Screening Tools For Victims of Human Trafficking
This tool contains key questions law enforcement officers should consider asking to determine whether someone is a victim of human trafficking. The questions will also help to secure information that can later be used as testimonial evidence.

Fraud/Financial Coercion Questions

• How did you get your job?
• How did you get into this country?
• Who brought you into this country?
• Did you come to this country for a specific job that you were promised?
• Who promised you this job?
• Were you forced to do different work?Who forced you into doing different work than what was promised?
• Was there some sort of work contract signed?
• Who organized your travel?
• How was payment for your travel handled?
• Are you getting paid to do your job?
• Do you actually receive payment or is your money being held for you?
• Do you owe your employer money?
• Are there records or receipts of what is owed to your employer/recruiter?
• Are there records/receipts of what was earned/paid to you?
• How were financial transactions handled?
• Are you in possession of your own legal (I.D.) documents? If not, why?
• Were you provided false documents or identification?
• Are you being made to do things that you do not want to do?

Physical Abuse Questions

• Were you ever threatened with harm if you tried to leave?
• Did you ever witness any threats against other people if they tried to leave?
• Has your family been threatened?
• Do you know about any other person’s family ever being threatened?
• Were you ever physically abused, or did you ever witness abuse against another person?
• What type of physical abuse did you witness?
• Were there any objects or weapons used in the physical abuse?
• Where are these objects or weapons located?
• Was knowledge of this abuse ever communicated to a person outside of this situation (e.g., police reports, domestic violence reports, hospital records, social service records)?
• Was anyone else ever abused or threatened with harm in your presence?
• How were medical problems handled, and who attended to them?

Freedom of Movement Questions

• Is your freedom of movement restricted?
• Do you live and work in the same place?
• What were the conditions under which you were left unattended?
• Were there instances of physical restriction through locks, chains, etc.?
• Where are the locks used and who has the keys to them?
• How was movement in public places handled (e.g., car, van, bus, subway)?
• Who supervised your movement in public places?
• How was the purchase of private goods and services handled (e.g., medicines, prescriptions)?
• What forms of media or telecommunication did you have access to (e.g., television, radio, newspapers, magazines, telephone, the Internet)?

Psychological Coercion Questions

Behavioral indicators:

• Who are you afraid of?
• Why are you afraid of them?
• What would you like to see happen to the people who hurt you (e.g., jail, deportation)?
• How do you feel about the police? Why?

Environmental Indicators:

• Do you live and work in the same place?
• Where do you live/eat/sleep?
• Where do the alleged perpetrators live/eat/sleep?
• Are the living conditions between the two excessively disparate?

Law enforcement officers questioning the victim should consider the following:

Is there evidence of possible “Stockholm” or “Patty Hearst” Syndrome where the victim, because of his or her dependency, actually begins to identify with the trafficker?