District attorney's office set to lower the boom on businesses that don't post human trafficking info.

Better late than never when it comes to spreading the word to victims of human trafficking on how to escape.

That was the takeaway from a press conference held by Monterey County District Attorney Dean D. Flippo on Jan. 30, where he and Assistant District Attorney Jeannine Pacioni announced they're set to enforce a four-year-old state law.

It turns out that since 2013, businesses and public places where human trafficking victims are most likely to frequent—like rail and bus stations, airports, truck stops, emergency rooms, farms and sexually oriented establishments—are required to post information telling victims where to call for help.

Apparently no one’s been checking to see if the required information is actually posted around Monterey County, but that's now coming to an end.

Starting within a couple of weeks, the office will be distributing, to businesses, bold, black and gold 11x17” posters with the legally required message as part of its Human Trafficking Enforcement Program.

“If you or someone you know is being forced to engage in any activity and cannot leave—whether it is commercial sex, housework, farm work, construction, factory, retail or restaurant work, or any other activity—call the National Human Trafficking Resource Center at 1-888-373-7888,” it reads in three languages—English, Spanish and Tagalog.

The poster says people can also text “INFO” or “HELP" to BeFree (233-7333). It includes details on how to reach the California Coalition to Abolish Slavery and Trafficking and the Monterey County Rape Crisis Center.

The toll-free hotlines listed are available 24 hours a day, seven days a week, are anonymous and confidential and direct people in more than 160 languages where to get help in their locale.

The businesses don’t have to use the posters, but they do have to post the same information in English and Spanish in a form outlined in the law where employees or travelers can see it.

Distributing the posters is only the first step in the DA’s efforts. The next step is enforcement.

Law enforcement officers around the county will begin checking to see if establishments are posting the info. If they aren’t, they get a 30-day notice to comply.

Any business that doesn’t comply in 30 days will receive a $500 fine for the first offense and a $1,000 fine for each subsequent offense.

Flippo and Pacioni said they know from recent cases, and from participating in regional anti-human trafficking groups, that Monterey County harbors the insidious practice.

Just last year their office got its first conviction against defendant Jerry Stringer for the sex trafficking of two minor girls, both age 17. 

(Stringer has not been sentenced. He recently got a new public defender who filed a motion for a new trial, claiming Stringer received bad legal advice from his former private attorney. Judge Julie Culver is scheduled to rule on the motion Feb. 8.)

In the last two weeks, the office has received two referrals for possible cases of human trafficking in the county, Pacioni said, along with another referral for a case that involves both Monterey and Alameda counties.

One factor that makes Monterey County a potential trafficking hot spot is Highway 101, considered by law enforcement as a main corridor for moving victims through the state.

In addition, Monterey County plays hosts to a number of high-profile events like the AT&T Pro Am, Concours d’Elegance and others where sex workers could be exploited.

The rape crisis center’s executive director, Clare Mounteer, said it’s hard to know exactly how many victims there are in the county. The center received 18 calls in the past year from people who identified themselves as victims.

The center will help distribute the posters to other locations besides the ones mandated by state law.

“Education is the key to this,” she said. "[Victims] are the least likely to pick up the phone. They just don’t come forward as easily.”

In the near future, the DA’s office will use a form of crowdsourcing to find businesses not in compliance using the map1193.com website, created by the Alameda District Attorney’s Office.

The website is named for SB 1193, the law enacted in 2013 requiring the notices. It invites members of the public to use an interactive map to mark places in red that aren’t posting the information.