Safety committee, we are going to start this meeting today.

Um, we are joined today um by Councilmember Carter and online by Councilmember Evan Shabazz.

We are also joined by staff from Vice Chair Jackson's office, Councilmember Cayman's office, Thomas's office, Huffman's office, Ramirez's office, and virtually um by Mayor Pro Tem Castax Tatum's office and Councilman Salinas' office.

I think I got everybody.

All right, we have two presentations today.

Our first presentations will presentation will be Avda.

Thank you so much for being here today, and we will get the presentation out of Julie.

She's waiting.

And HPD is here as well.

And for everyone following along, we sent an updated presentation this morning, Alan.

Thank you for sending that.

So make sure you follow along on the updated one.

Thank you.

Good morning.

My name is Mycia Coulter.

I'm the CEO of AVDA, Aid to Victims of Domestic Abuse, and I'm joined by retired Lieutenant Julie Pleasant, who is currently the police administrator for Victim Services Division.

Today we're going to be discussing domestic violence as a both a public safety and public health issue.

Domestic violence is a pattern of power and control.

And in Texas, nearly 250,000 families violence offenses were charged last year, with tens of thousands of them in Houston.

52% of victims sought help before being killed.

A gun increases homicide risk, the presence of a gun increases homicide risk by 500%.

When there's been strangulation involved in the domestic violence, it is likely that that victim will come succumb to domestic violence homicide.

750% of the time.

Leaving is the most dangerous time for an abuse victim.

Victims stay because of fear, financial dependence, children, trauma bonding, and threats.

What may look like non-cooperation on the part of the victim is actually sometimes an act of survival.

If you will, would you move to slide three?

So in 2023, 48,000 147 domestic violence offenses were charged here in Houston.

In 2024, 49,947 were charged.

In 2025, 46,396 homicide.

I mean, I'm sorry, domestic violence offenses were charged.

These are what we know occurred.

Because domestic violence happens again behind closed doors in secrecy.

The fact that these numbers are as high as they are, we still don't know who and all who all is experiencing domestic violence in our city.

So I'm sure you've heard it said before.

That's a nationwide statistic.

And because of those reasons, we have to have cooperation and collaboration with our partners so that we can get these victims out of their current situations.

And when I say that, I mean an immediate response on scene to intervene in an emergency situation to get those immediate needs to have them to get assistance and to have their needs met right where they are.

So, what we see in patrol is a lot of a revolving door.

So collaboration is key.

So we're gonna talk about the system gaps and where we see deficits in our system right now.

Um, if you will move to uh the slides that begin with systems gaps, thank you.

Keep going.

There you go.

Um, there are major gaps.

Most of them occur because there are such high call volume.

59% of those who do call and need shelter are being denied shelter um because of the lack of availability of space in our area.

Um there is also a lack of follow-up and limited coordination across the system.

So, although these survivors encounter the system and resources that are available, because there's a lack of connectivity and collaboration on the part of those who are here to help in terms of just communication, being able to respond timely when someone is reaching out in crisis, then it makes it a harder for us to sustain help with these individuals because we're basically um staggered and protracted and and and scattered in terms of how we responds.

What we know is that there is a model that can work and has been working for us in terms of how we respond.

And as Lieutenant Pleasant um already alluded to, we need to address the needs of the victims when they are in crisis.

So if you roll to the model that we currently use that has been effective in helping to provide um responses that keep survivors um addressing their needs right when they're in crisis.

So look at look um slide, go to slide um that says the abdom model, please.

Thank you.

So what we're looking at is survivor makes a call to law enforcement in crisis.

We immediately get a referral from our law enforcement partners because they are responding on the scene and they have knowledge about the resources that are available to these um uh crisis callers.

We have we have the opportunity at that point when they are ripe and ready for services to intervene.

So we address the crisis, and that means that we're addressing just not just their immediate um trauma, their immediate um medical needs, but we're also looking at basic needs.

Can they leave this home?

Can they leave in a way that's safe?

Um, what are the resources that are available to them and what do they need?

What are their unique circumstances?

Not everyone needs shelter.

Um, can they go to a home to a relative?

And if so, can they go to that place in a safe manner?

Um, once we get that situated, then we look at their legal needs.

Most of the time, our advocates are co-located with HPD, and we've been doing this since 2008.

So we actually are there when in domestic violence calls are being investigated.

