Oklahoma Administrative Code › Title 75 - Attorney General › Chapter 30 - Standards and Criteria for Adult Victims of Human Sex Trafficking Programs › Subchapter 3 - Sexual Assault Programs for Adult Victims/ Survivors of Sexual Violence as a Result of Human Sex Trafficking › Section 75:30-3-1 - Service programs core services

Current through Vol. 41, No. 20, July 1, 2024
(a)
				Programs serving victims of sexual violence as a result of human sex
				trafficking and their dependents or family members should consider special
				service needs when developing a plan to offer services.
(b) All certified programs shall provide
				safe, accessible, and trauma-informed services for victims of human sex
				trafficking and their dependents or non-offending family members.
(c) The program shall develop a philosophy of
				trauma-informed service provision based upon voluntary services and individual
				self-determination. The written statement of the philosophy of services shall
				be approved by the governing authority and made available to the community,
				staff, volunteers and clients.
(d)
				The program shall have policies and protocols for accepting victims of human
				sex trafficking and develop procedures to maintain facilities, staffing, and
				operational methods, including a policy on the recruitment of board members,
				staff and volunteers who are representative of the diversity in the local
				community and the diversity of their clients.
(e) All certified programs shall ensure
				shelter is provided and be able to respond to special needs which may include:
(1) Length of stay shall be based on the
				needs of the client.
(2) Safety
				planning should be designed to meet individual, unique needs. Safety planning
				can be complex due to danger created by an extensive human sex trafficking
				organization. Perpetrators often threaten the trafficked person's family in the
				country of origin as well, and such threats impact decisions made by a human
				sex trafficking victims.
(3) Human
				sex trafficking victims may never have assimilated into the local community or
				U.S. culture. Such lack of assimilation, in addition to language barriers and
				lack of family or community support may make it difficult to meet shelter
				requirements such as communal meals, support groups and roommates of different
				ethnic, cultural or religious backgrounds.
(4) Human sex trafficking victims may have
				language interpretation needs. The program shall provide access to an
				interpreter. It may be necessary for the program to provide translations of
				written consent forms and other documents.
(5) Human sex trafficking victims may need
				intensive case management and advocacy for extended periods of time.
(6) A victim of human sex trafficking may
				feel that she has to baby sit for free, cook meals or do more than her fair
				share of the chores. Programs should be aware of this dynamic and ensure that
				staff, volunteers and other residents do not unwittingly allow this dynamic to
				occur.
(7) Programs should ensure
				victims are educated about the value of participating in the legal prosecution
				of offenders and that an appropriate release or waiver may be necessary. It is
				the human sex trafficking victim's choice to cooperate with law enforcement.
				Programs may have to educate law enforcement about certain policies,
				confidentiality and privilege laws, victim issues, including safety concerns,
				and whether or not law enforcement may enter the shelter. Programs shall also
				inform law enforcement that victims cannot be restricted from leaving the
				shelter. Programs shall provide alternate, secure locations for
				interviews.
(8) Victims of human
				sex trafficking may be charged with federal or state crimes. Shelters should
				develop relationships with qualified criminal defense lawyers, including the
				federal and state public defender offices that can assist them.
(9) Establishing networks with additional
				service providers: Because of the unique needs of human sex trafficking
				victims, shelters may have to identify and establish relationships with service
				providers such as those who do refugee settlement, with whom they have no
				previous relationship, and assess the providers as potential referral
				sources.