 against the movant for the level A offense, 

23 or any subsequent conviction of the level A 

24 offense was vacated. 


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1 ‘‘(D) TRAFFICKING OFFENSE UNNECES2 SARY.—A person may file a motion under this 

3 section regardless of whether any individual, in4 cluding the individual accused of trafficking the 

5 person, has been arrested, prosecuted, or con6 victed for an offense related to human traf7 ficking. 

8 ‘‘(2) CONTENTS OF MOTION.—A motion de9 scribed in paragraph (1) shall— 

10 ‘‘(A) be in writing; 

11 ‘‘(B) describe any supporting evidence; 

12 ‘‘(C) state the offense; and 

13 ‘‘(D) include copies of any documents 

14 showing that the movant is entitled to relief 

15 under this section. 

16 ‘‘(3) HEARING.— 

17 ‘‘(A) MANDATORY HEARING.— 

18 ‘‘(i) MOTION IN OPPOSITION.—Not 

19 later than 30 days after the date on which 

20 a motion is filed under paragraph (1), the 

21 Government may file a motion in opposi22 tion of the motion filed under paragraph 

23 (1). 

24 ‘‘(ii) MANDATORY HEARING.—If the 

25 Government files a motion described in 


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1 clause (i), not later than 15 days after the 

2 date on which the motion is filed, the court 

3 shall hold a hearing on the motion. 

4 ‘‘(B) DISCRETIONARY HEARING.—If the 

5 Government does not file a motion described in 

6 subparagraph (A)(i), the court may hold a 

7 hearing on the motion not later than 45 days 

8 after the date on which a motion is filed under 

9 paragraph (1). 

10 ‘‘(4) FACTORS.— 

11 ‘‘(A) VACATING CONVICTIONS OF LEVEL A

12 OFFENSES.—The court may grant a motion 

13 under paragraph (1)(A) if, after notice to the 

14 Government and an opportunity to be heard, 

15 the court finds, by clear and convincing evi16 dence, that— 

17 ‘‘(i) the movant was convicted of a 

18 level A offense; and 

19 ‘‘(ii) the participation in the level A 

20 offense by the movant was a direct result 

21 of the movant having been a victim of traf22 ficking. 

23 ‘‘(B) EXPUNGING ARRESTS FOR LEVEL A

24 OFFENSES.—The court may grant a motion 

25 under paragraph (1)(B) if, after notice to the 


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1 Government and an opportunity to be heard, 

2 the court finds, by clear and convincing evi3 dence, that— 

4 ‘‘(i) the movant was arrested for a 

5 level A offense; and 

6 ‘‘(ii) the conduct or alleged conduct 

7 that resulted in the arrest was directly re8 lated to the movant having been a victim 

9 of trafficking. 

10 ‘‘(C) EXPUNGING ARRESTS FOR LEVEL C

11 OFFENSES.—The court may grant a motion 

12 under paragraph (1)(C) if, after notice to the 

13 Government and an opportunity to be heard, 

14 the court finds, by clear and convincing evi15 dence, that— 

16 ‘‘(i) the movant was arrested for a 

17 level C offense and the conduct or alleged 

18 conduct that resulted in the arrest was di19 rectly related to the movant having been a 

20 victim of trafficking; and 

21 ‘‘(ii)(I) the movant was acquitted of 

22 the level C offense; 

23 ‘‘(II) the Government did not pursue 

24 or dismissed criminal charges against the 

25 movant for the level C offense; or 


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1 ‘‘(III)(aa) the charges against the 

2 movant for the level C offense were re3 duced to a level A offense; and 

4 ‘‘(bb) the movant was acquitted of the 

5 level A offense, the Government did not 

6 pursue or dismissed criminal charges 

7 against the movant for the level A offense, 

8 or any subsequent conviction of that level 

9 A offense was vacated. 

10 ‘‘(5) SUPPORTING EVIDENCE.— 

11 ‘‘(A) REBUTTABLE PRESUMPTION.—For 

12 purposes of this subsection, there shall be a re13 buttable presumption that the movant is a vic14 tim of trafficking if the movant includes in the 