Um, we have five different HPD domestic violence units, and so we have the ability to sit in with those um uh survivors who are making reports, having their um their cases investigated, and ultimately um helping them to transition into a crime victims um support role.

We also provide counseling, and we on the civil side of things will provide other relief to include getting them civil protective orders, getting them a divorce, a custody, a child support order, any kind of relief that will allow them to have self-sufficiency and the ability to um remain away from that abusive partner that poses the danger to them and to their children, oftentimes.

Um Julie's gonna share one of the high impact situations that we worked on and currently are still working on.

So I'm gonna share with you.

Um just gonna refer to her as Miriam.

Uh we went to an on-seen disturbance.

Uh, it was an assault.

Uh, she had been uh pushed around beaten, she was pregnant.

She, the same suspect uh once DART responded, we made the referrals, and as textbook as it was, uh she made the outcry because her son uh called police, but that was it.

She didn't want to do anything else, and that's very common.

Two years later, she made another outcry.

She was hospitalized this time.

Hit up the ante.

She took it more serious.

She wanted to prosecute.

It didn't stop.

It just escalated and continued.

So now there's another event where we wanted to press charges.

That's an active case.

And then another event where she's hospitalized.

What law enforcement is privy to is the same suspect the same thing with the previous girlfriend, seven months pregnant.

He did the same thing.

So these patterns show us that the violence isn't gonna stop.

Now we have a receptive, a receptive survivor now who is been turned over to Avda twice, and she is seeking those services for complicated divorce, uh, a protective order who amazing job, by the way, a 20-year protective order and 10 year for the child because the child was in between, caught in the middle of that violence, protecting his mother.

So these are the things that we lean on for ABDA.

Miriam never needed any other services, but these legal legal services, and she just didn't think she could get out of it.

Um is already within nine days of the protective order, violated that protective order and was arrested and put in, charged and put in jail again.

So this is what collaboration partnership looks like, even when the survivor doesn't know they need what they need, they know that partners like Avda are there to support them and HPD and trying to make them and their families safe.

Because we know that survivors take a long time to leave these relationships.

We understand that there are implications for them, not just about leaving the partner, but also um dealing with the aftermath of leaving that person.

So we don't turn anyone away, even though she presented to us previously and we were ready to help her with a protective order in 2019, um, and she she declined to move forward um with with additional services.

Whenever she's ready, we're ready to take that on with her, and we go through every step along the way, emphasizing safety, if emphasizing um again, autonomy and her ability to ultimately stay out of that relationship.

One of the things that I want to share with you all is the results and the impact of some of the work that we did last year.

Um there were 5,615 adults and children supported by legal advocacy services.

Um filed 2,062 different lawsuits on behalf of survivors, um, adult survivors, and in regard to civil legal family law services.

We provided 573 survivors with um uh a completed case, and of those cases, we were able to um obtain 11 million dollars in awards that includes child support and property divisions for those particular cases that were concluded.

534 clients, um, including 54 youth received trauma-informed support.

That's 3,257 hours of counseling.

We worked with 734 abusers and received who received counseling through our BIP program.

BIP is battering intervention and prevention, and it is an opportunity for those who've been identified as abusive in their intimate relationships to seek and get help through psychoeducation and counseling.

They're with us for 18 weeks.

We look at we look at domestic violence as a whole person problem, and we're not just trying to help survivors survive, but also we want to intervene in regard to those who've been identified as perpetrators of domestic abuse.

We believe that changing their thinking, changing their behavior is ultimately the real way that we will help to really shore up and not create new survivors of domestic violence.

We also understand that prevention is in in is also the ultimate way for us to um address this issue within our community.

So we want to make sure that at the end of the day, what you hear here is that people are being impacted by domestic violence on a regular basis in our city, and we have resources available to help them.

What we need is support to make sure that the resources that are available are connected with one another.

Higher incidences of domestic violence call shouldn't result in a domestic violence caller not being able to know to go to the next uh entity to get this resource or that resource.

We have to be able to collaborate with one another, communicate with one another at a higher level and be able to sustain a long-term plan for survivors once they make the decision to leave their intimate partners, because that's how we will reduce our high levels of lethality within our city.

Um, although we are the largest city in in Texas, we are disproportionately higher in numbers of um intimate partner homicides.

And so, as a as a collective, we need to be looking at those most extreme cases because if we address those, then we ultimately are able to address the ones that are not necessarily on the lethality spectrum and at the highest risk for um harm and ultimately um a demise.

