I 
116TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 5080 
To amend title 18, United States Code, to establish a rebuttable presumption 
that certain Federal offenses were induced by coercion if a defendant 
was the victim of trafficking when such offense was committed, and 
for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
NOVEMBER 14, 2019 
Mr. SPANO (for himself, Mr. HASTINGS, Mr. DIAZ-BALART, Mr. DEUTCH, and 
Mr. WALTZ) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Com-
mittee on the Judiciary, and in addition to the Committee on Foreign Af-
fairs, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each 
case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of 
the committee concerned 
A BILL 
To amend title 18, United States Code, to establish a rebut-
table presumption that certain Federal offenses were in-
duced by coercion if a defendant was the victim of traf-
ficking when such offense was committed, and for other 
purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Help Obtaining Pre-
sumption of Exoneration for Victims of Human Traf-
VerDate Sep 11 2014 
05:27 Nov 22, 2019
Jkt 099200
PO 00000
Frm 00001
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H5080.IH
H5080
kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS
ficking Act’’ or the ‘‘HOPE for Victims of Human Traf-
ficking Act’’. 
SEC. 2. AMENDMENTS TO THE TRAFFICKING VICTIMS PRO-
TECTION ACT OF 2000. 
Section 103 of the Trafficking Victims Protection Act 
of 2000 (22 U.S.C. 7102) is amended— 
(1) in paragraph (16), by striking ‘‘paragraph 
(9)’’ and inserting ‘‘paragraph (11)’’; and 
(2) in paragraph (17), by striking ‘‘paragraph 
(9) or (10)’’ and inserting ‘‘paragraph (11) or 
(12)’’. 
SEC. 3. HUMAN TRAFFICKING DEFENSE. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 1 of title 18, United 
States Code, is amended by adding at the end the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘§ 28. Human trafficking defense 
‘‘(a) PRESUMPTION.—Any defendant who establishes 
by a preponderance of the evidence that the defendant was 
a victim of trafficking at the time at which the defendant 
committed an offense under subsection (b) shall create a 
rebuttable presumption that the offense was induced by 
coercion. 
‘‘(b) OFFENSES.—An offense described in this sub-
section is— 
VerDate Sep 11 2014 
20:07 Nov 25, 2019
Jkt 099200
PO 00000
Frm 00002
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H5080.IH
H5080
kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS
‘‘(1) an offense under section 1384 (relating to 
prostitution near military and naval establishments); 
‘‘(2) an offense under section 1581, 1582, 
1583, 1584, 1585, 1586, 1587, 1588, 1590, 
1591(a), 1591(b), 1592, 1593A, 1594(a), or 
1594(b); 
‘‘(3) 
an 
offense 
under 
section 
2421(a), 
2421a(a), 2421a(b), 2422, 2424(a), or 2425; 
‘‘(4) an offense under section 401, 404, or 406 
of the Controlled Substances Act (21 U.S.C. 841, 
844, or 846); or 
‘‘(5) any offense that is not a crime of violence 
(as such term is defined in subsection (a) of section 
16). 
‘‘(c) SEALING.—In any proceeding in which a defense 
under this section is raised, any record or part of the pro-
ceeding related to such defense shall, on motion, be placed 
under seal until such time as a conviction is entered for 
the offense. 
‘‘(d) POST-CONVICTION RELIEF.—An individual’s 
failure to assert or failed assertion of a defense under this 
section may not preclude the individual from asserting as 
a mitigating factor in a proceeding for any post-conviction 
relief, that at the time of the commission of the acts con-
stituting the offense, the defendant was a victim of traf-
VerDate Sep 11 2014 
05:27 Nov 22, 2019
Jkt 099200
PO 00000
Frm 00003
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H5080.IH
H5080
kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS
ficking and committed the acts under duress, force, or co-
ercion. 
‘‘(e) AID TO VICTIMS.—An individual’s failure to as-
sert or failed assertion of a defense under this section may 
not be used for the purpose of disqualifying the individual 
from participating in any federally funded program that 
aids victims of human trafficking. 
‘‘(f) DEFINITIONS.—In this section, the terms ‘coer-
cion’ and ‘victim of trafficking’ have the meanings given 
such terms in section 103 of the Trafficking Victims Pro-
tection Act of 2000 (22 U.S.C. 7102).’’. 
(b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 
for chapter 1 of title 18, United States Code, is amended 
by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘28. Human trafficking defense.’’. 
Æ 
VerDate Sep 11 2014 
05:27 Nov 22, 2019
Jkt 099200
PO 00000
Frm 00004
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6301
E:\BILLS\H5080.IH
H5080
kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS