Tom Lackey — Argued that legislation may be needed to improve data collection.
Tom Lackey — Referenced in a point about who purchases sex and enforcement disparities.
Tom Lackey — Tom Lackey asked two related questions in the same exchange: first, whether sting operations include social welfare professionals such as interpreters, social workers, or victim advocates; and second, whether the DOJ presentation is relying solely on hotline data, expressing concern about the reliability of that data, possible underreporting, and skewed results.
Tom Lackey — Tom Lackey asked whether AB 379 included funding for vertical prosecution and whether the absence of such funding would weaken the bill’s effectiveness. He then broadened the discussion to note that the legislature has pursued remedies for trafficking-related offenses, including misdemeanor diversion, which can avoid a criminal record and may serve as an affirmative defense in some cases. He added that, absent violent felony participation, diversion and dismissal options remain available, and his point about diversion was acknowledged as a helpful remedy for trafficking victims.
Tom Lackey — Tom Lackey closes by urging colleagues to view each other as collaborative rather than opposing sides, emphasizing that accountability and criminal consequences are necessary even if the process is not pleasant. He argues that the goal should be changed behavior or punishment, rather than simply trying to understand evil.
Nick Schultz — Nick Schultz is referenced throughout a short opening exchange in which the speaker thanks the Chair and the committee for holding the hearing, the Chair acknowledges the opening remarks, and subsequent comments directly address Chairman Schultz and note a point he made about Holt Avenue.
Nick Schultz — Thanked the Councilwoman and introduced the next panelist.
Nick Schultz — Nick Schultz moved through a continuous set of questions and follow-ups on the new law taking effect January 1, 2026. He first clarified a report reference, then introduced questions for panelists, thanked a witness for a thoughtful answer, and directed a final question to the ACLU staff attorney about whether the new law remains problematic. He then raised concerns about whether expanded loitering laws could worsen racial profiling and immigration enforcement issues, and closed by responding to the witnesses’ point about the prior law not distinguishing sellers from purchasers, noting that arrest data suggests most loitering arrests are of women selling sex rather than men buying sex.
Nick Schultz — Thanked the witness for her testimony and opened the floor for questions from colleagues.
Nick Schultz — Directed a question to Jess Torres about avoiding revictimization and marginalization of survivors.
Nick Schultz — Addressed as Chair Schultz by the panelist.
Nick Schultz — Addressed as Chair Schultz in the opening acknowledgment to the panel.
Nick Schultz — Referenced in connection with a bill and praised for giving a shout-out to the bill.
Nick Schultz — As chair, thanked the witness and opened the floor for questions.
Nick Schultz — Addressed as Mr. Chair.
Nick Schultz — Referred to as Mr. Chairman.
Nick Schultz — Referenced indirectly as part of the Public Safety Committee context and the committee's legislative work.
LaShae Sharp-Collins — The speaker refers to their district as Assembly District 53, which is associated with the member representing the area.
LaShae Sharp-Collins — Assemblywoman Rodriguez is thanked for bringing the measure forward; the speaker also references the Pomona Police Department and local street prostitution concerns.
Professor Hannah Gary — Introduces herself as a professor from USC Gould School of Law.
Tiffany Seuss — Tiffany Seuss introduces herself as a supervising deputy attorney general with the California Attorney General's Office.
Tiffany Seuss — Identified herself as a Supervising Deputy Attorney General with the California Department of Justice.
Councilwoman Tanua Thrash Intuk — Introduces herself as representing the City of Long Beach, 8th District.
Minou Shkandale — Introduces herself as a senior staff attorney at the ACLU of Southern California.
Mark González — Assembly Member Michelle Rodriguez is mentioned twice in close succession within the same discussion, with no change in topic or context.
Councilwoman Joni Rix Odie — Named as the speaker's council colleague on a local policy effort.
Councilwoman Joni Rick's Odie — Referenced again as the speaker's council colleague on the citywide strategy plan.
Councilwoman Tenua Thrash Intuk — Described the rescue of a 14-year-old girl being trafficked on Long Beach Boulevard and argued that law enforcement needs partners, not praise alone.
Tenua Thrash Intuk — Closed her remarks by reiterating her name and title as Councilwoman for the City of Long Beach.
Hannah Gary — Hannah Gary, a USC Gould School of Law professor and director of the International Human Rights Clinic, introduced her testimony by explaining that her clinic has represented dozens of human trafficking survivors. She then outlined that her presentation would focus on a 2021 report examining the impact of law enforcement operations on combating sex trafficking.