So working together, getting the support that the survivors need, making the connections for community um collaboration is the charge that we want to make to anyone who is faithful and interested in um ending domestic violence in our city.

Thank you so much for the presentation and all of the great work that you do every day.

We really appreciate as a city, you know, the um all the efforts that Avda does.

It's just um absolutely amazing work.

Um, first up, Councilmember Carter.

As you knew I would be.

Um you know, thank you, Myesha, and thank you, Julie.

Uh the the work that that you do at Avdev certainly is um kind of a little that it it's a sadly best kept secret, and I try to put you guys out there as much as possible.

I think it's really really important to uh for me, obviously from the point of Texas uh uh Texas Council on Family Violence to note that from 2024, 2025 uh fatalities from domestic violence across the state of Texas, 25 went down.

Okay, the numbers 176 and 20, because you're always a year behind, 176 fatalities in 2023, 161 in 2024.

We won't know 2025 until October, but also notably that Houston went up.

2023, we had 38, 2024, we had 47.

And I I talk about this a lot, you all know that.

Um, you know, in Harris County, 70 percent of all calls to law enforcement are domestic violence, family violence related.

But also equally important is in 2023, the youngest victim was 13.

The oldest was 88.

In 2024, the youngest victim was 15, the oldest was 70.

So when you think about domestic violence, family violence, you know, sometimes we sort of think, oh, it's this demographic, this age, this whatever.

It is not.

And when you think about a 13-year-old, or it gives me chills to even say 88-year-old, you know.

Um it there are no boundaries.

Correct.

And so I think I'm constantly waving the flag and that awareness keys piece is key to prevention.

Uh, you know, awareness and education equals prevention.

And in Harris County, uh, like you said, we have a uh disproportionate amount of you know the fatalities.

Um, and also to not to mention our law enforcement walking into that and and uh you know, anything that we can do to bring awareness through the education piece through the school systems through our workplace, um, because there's a whole nother story, as you know, on the financial impact to the workplace and to the hospital systems.

And so this is all very, very important information, but also very important work.

And unfortunately, we need about 10 of you in the in Houston and Harris County.

So thank you all for being here and thank you for what you do.

Thank you.

And Councilmore Carter, thank you also for all the work you do related to this as well.

Um, I don't see any more councilmers in the queue.

Thank you again both for the presentation.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Up next, we will hear from Project to Protect Our Children.

And as they are coming up, I wanted to announce that we were also joined during the last presentation by Councilmember Alcorn and staff from Councilmember Martinez's office.

Thank you so much for having me here today.

We are ready to go.

All right.

Well, again, um, thank you so much for giving me this opportunity to speak before you today.

Thank you, Twilight Carter, um, for the recommendation.

My name is Denise Mears, and I am the executive director and founder of Project Protect Our Children.

Project Protect Our Children was founded in 2019 after I had spent several years working in Houston with a nonprofit that provided direct services to teenage trafficking victims that have been trafficked within Houston City.

Um I understood uh that there were gaps that existed.

Um the reality is we saw a large number of recitism with the young women that went through the program.

And you know, their lives were forever changed through the complex trauma.

Um Project Protect Our Children was founded to fill the gaps that exist, um, understanding that there were areas that we could be and programs that could be provided that would help prevent trafficking.

Um of our programs are um primary and tertiary prevention programs and awareness.

And so the main objective of all of our programs is to prevent the crime before it happens.

But a secondary and a direct result is going to be victim identification.

It is important to say we have students, we have children sitting in class today that are being trafficked, and they don't understand that what is happening to them is trafficking, they can't put a name to it, and even if they did, they wouldn't know um who to go to or how to get help.

So um we realize that as a community we all have a role to play in protecting our children, and so we adapted a holistic community approach.

Our goal is to engage, educate, and empower every single person to collectively embrace being a part of the solution to combat child trafficking, exploitation, and abuse.

Next slide.

So before I proceed any further, I really like to ensure that everyone uh has the base knowledge of what human trafficking is.

So I prefer using the AMP model, action plus means plus purpose equals human trafficking.

So according to Polaris, the organization that used to, although now COMPASS runs the National Human Trafficking Hotline, human trafficking is a crime involving the exploitation of someone for the purpose of compelled labor or commercial sex act through the use of forced fraud or coercion.