15 motion— 

16 ‘‘(i) a copy of an official record, cer17 tification, or eligibility letter from a Fed18 eral, State, Tribal, or local proceeding, in19 cluding an approval notice or an enforce20 ment certification generated from a Fed21 eral immigration proceeding, that shows 

22 that the movant was a victim of traf23 ficking, including a victim of a trafficker 

24 charged with a violation of chapter 77; or 


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1 ‘‘(ii) an affidavit or sworn testimony 

2 from a trained professional staff member 

3 of a victim services organization, an attor4 ney, a member of the clergy, a medical 

5 professional, or another professional from 

6 whom the movant has sought assistance in 

7 addressing the trauma associated with 

8 being a victim of trafficking. 

9 ‘‘(B) OTHER EVIDENCE.— 

10 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—For purposes of 

11 this section, in determining whether the 

12 movant is a victim of trafficking, the court 

13 may consider any other evidence the court 

14 determines is of sufficient credibility and 

15 probative value, including an affidavit or 

16 sworn testimony of the movant. 

17 ‘‘(ii) AFFIDAVIT OR SWORN TESTI18 MONY OF MOVANT SUFFICIENT EVI19 DENCE.—The affidavit or sworn testimony 

20 of the movant described in clause (i) shall 

21 be sufficient evidence to vacate a convic22 tion or expunge an arrest under this sec23 tion if the court determines that— 

24 ‘‘(I) the affidavit or sworn testi25 mony is credible; and 


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1 ‘‘(II) no other evidence is readily 

2 available. 

3 ‘‘(6) CONVICTION OR ARREST OF OTHER PER4 SONS NOT REQUIRED.—It shall not be necessary 

5 that any person other than the movant be convicted 

6 of or arrested for an offense before the movant may 

7 file a motion under paragraph (1). 

8 ‘‘(7) DENIAL OF MOTION.— 

9 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—If the court denies a 

10 motion filed under paragraph (1), the denial 

11 shall be without prejudice. 

12 ‘‘(B) REASONS FOR DENIAL.—If the court 

13 denies a motion filed under paragraph (1), the 

14 court shall state the reasons for the denial in 

15 writing. 

16 ‘‘(C) REASONABLE TIME TO CURE DEFI17 CIENCIES IN MOTION.—If the motion was de18 nied due to a curable deficiency in the motion, 

19 the court shall allow the movant sufficient time 

20 to cure the deficiency. 

21 ‘‘(8) APPEAL.—An order granting or denying a 

22 motion under this section may be appealed in ac23 cordance with section 1291 of title 28. 

24 ‘‘(c) VACATUR OF CONVICTIONS.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—If the court grants a mo2 tion to vacate a conviction of a level A offense under 

3 subsection (b), the court shall immediately vacate 

4 the conviction for cause, set aside the verdict and 

5 enter a judgment of acquittal, and enter an 

6 expungement order that directs that there be ex7 punged from all official records all references to— 

8 ‘‘(A) the arrest of the movant for the level 

9 A offense; 

10 ‘‘(B) the institution of criminal pro11 ceedings against the movant relating to the 

12 level A offense; and 

13 ‘‘(C) the results of the proceedings. 

14 ‘‘(2) EFFECT.—If a conviction is vacated under 

15 an order entered under paragraph (1)— 

16 ‘‘(A) the conviction shall not be regarded 

17 as a conviction under Federal law and the mov18 ant for whom the conviction was vacated shall 

19 be considered to have the status occupied by the 

20 movant before the arrest or the institution of 

21 the criminal proceedings related to such convic22 tion; and 

23 ‘‘(B) no alien may be removed, determined 

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1 efit because of such conviction, arrest, or insti2 tution of criminal proceedings. 

3 ‘‘(d) EXPUNGEMENT OF ARRESTS.— 

4 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—If the court grants a mo5 tion to expunge all records of an arrest for an of6 fense under subsection (b), the court shall imme7 diately enter an expungement order that directs that 

8 there be expunged from all official records all ref9 erences to— 

10 ‘‘(A) the arrest of the movant for the of11 fense; 

12 ‘‘(B) the institution of any criminal pro13 ceedings against the movant relating to the of14 fense; and 

15 ‘‘(C) the results of the proceedings, if any. 

