Trafficking Tools

• their need for love and affection,
• their need to belong or fit in,
• low self-esteem (unsuccessful in school, physically handicapped, learning disability)
• physical or psychological needs: home problems, self-medicating.

• Don't let children go out alone or with someone they do not know
• Encourage children to always tell an adult where they are going, who their friends are
• Tell them to say "No" if they feel threatened or receive offers from friendly kids or male or female adults.
• Keep the computer in the living room, not the bedroom.

• Extraordinary concern about appearance, wanting to look "sexy".
• Self-destructive behavior, drop in grades, truancy, sleepiness;
• Unresolved issues/arguments at home, attitude changes;
• Secrecy and lack of truthfulness, often isolated from friends;
• Out of the home a lot but reluctant to give names of companions or destination;
• Sudden use of alcohol or drugs;
• Seeking pornography and internet contacts;
• Possessing extra money, jewelry or clothes.

• Rural communities must develop good working relationships with the managers of local rinks, movie theatres, pool halls and any other places where teenagers hang out. These managers should be asked to alert the authorities if older persons, particularly persons new to the community, start spending time at the facility and speaking to local teenagers.
• Local newspapers and shoppers should be asked to immediately contact the authorities if individuals outside the community place an advertisement for teenage models or other seemingly glamorous jobs outside of the town. If the newspapers are uncooperative, explore the possibility of using an administrative subpoena or other police power to investigate the reasonable possibility that such advertisements are a front for the commercial exploitation of children.