So if you take any one of the actions, uh if a person is induced, recruited, harbored, transported, provided, or obtained by the use of forced fraud or coercion for the purpose of commercial sex or labor um trafficking, then that person by the trafficking victims protection act of 2000 is a trafficking victim.

At a minimum, one element from each column must be present to be able to establish that that is indeed human trafficking.

Next slide.

So just to be clear, what that means is that if a child exchange any type of commercial sex act for anything of value, so that can be a place to sleep, that could be food to eat, um, that could be drugs, anything of value, that meets the definition of a child sex trafficking.

So in addition, um the state of Texas uh added uh individuals with disabilities, you no longer have to prove force, fraud, or coercion.

So with minors and individuals with disabilities, you do not have to show force, fraud, or coercion, just that that person, the action equals the purpose with something of value exchanged.

Child trafficking is one of the most horrible crimes today, but it is also one of the most challenging for communities to identify.

Oh, and the reason why supply equals demand.

Uh, human trafficking is the most basic uh basic economic principle of if there's supply, um, the supply will meet the demand.

So that's why when we see um different events that bring a high amount of people to our city, whether that be a sporting event or whether that be a conference with a high intendance, you're going to see trafficking and exploitation rates increase.

And so the reality is uh there are many contributing factors, um, and the majority of them are related to lack of training and awareness within our government, within law enforcement, within our medical community education system, and community as a whole.

Um, traffickers perceive very little risk for very high reward.

If you are going to make um money illegally, if you um sell drugs or guns, the reality is you have to go out and buy more.

But a human being can be sold again and again and again.

When you're talking about transportation, and you're in a vehicle and you've been pulled over for a stop, if you have guns or drugs in your vehicle, those are going to be seen.

That's something that's chargeable.

But if you have a human being with you, that becomes this is my sister's child, this is my neighbor, this is my girlfriend's child.

So it is very hard to define.

The reality is traffickers prey on those that are most vulnerable within our communities.

Next slide.

So data, that is one of the things in this arena that is very hard to come by.

We don't have an exact number of children that are being trafficked in Texas.

We don't have an exact number of children being trafficked in Harris County or across the nation.

And it's not because the problem is small, it is not.

It's because it's hidden, it's because it's underreported, it's because those reports are fragmented across the different systems.

So the numbers that we will review in the next slide, they only represent those cases that were brought forth.

The reality is trafficking is a hidden crime.

Underreporting is the norm, it is not the exception.

There is no single data system that exists.

So what I mean by that is no unified either national or statewide database trafficking or tracking all child trafficking cases.

So data is fragmented amongst law enforcement, um, healthcare systems, schools, nonprofits, hotlines, and the child welfare system.

And even the data that they collect often do not indicate those where cases have come forward, yet there was not enough information present for them to move forward with prosecution.

Uh in addition, uh, another reason why data is hard to come by is uh we have seen a high number of cases that uh when they came to trial for various reasons they're prosecuted under a lesser charge.

So in the National Human Trafficking Hotline as of 2025 is now operated by COMPASS connections.

So we don't have the 2025 national data, um, but 2024 showed in the state of Texas um they received 1,360 human trafficking cases involving uh over 2400 victims.

So the 2024 uh human trafficking uh data from HPD showed an increase in trafficking cases.

Yet our 2025 HPD data showed a decrease.

So in 2024, I was elated to see that increase.

Not that I thought we had a huge increase in trafficking in our city, but that that meant we in the prevention space were doing our job.

Those victims were being identified.

They were being reported, they were receiving services.

So I have to say it's alarming that there has been a decrease.

Um the 2025 HPD data shows um 86 victims that were recovered, with over half being juveniles.

Um in the first um early parts of 2026, there was a single initiative that reported 29 victims that were rescued, including 11 juveniles.

The FBI Houston office um submitted a press release in January sharing that their child exploitation in human trafficking task force identified, located, and rescued more than 200 child victims and arrested over 286 predators and human traffickers.

So to combat um the issue of lack of data across the systems and across law enforcement entities, the Texas human, uh the Texas Attorney General's office now, as of September 1, 2025, requires mandatory regular reporting of human trafficking investigations under the Texas government code.

So that's good for us.

We're going to have a better understanding and knowledge of what human trafficking is.

If anything, the lack of data that we are seeing today should not reduce the urgency that we feel, it should increase it.