16 ‘‘(2) EFFECT.—If an arrest is expunged under 

17 an order entered under paragraph (1)— 

18 ‘‘(A) the arrest shall not be regarded as an 

19 arrest under Federal law and the movant for 

20 whom the arrest is expunged shall be consid21 ered to have the status occupied by the movant 

22 before the arrest or the institution of the crimi23 nal proceedings related to such arrest, if any; 

24 and 


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1 ‘‘(B) no alien may be removed, determined 

2 to be inadmissible, or lose any immigration ben3 efit because of arrest or institution of criminal 

4 proceedings, if any. 

5 ‘‘(e) MITIGATING FACTORS.— 

6 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The court that imposed 

7 sentence for a level B offense upon a covered pris8 oner may reduce the term of imprisonment for the 

9 level B offense— 

10 ‘‘(A) upon— 

11 ‘‘(i) motion by the covered prisoner or 

12 the Director of the Bureau of Prisons; or 

13 ‘‘(ii) the court’s own motion; 

14 ‘‘(B) after notice to the Government; 

15 ‘‘(C) after considering— 

16 ‘‘(i) the factors set forth in section 

17 3553(a); 

18 ‘‘(ii) the nature and seriousness of the 

19 danger to any person; and 

20 ‘‘(iii) the community, or any crime 

21 victims; and 

22 ‘‘(D) if the court finds, by clear and con23 vincing evidence, that the covered prisoner com24 mitted the level B offense as a direct result of 


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1 the covered prisoner having been a victim of 

2 trafficking. 

3 ‘‘(2) REBUTTABLE PRESUMPTION.—For the 

4 purposes of this subsection, there shall be a rebutta5 ble presumption that a covered prisoner is a victim 

6 of trafficking if the covered prisoner provides— 

7 ‘‘(A) a copy of an official record, certifi8 cation, or eligibility letter from a Federal, 

9 State, Tribal, or local proceeding, including an 

10 approval notice or an enforcement certification 

11 generated from a Federal immigration pro12 ceeding, that shows that the covered prisoner 

13 was a victim of trafficking, including a victim 

14 of a trafficker charged with a violation of chap15 ter 77; or 

16 ‘‘(B) an affidavit or sworn testimony from 

17 a trained professional staff member of a victim 

18 services organization, an attorney, a member of 

19 the clergy, a medical professional, or another 

20 professional from whom the covered prisoner 

21 has sought assistance in addressing the trauma 

22 associated with being a victim of trafficking. 

23 ‘‘(3) REQUIREMENT.—Any proceeding under 

24 this subsection shall be subject to section 3771. 


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1 ‘‘(4) PARTICULARIZED INQUIRY.—For any mo2 tion under paragraph (1), the Government shall con3 duct a particularized inquiry of the facts and cir4 cumstances of the original sentencing of the covered 

5 prisoner in order to assess whether a reduction in 

6 sentence would be consistent with this section. 

7 ‘‘(f) ADDITIONAL ACTIONS BY COURT.—The court 

8 may, upon granting a motion under this section, take such 

9 additional action as the court determines is appropriate. 

10 ‘‘(g) CONFIDENTIALITY OF MOVANT.— 

11 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A motion under this sec12 tion and any documents, pleadings, or orders relat13 ing to the motion shall be filed under seal. 

14 ‘‘(2) INFORMATION NOT AVAILABLE FOR PUB15 LIC INSPECTION.—An officer or employee may not 

16 make available for public inspection any report, 

17 paper, picture, photograph, court file, or other docu18 ment, in the custody or possession of the officer or 

19 employee, that identifies the movant. 

20 ‘‘(h) APPLICABILITY.—This section shall apply to any 

21 conviction or arrest occurring before, on, or after the date 

22 of enactment of this section.’’. 

23 (b) TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMENDMENT.— 

24 The table of sections of chapter 237 of title 18, United 


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1 States Code, is amended by adding at the end the fol2 lowing: 

‘‘3772. Motion to vacate; expungement; mitigating factors.’’. 

Æ 


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