Texas attorney general Ken Paxton has announced a new unit dedicated to combating human trafficking, reports The Texas Tribune. Texas has the second-highest trafficking victim population of any state. Last year Texas had 330 cases of human trafficking, according to the National Human Trafficking Resource Center. 211 involved adults and 110 were children.
The new unit will be led by a prosecutor who has been working on human trafficking for seven years. Kirsta Melton began her work in the Bexar County district attorney's office. She’s been with the attorney general's office for the past year.
The unit will include three attorneys, five investigators, a forensic accountant and a victims’ advocate. The outfit will operate off of existing funds and will focus on both labor trafficking and sex trafficking.