Because when a crime is designed to stay hidden, the absence of data is an evidence, the absence of data is an evidence of the absence of the crime, it is evidence of how much work remains to be done.

So a study was conducted by the University of Texas Austin, and this is something in the anti-trafficking arena and trafficking arena in Texas overall, and we fall back on because this was the first study that gave us an idea of what human trafficking looks like within our state.

So this study by the University of Texas Houston conducted shared that at any given time, approximately 79,000 children and minors were being commercially sex trafficked within our state.

Now, what is shocking to me is that this study is almost 10 years old, and when it was done, the variables that they used to come up with these figures, they only included domestic child trafficking cases.

So they were not taking into account any migrant children.

This is children that were born in Texas and trafficked or born in the United States and trafficked in the United States.

And so my concern is that you know Houston has the largest migrant unaccompanied child population.

So, you know, revisiting this data, I wonder what those numbers would be today.

Next.

So technology has had the most profound impact on child trafficking and exploitation.

The internet, social media, online gaming provides predators and traffickers a level of connection to our youth that has never been seen before.

Um, and steer instead of that fear of that stranger approaching our children on the street, they now have the ability to access them within your own home.

Nationally, as a direct result of the report act, the National Centers for Missing and Exploited Children, is beginning to see a more realistic reflection of the number of children being trafficked online for sex.

In 2023, one year before the report act went in into effect, online platforms submitted 8,480 cyber tip line reports related to child sex trafficking.

In 2025, the first full year after the implementation, online platforms had submitted 105,877, which is an 1,100% increase.

Next slide, please.

Um, you know, within that same vein, they report 156% increase in online enticement, which is where an adult posing as a child uh is uh uh connecting with a child via the internet to commit a sexual offense, including human trafficking.

So this rise is was also largely attributed uh to the report act.

So next slide.

Unfortunately, with social media and the internet um, you know, providing that opportunity for traffickers and predators to connect with our youth, um, we are seeing and we will continue to see rising facts um uh uh and data showing that the increase.

So 55% in the Thorne study um were uh first uh connected um with their trafficker via social media and the internet.

Next slide.

That same study showed the majority of survey uh respondents shared that grooming took less than four months, so four months from that initial connection to them being trafficked.

Um 42% said that the trafficker earned their trust within a month.

So if you can take a moment to think that through, one month of conversations on your phone, I say conversations, but tax.

And 88% said that once the trafficker um that the way that the trafficker earned their trust was by telling them that they would care about them.

Next slide.

The truth is most trafficking and exploitation does happen in the context of relationships.

Um the reality is those relationships allow the predators to uh groom their victims.

Uh next slide.

Our programs that were um developed to fill those gaps that exist um specifically our youth action board program.

We also have programs of for parents, caregivers and guardians, human trafficking social media safety, as well as those for youth.

But our youth action board specifically, next slide, please.

It is the nation's first anti-trafficking school club program.

What we have done is we have created a program for middle and high school students that feel called to be a part of the solution.

It is the very first across the nation that is student-led, that empowers the students with the knowledge and understanding of what human trafficking is, gives them the ability to cognitively think through what their role could be and what gaps exist within their community, and then take the initiative to bring events and activities to their school campuses to raise awareness amongst their peers.

So this is one of my favorite quotes.

Oh, that's okay, um, by uh Roosevelt.

We cannot always build the future for our youth, but we can build our youth for the future.

And that is exactly what we've done with the Youth Action Board program.

Next slide.

So all of our programs and services are free.

Uh in addition, the Youth Action Board, we actually pay the campus sponsors a stipend.

Uh we have uh launched this program, we launched it actually in March of 2020.

March of 2020 developed in 19, right when COVID hit, and that's where we truly saw the resilience in our youth.

So we had six students answer that call to action, and that very next year they raised human trafficking awareness to over 4,000 of their peers on our pilot campus.

So at the end of the day, the program was built.

Um it is age-appropriate, research-based, trauma-informed, uh, it is survivor-informed, educator built.

The modules have flexibility within them, and once the students go through the actual training, um, they then are given the opportunity, and it all becomes a student-led, student-driven.

We also provide uh the campus sponsors a stipend because we understand that those campus sponsors um that are donating their time, time is money.

So we we do that as well.

Uh we have piloted within the public school system.

We now have campuses both public and private and charter schools across the state of Texas.

Um we are moving to grow the youth-driven movement across the nation.

