Photo by Kim Veis.
Prosecutors are defending a proposed eight-year sentence for a D.C. cop who forced two young victims into the sex trade after a judge questioned the length of the term.
While justifying the sentence in a memorandum filed last week, prosecutors also reemphasized just how deep the connection runs between children who are frequent runaways and sex trafficking.
Former Metropolitan Police Department officer Linwood Barnhill’s 15-year-old victim, who was forced to engage in sexual acts with an anonymous man for money, had been reported missing 18 times prior to the investigation, according to the U.S. Attorney’s office. After being forced into a sexual act, the victim said she “never wanted to do that again” and had no further contact with Barnhill.
Barnhill’s 16-year-old victim, who was found after being reported missing by her family, did not engage in any sex acts but was being prepared to. She had been reported missing eight times previously.
In both cases, Barnhill lured the minors by offering them help with modeling careers.
“I need to know if the victims have anything to say,” District Court Judge Rosemary M. Collyer said when Barnhill’s plea was announced in January. “This is not a victimless crime. That’s a matter of concern for me.”
According to prosecutors, the 16-year-old victim “found it extremely difficult to talk about the facts of the offense” and “had clearly experienced difficulties in life which have been exacerbated by the defendant’s exploitation of her apparent vulnerabilities.” The victim also “expressed great concern about being identified publicly.”
The 15-year-old victim “was reluctant to cooperate with police or prosecutors.” She is “unavailable to speak to the government prior to sentencing.”
“The resolution of this case would spare her from the pain and humiliation caused by having to testify at a public trial,” prosecutors write. “The plea and recommended sentence protects the privacy of these young victims, and prevents them from having to relive their victimization in a public setting. The plea and recommended sentence also allow the victims the opportunity to heal, to move forward and to to put this matter behind them while, at the same time, subjects the defendant to a significant period of incarceration.”
Both victims are described as “chronic runaways” in the memo, with the 16-year-old described as a “very fragile young woman” and the 15-year-old described as in a “very fragile state.”
In D.C., minor victims of sex trafficking may be charged with a crime. A bill that will be considered this fall offers safe harbor and advocacy to these victims, but some city officials are reluctant to give up what they see as a tool in prosecutions.