USC Gould School of Law clinic representative — The USC Gould School of Law clinic representative presented the clinic’s three-year study evaluating anti-sex trafficking operations. The witness explained the research design, including a literature review, interviews with 42 professionals, and 16 FOIA/CPRA public records requests to federal and California law enforcement agencies, many of which were denied or unanswered. The testimony described how public reporting on these operations is limited despite federal reporting requirements, and argued that the operations disproportionately harm marginalized groups, including Black women, minors, LGBTQ+ people, and undocumented migrants. The witness said the operations identify few victims or traffickers, often lead to the arrest or criminalization of sex workers and trafficking victims, and fail to prosecute traffickers or achieve the TVPA’s goals. The presentation concluded that such operations should be limited and replaced or supplemented with reforms emphasizing transparency, oversight, prevention, services, and community and public health approaches.
ACLU Southern California staff attorney — Introduced as the final panelist from ACLU Southern California.
Minoush Kandel — Minoush Kandel of the ACLU of Southern California identified herself and explained that she works on the organization’s gender, sexual, and reproductive justice team, framing decriminalization of sex work as a reproductive justice issue and noting that criminalization disproportionately harms women, sex workers of color, and trans sex workers.
Mike Ellis — Mike Ellis identified himself as the police chief for the City of Pomona.
Jess Torres — Identified herself as the director of program at Rising Worldwide and a survivor of childhood sex trafficking.
Jess Torres — Jess Torres delivers a sustained testimony arguing that anti-trafficking policy should be survivor-led and grounded in public health rather than criminalization. They explain that survivor inclusion is often treated as an afterthought, criticize the professionalization of victimhood, and note that current anti-trafficking models overfocus on girls while overlooking labor trafficking, boys, homeless youth, and LGBTQ/trans youth. Torres describes how lack of housing, discrimination, and unmet needs drive survival sex, and argues that policing street prostitution and criminalizing demand only displace the problem and increase harm. They cite decriminalization and broader social supports as better solutions, emphasizing that economic instability, housing insecurity, and lack of services fuel trafficking. Torres then shares personal experience as a trafficked child who was harmed by law enforcement and immigration enforcement responses, describing how criminalization and incarceration compounded trauma. They conclude by urging policymakers to use prevention, public health approaches, and meaningful survivor involvement to avoid revictimizing marginalized people.
Nasan Joaquin Garcia — Described as the leader of La Luz Del Mundo Church who was prosecuted and sentenced to 17 years.
SB357 — Referenced as the law whose original intent should be upheld while preventing profiling and protecting victims.
Chief Mike Ellis — Thanked for his presentation.
Chief Mike Ellis — Referenced as having spoken earlier about keeping the community safe and the problem being discussed.
AB63 — AB 63 is discussed as a bill adding protections so people are not arrested solely based on gender identity or sexual orientation. The discussion then turns to whether those safeguards are sufficient to prevent profiling, with Chief Ellis responding affirmatively. Shortly afterward, testimony from the Riverside County District Attorney’s Office addresses how AB 63 could affect law enforcement efforts to combat human trafficking.
AB63 — AB 63 is discussed as a bill that would restore certain law enforcement authority while adding procedural safeguards, including documentation of service offers and limits on identity-based arrests. The speaker continues by addressing operational and enforcement concerns, emphasizing the need for agency procedures and coordination with service organizations. The discussion closes by weighing the bill’s potential benefits and challenges, ultimately suggesting that if properly implemented, AB 63 could strengthen efforts to identify and intervene with at-risk individuals and improve the fight against human traffickers.
AB63 — Referenced as legislation that should consider allowing more people to provide visas.
AB63 — The partnership strongly supports AB 63 and says public hearings will improve it.
Shalon Joseph — Introduced herself as special counsel to Public Defender Ricardo Garcia, Firelight County.
Lila Chappelle — Introduced herself with the Coalition to Abolish Slavery and Trafficking.
Lila Chappelle — Lila Chappelle, representing the Coalition to Abolish Slavery and Trafficking, testified that survivors of sex and labor trafficking need services and legal remedies that are not currently available to all survivors. She argued that criminal records function like a life sentence for survivors, that criminalization and law enforcement responses often worsen vulnerability rather than solve the problem, and that displacement without services simply moves people temporarily without addressing root causes. She concluded that meaningful change requires decriminalization and investment of resources into people and survivor support.
William Robinson — Introduced himself as a managing deputy district attorney at the Riverside County District Attorney's Office and said he would discuss AB 63's impact on law enforcement efforts against human trafficking.
Ricardo Garcia — The speaker twice identifies Ricardo Garcia as their public defender and states that they are speaking on his behalf.
Lisa Jordan — Lisa Jordan, a doctoral candidate at the University of Redlands and Pomona resident, testified in support of harm reduction and decriminalization. She emphasized that discussions of sex-related crime and human trafficking must clearly distinguish consensual adult sex work from exploitation, arguing that conflating the two causes more harm than safety.