Uh although the program was um piloted within the school system, it has been built that it could be used in multiple youth um uh settings.

So we would we'd love the opportunity if there are any connections here.

One to school districts, school campuses, middle schools, high schools, or church youth groups.

We could do it in church youth groups.

There's flexibility within the program.

Next slide.

So we realized that by nurturing the leadership and passion of today's youth, we can create generational change.

Not only does the program itself provide the knowledge and understanding of what human trafficking is, um, what to look for, give them those opportunities to critically think through so that they can identify those gaps.

It also gives them uh information and knowledge regarding um uh CSAM, sex torsion, um, how to report concerns, uh, it builds their leadership and communication skills and empowers them to be part of the solution.

Additionally, um we are a presidential volunteer service awards certifying organization.

It's on pause now, but we're hoping it will come back.

Um we have awarded 15 of those since 2020.

And then last year, because uh one of the main objectives of this program is to create true generational change because today's students they are tomorrow's parents, they are tomorrow's educators, they are tomorrow's council members.

We want them to take that knowledge and understanding that they have um that they have learned through the youth action board and put it to use in their future careers.

So last year we started a scholarship program for them to do just that.

So very excited about that.

Our next slide.

So last year's um youth action board members uh created events and activities across their school campuses that raised awareness to over 32,715 of their peers, utilizing the power of youth voice, giving them a seat at the table.

Because for years, traditional prevention methods they are needed, but we are not seeing the forward progression.

Um it is time for us to think outside the box, and instead of talking to them and at them, talk with them.

Let them be part of it.

Next slide.

In addition to the Youth Action Board program, we have an E3 professional development program that we offer youth, and it's typically done once a year because of the planning that goes into it.

That uh the youth are uh youth that have experience with trafficking exploitation, youth that are evolved and involved in the juvenile justice system, youth that are experienced or unhoused.

Um we uh actually have worked with HPD, uh their GH PALs.

Uh they were volunteers for our program.

Uh what we do is we bring all of the youth together for a day to give them knowledge and understanding of the different career career pathways that they may have.

Because at the end of the day, these youth are don't um are lacking the the programs that are feeding into them to give them the knowledge and understanding of scholarships that are out there, funding abilities, um, creating um the opportunities to go through um resume writing, um interviewing 101, uh financial literacy.

So we provide all these workshops in addition to um curated speakers uh that are specific to the attendees for future pathways.

So uh it's a beautiful um day, and it uh it is um it is empowering to be a part of it because I will say uh one of the things of the professional uh interviewing is we provide them with outfits.

So boys and girls, and you would think at the end of the day uh you would not see as much excitement.

But I will tell you half of the boys and a good deal, if not probably 80% of the girls, went to the restrooms and changed into their clothing.

So it's beautiful.

Um very happy with GH Pals that they were able to walk alongside us, and that's a greater Houston Police Activity League officers.

Um with that program, volunteer, and we've also uh worked with them with the youth action board program.

Um in addition, uh, next slide, we provide training to educators.

Uh one of the things that uh we identified was you have to go where the youth are, which is the classrooms, the school communities.

Our educators, it is imperative that they receive the training that gives them a full understanding of what human trafficking is and what it would look like in their classrooms.

They need to understand what that complex trauma has done to that child, that their actions may not be necessarily willful disobedience, but the complex trauma.

So to understand what they are seeing within the classroom so that they have that full knowledge and understanding so that they can identify and report and help connect those students with services.

I can say out of the last six years of providing training, uh, and we actually train all over the state of Texas, uh, but primarily ESC4.

We've done some great trainings there and UMBOL ISD, uh only one this past summer uh did I not have an educator or school staff member come up to me and say, I now understand what was going on with that student.

I knew something was wrong, but I couldn't identify it.

Uh it wasn't this and it wasn't this, but I knew it was something, and after going through this training, I now believe it was trafficking.

And although that is hard to hear, we are um we are overjoyed that that knowledge and understanding that that educator and school staff member has, they will now take it back to the school community and have it going forward.

And I will say, in regards to the one training this last summer, we've actually been training in that school district for four years.

So I think that is probably one of the reasons.

Um, next slide, please.

One of the things the Thorne study also provided us with is the understanding that most domestic minor sex trafficking victims were attending school while being trafficked.

We have seen this.

Um we know this to be true.

We know that we um have children again in class today that don't identify that what's happening to them is trafficking or exploitation.

