Section 16-5-46. Trafficking of persons for labor or sexual servitude

   (a) As used in this Code section, the term:

   (1) "Coercion" means:

      (A) Causing or threatening to cause bodily harm to any person, physically restraining or confining any person, or threatening to physically restrain or confine any person;

      (B) Exposing or threatening to expose any fact or information or disseminating or threatening to disseminate any fact or information that would tend to subject a person to criminal or immigration proceedings, hatred, contempt, or ridicule;

      (C) Destroying, concealing, removing, confiscating, or possessing any actual or purported passport or other immigration document, or any other actual or purported government identification document, of any person;

      (D) Providing a controlled substance, as such term is defined by Code Section 16-13-21, to such person for the purpose of compelling such person to engage in labor or sexual servitude against his or her will; or

      (E) Causing or threatening to cause financial harm to any person or using financial control over any person.

   (2) "Deception" means:

      (A) Creating or confirming another's impression of an existing fact or past event which is false and which the accused knows or believes to be false;

      (B) Maintaining the status or condition of a person arising from a pledge by that person of his or her personal services as security for a debt, if the value of those services as reasonably assessed is not applied toward the liquidation of the debt or the length and nature of those services are not respectively limited and defined, or preventing a person from acquiring information pertinent to the disposition of such debt; or

      (C) Promising benefits or the performance of services which the accused does not intend to deliver or perform or knows will not be delivered or performed. Evidence of failure to deliver benefits or perform services standing alone shall not be sufficient to authorize a conviction under this Code section.

   (3) "Labor servitude" means work or service of economic or financial value which is performed or provided by another person and is induced or obtained by coercion or deception.

   (4) "Performance" shall have the same meaning as set forth in Code Section 16-12-100.

   (5) "Sexually explicit conduct" shall have the same meaning as set forth in Code Section 16-12-100.

   (6) "Sexual servitude" means:

      (A) Any sexually explicit conduct or performance involving sexually explicit conduct for which anything of value is directly or indirectly given, promised to, or received by any person, which conduct is induced or obtained by coercion or deception or which conduct is induced or obtained from a person under the age of 18 years; or

      (B) Any sexually explicit conduct or performance involving sexually explicit conduct which is performed or provided by any person, which conduct is induced or obtained by coercion or deception or which conduct is induced or obtained from a person under the age of 18 years.

(b) A person commits the offense of trafficking a person for labor servitude when that person knowingly subjects another person to or maintains another person in labor servitude or knowingly recruits, entices, harbors, transports, provides, or obtains by any means another person for the purpose of labor servitude.

(c) A person commits the offense of trafficking a person for sexual servitude when that person knowingly subjects another person to or maintains another person in sexual servitude or knowingly recruits, entices, harbors, transports, provides, or obtains by any means another person for the purpose of sexual servitude.

(d) The age of consent for sexual activity or the accused's lack of knowledge of the age of the person being trafficked shall not constitute a defense in a prosecution for a violation of this Code section.

(e) The sexual history or history of commercial sexual activity of a person alleged to have been trafficked or such person's connection by blood or marriage to an accused in the case or to anyone involved in such person's trafficking shall be excluded from evidence if the court finds at a hearing outside the presence of the jury that the probative value of the evidence is substantially outweighed by the danger of unfair prejudice, confusion of the issues, or misleading the jury.

(f) (1) Except as provided in paragraph (2) of this subsection, any accused who commits the offense of trafficking a person for labor or sexual servitude shall be guilty of a felony, and upon conviction thereof, shall be punished by imprisonment for not less than ten nor more than 20 years, a fine not to exceed $100,000.00, or both.

   (2) Any accused who commits the offense of trafficking a person for labor or sexual servitude against a person who is under the age of 18 years shall be guilty of a felony, and upon conviction thereof, shall be punished by imprisonment for not less than ten nor more than 20 years, a fine not to exceed $100,000.00, or both; provided, however, that if the offense is committed against a person under 18 years of age and such person under the age of 18 years was coerced or deceived into being trafficked for labor or sexual servitude, the accused shall be guilty of a felony, and upon conviction thereof, shall be punished by imprisonment for not less than 25 nor more than 50 years or life imprisonment, a fine not to exceed $100,000.00, or both.

(g) All real and personal property of every kind used or intended for use in the course of, derived from, or realized through a violation of this Code section shall be subject to forfeiture to the state. Forfeiture shall be had by the same procedure set forth in Code Section 16-14-7. Prosecuting attorneys and the Attorney General may commence forfeiture proceedings under this Code section.

(h) Prosecuting attorneys and the Attorney General shall have concurrent authority to prosecute any criminal cases arising under the provisions of this Code section and to perform any duty that necessarily appertains thereto.

(i) Each violation of this Code section shall constitute a separate offense and shall not merge with any other offense.

(j) A corporation may be prosecuted under this Code section for an act or omission constituting a crime under this Code section only if an agent of the corporation performs the conduct which is an element of the crime while acting within the scope of his or her office or employment and on behalf of the corporation and the commission of the crime was either authorized, requested, commanded, performed, or within the scope of his or her employment on behalf of the corporation or constituted a pattern of illegal activity that an agent of the company knew or should have known was occurring.

Code 1981, § 16-5-46, enacted by Ga. L. 2006, p. 105, § 3/SB 529; Ga. L. 2011, p. 217, § 1/HB 200.