SB58Enacted
Revise provisions related to human trafficking, to prohibit the obstruction of human trafficking enforcement, and to provide a penalty therefor.
SB 58 strengthens South Dakota's human trafficking laws by expanding the definition of "coercion" to include threats and patterns of behavior designed to frighten victims into compliance, and by making it illegal to knowingly obstruct or interfere with human trafficking enforcement efforts. The bill also clarifies that human trafficking of minors doesn't require proof of force, fraud, or coercion—any recruitment or transportation of someone under 18 for commercial sex acts or forced labor constitutes trafficking. Additionally, the law now penalizes people who financially benefit from human trafficking ventures, even if they don't directly participate in the trafficking itself.