Uh we used to, when we very first started, uh, we used to say when we were looking at school districts to provide our programs for based on capacity, we would say, do we think we're going to have trafficking victims within the school district?

And that was 2019.

Now our question is which school districts do we think we're going to have the most?

Because without a doubt, we have trafficking and exploitation across all of the school districts.

Next slide.

So the majority of our programs are focused on the youth and the school community and the community as a whole, the parents.

But what we wanted to do, and I, as the founder, specifically was bring in their circle of influence.

And so my circle of influence, far left field, warehousing logistics.

My husband has a warehousing logistics company.

So we built a human trafficking 101 for employees that are not forward-facing.

We did this because we were going into schools, we were going into churches, we were speaking to individuals that asked the questions about what human trafficking was.

Why not give them that knowledge and understanding?

Not that we think they're going to necessarily come in contact with a trafficking victim while they're at work, but what about in the communities that they live?

What about in the communities that our businesses were thriving?

So we built a one uh human trafficking 101.

Next slide, please, for every employee.

We have it available in English and Spanish.

We actually are using this in uh 15 different states.

So the module itself, again, all free with pre and post, um, so we can show the knowledge increase amongst the attendees.

At the end of the day, every human being, every person should know what human trafficking is, should be able to recognize and identify.

And if they think it is trafficking, they should know how to report and respond to it.

Every law enforcement I've talked to said they would rather get the call and it not be trafficking rather than not get the call, and it was.

And so uh human trafficking 101 for every employee um does just that.

It gives them that basic knowledge.

It's 23 minutes plus pre and post.

Each of our companies and businesses have their own URL so we can show specific to that company or business the change that the program has made.

We've um been able to certify several Houston businesses as Texas uh Texas business against trafficking as well.

So my ask of you today, um, because if you know me at all, um, you would know that I always ask is the city of Houston employees 20,000 people.

I would like the city of Houston to consider um human trafficking training for all their employees, regardless of what role you play.

We are happy to provide you with the link, and as a matter of fact, on the drive here, I had one of my employees create it so I can forward it to you.

Um at the end of the day, it's free.

Again, free, free, free.

Cannot say that enough, but it does take time, probably about 27 minutes.

So 27 minutes of 20,000 employees, it does add up.

So it is going to be a decision that we're gonna need some champions to help push forward.

Uh, one more slide.

This is one of the quotes from one of the companies here in Houston that we provide the human trafficking 101 training to.

Uh really the all the feedback that we received for the businesses that receive um this training and use it and what they've done historically is it's become part of their onboarding for their new employees.

Uh, but overall, just the lack of um that really was a response was we had no idea.

Um, we didn't know that this was trafficking.

Next slide.

At the end of the day, knowledge is power, knowledge is prevention.

Our children need to have the knowledge and understanding in an age-appropriate way to be able to identify exploitation and trafficking.

Without providing that for them, we are doing them a disservice.

Our parents should be able to recognize what trafficking and exploitation looks like within social media in the internet.

We are missing the mark in a lot of different areas.

And at the end of the day, not only project protect our children, but there are other nonprofits here in Houston that do provide other free services.

We just need to figure out a way to actively engage our community members so that we can share the knowledge and understanding.

Um, when I very first started in 2016, human trafficking was the number three criminal industry.

By the time I started Project Protect Our Children, it had grown to the number two criminal industry.

We in Houston have been leaders in the anti-trafficking efforts.

And so as I leave today, I hope that what I've shared with you will possibly give you pause and you will think what connections could you possibly offer us so that we can get in the school districts that you are currently serving?

Because every school district should have a youth action board program.

Every school district should give their students the opportunity to be part of the solution.

Our students over the cat clap over the course of six years have received awards from Congress, have received awards from Governor Abbott, have been invited by the Attorney General J Ken Paxton to visit Austin.

What they are doing is groundbreaking.

Giving them that opportunity to be part of the solution.

So thank you so much.

Thank you so much for the presentation.

Before we get to questions, we were joined during the presentation virtually by Councilmore Huffman and in person by staff from Councilmore Flickinger's office.

How many school districts are you currently working with at the moment?

I want to say, I was like, where's the impact report?

I think I gave it to you.

Oh, is it in the okay?

Well, I can look at that then.

I'm not 100% sure.

I want to say it's seven public school districts.

Uh I can get that data to you.

Uh we have a um platform where we keep it all.

I want to say we're in seven public and two private, and then the charter schools.

Great.

Multiple charter schools, yeah.

Um, first up, Councilmember Carter.

Thank you, uh, Chair, and also to thank you all for uh bringing uh Project Protect Our Children as well as AVDA to to the meeting today.

Um again I kind of look at the data and as relates to um to Houston and certainly uh Denise, you all are doing a fantastic job.

Um, you know, and we're gonna we're still working to to get you in HISD.

Um, but I think notable information too, because again, we kind of think that we see it a certain way, but you know, when you look at male versus female, you know, uh roughly 50 percent data shows roughly 50 percent are male, but yet mostly go unreported because of the stigma attached.

Um you know, it doesn't go unnoticed that Houston is one of the largest hubs in the United States, and what makes that so uh the geographic location, the Mexican border is the halfway point and for smuggling and trafficking operations for the world.

And so when you think of that, and then interstate access, our interstate system connects to 10 different major cities across the U.S.

So again, a hub, of course, the port, another avenue, the population, and you know, major events that we host.

I'd read um and made a note I read that in 2024, over a two-month period, so April to June, they measured, and 275,000 ads were posted online in Texas for sex trafficking.

I believe it.

275,000 and Houston was at the top of the list.

And so again, what we think it looks like, what we think we know about it or we don't, it's it's mind-boggling when you really get into it.

And and uh I mentioned and I'll I'll put in a plug here on May 19th, and hosting a uh common ground coffee and conversation, and it's um on human trafficking with some of the leaders in the industry and certainly uh our police chief and and the representation from Harris County.

Um but it is it is not just a FIFA problem.

We hear FIFA's coming, FIFA's coming, FIFA comes.

It's a Houston problem, and we're tackling as it as such.

Um, and I think um really looking forward to some groundbreaking uh happenings in the very near future that we're working on.

So I thank you for your work.

And um, you know, it's not easy work either, it's not an easy topic.

So uh, you know, thank you and God bless you for all that you do because I know it matters to many.

Thank you.

Thank you so much.

Councilmember Alcorn.

Thank you, Chair, and thank you.

I had not heard of your organization, and it was really great to learn more about it.

I I feel like you peeled back the onion of a lot of what what this all involves, and I'm very interested in the link, get it to the chair, and she'll get it to all of us, and we'll make sure that um that that um to try to get the training to everybody because I think I learned a lot right here, and I'm sure your your 27-minute online thing will really help us understand it a lot more.

Well, I just want to offer if you ever want a total deep dive, we could do a total deep dive.

You know, our educator and youth serving organization training uh is 90 minutes.

Uh so you know the 20 27 minutes is the basic information that every human being should have.

But we could do a complete di deep dive, including explaining the different contributing factors.

Um we are here uh to be a resource um for you.

Thank you for the important work you're doing.

Thank you.

Councilmember Carter.

Sorry, one other comment.

I just noticed the other day uh one of the I think channel, I think it was KHOU one morning, and again, y'all know I'm a little older, but the the online gaming platforms, and they specifically specifically called out one that I won't name, but that I had not heard of, but it's very popular, and said that there were cautioning um about you know about grooming through on online gaming, which is a very popular platform for young people nowadays.

Um, and it's you know, they're saying, oh, seven years and up, and you think, wow, but you know, like this is a headline news, you know, alert.

So it's kind of it's scary to me.

Thank God my kids are grown.

We spend uh four days every year in Dallas at the Crimes Against Children um uh conference um so that we are aware of the emerging trends, and so we train with law enforcement and uh different uh prosecutors, both um state and national, so that we can take that knowledge and information, those emerging trends um that Twilight was speaking about and roll them back into our prevention programming because at the end of the day, if our programming doesn't keep up with the trends, and we have seen so many.

I mean, it is it's staggering and and AI, so I again I could talk about this forever.

So thank you again um for the presentation, all the work you do, um the student programs and resources, so crucial.

So thank you again.

And please send us that link and we'll make sure we get it out to everyone.

I will send it to him.

Great.

Absolutely perfect.

Thank you so much.

Thank you.

We don't have any public speakers signed up.

Is there anyone in the audience who wanted to speak today?

Okay, seeing nobody, um, we will adjourn our meeting.

Our next scheduled meeting will be Tuesday, June 9th at 10 o'clock a.m.

Thanks, everyone.