sex-trafficking
45 cases — ← All topics
| Case | Title | Lower Court | Docketed | Status | Flags | Tags | Question Presented |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 25-949 | John Doe, et al. v. X Corp., fka Twitter, Inc. | Ninth Circuit | 2026-02-10 | Pending | child-pornography civil-immunity good-samaritan internet-platform section-230 sex-trafficking | The Communications Decency Act encourages "Good Samaritan" acts to keep objectionable content off the internet. 47 U.S.C. §230(c). The Act states inte… | |
| 25A631 | John Doe, et al. v. Twitter, Inc., et al. | Ninth Circuit | 2025-12-01 | Application | child-pornography civil-liability content-moderation internet-platform section-230 sex-trafficking | Question not identified. | |
| 25A484 | Ralph Kevin Tovar v. United States | Eleventh Circuit | 2025-10-28 | Presumed Complete | circuit-split federal-criminal-law interstate-commerce jurisdictional-element sex-trafficking statutory-interpretation | Question not identified. | |
| 25-5904 | Lawrence Ray v. United States | Second Circuit | 2025-10-16 | Denied | Response WaivedIFP | actus-reus criminal-statute enterprise-definition knowledge-requirement rico-conspiracy sex-trafficking | 1. Whether, in a RICO conspiracy prosecution, 18 U.S.C. §1962(d), the government must prove the existence of a de facto enterprise that affects commer… |
| 25-150 | Anton Joseph Lazzaro v. United States | Eighth Circuit | 2025-08-07 | Denied | Response Waived | age-of-consent criminal-law federal-statute mens-rea sex-trafficking statutory-interpretation | Does a person who engages in otherwise lawful, consensual sex with a 16 or 17-year-old dating partner commit "sex-trafficking" if the person gives unc… |
| 24A739 | Fei Fei Fan v. Yan Yao Jiang, et al. | Ninth Circuit | 2025-01-28 | Presumed Complete | 18-usc-1589 18-usc-1591 federal-statute forced-labor ninth-circuit sex-trafficking | Question not identified. | |
| 24-6253 | Victor Clayton v. United States | Third Circuit | 2025-01-08 | Denied | Response WaivedIFP | criminal-procedure motion-to-dismiss motion-to-withdraw plea-agreement rule-12 sex-trafficking | 1. Did the district court err in denying defendant's motion to dismiss pursuant to federal Rule of Criminal Procedure 12 (b)(3) counts One and Two of … |
| 24-605 | Jason Dee Taylor v. United States | Ninth Circuit | 2024-12-03 | Denied | Response Waived | criminal-statute federalism police-powers sex-trafficking states-rights tenth-amendment | Whether The Government's Application Of A Federal Criminal Statute For Sex Trafficking To The Purely Local Crime Of Prostitution Is An Invasion Of The… |
| 24-6020 | Justin Rivera v. United States | Second Circuit | 2024-11-22 | Denied | Response WaivedIFP | appellate-review circuit-split criminal-conviction federal-statute sentencing-guidelines sex-trafficking | Whether the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit erred by affirming the judgment of conviction and sentence pronounced by the United … |
| 24-145 | Arthur Lopez v. Court of Appeal of California, Second Appellate District, et al. | California | 2024-08-09 | Denied | civil-procedure due-process equal-protection family-code restraining-order sex-trafficking | Should Male, Catholic Christian, Father of Four Children be afforded Restraining Order and Equal Protection and Due Process under law as guaranteed by… | |
| 24-146 | Arthur Lopez v. Court of Appeal of California, Second Appellate District, et al. | California | 2024-08-09 | Denied | civil-procedure due-process equal-protection family-code restraining-order sex-trafficking | Should Male, Catholic Christian, Father of four children be afforded Restraining Order, Equal Protection and Due Process under law as guaranteed by th… | |
| 23A1133 | Jason Gatlin v. United States | Eleventh Circuit | 2024-06-21 | Presumed Complete | criminal-procedure double-jeopardy eleventh-circuit finality jury-verdict sex-trafficking | Question not identified. | |
| 23A972 | Benjamin Biancofiori v. United States | Seventh Circuit | 2024-05-01 | Presumed Complete | confrontation-clause criminal-procedure evidence-admissibility hearsay-exception sex-trafficking sixth-amendment | Question not identified. | |
| 23-6934 | Calvin C. Freeman v. United States | Seventh Circuit | 2024-03-11 | Denied | Response WaivedIFP | constitutional-vagueness criminal-law criminal-statute due-process minor-protection minors prosecutorial-discretion sex-trafficking statutory-interpretation vagueness | 1.) Whether Congress intended the Alternative sex trafficking of, children "OR®' by force, fraud, or coercion as Alternative Elements or Alternative M… |
| 23-6681 | Danny Lowe v. United States | Ninth Circuit | 2024-02-06 | Denied | Response WaivedIFP | appeal criminal-intent due-process harmless-error jury-instruction jury-instructions mens-rea ninth-circuit sex-trafficking | Danny Ray Lowe was convicted of attempting to sex traffic two fictional minors in an undercover sing. As the Court of Appeals acknowledged, "The criti… |
| 23-6623 | Johnl Jackson v. United States | Ninth Circuit | 2024-01-30 | Denied | Response WaivedIFP | compulsory-process confrontation confrontation-clause constitutional-rights criminal-procedure due-process federal-rules-of-evidence notice-requirement sex-trafficking | 1. The crime of Sex Trafficking by Force, Fraud, or Coercion, 18 U.S.C. § 1591, by virtue of its definitions of "coercion" and "serious harm," allows … |
| 23-6475 | Darrius Decnan Redd v. United States | Eighth Circuit | 2024-01-12 | Denied | Response WaivedIFP | confrontation-clause credibility cross-examination due-process evidence-exclusion fair-trial prosecutorial-misconduct sex-trafficking | i. In this case alleging sex trafficking by force, fraud, or coercion, whether the district court violated the Defendant's Due Process and Confrontati… |
| 23-6424 | Taquarius Kaream Ford v. United States | Ninth Circuit | 2024-01-05 | Denied | Response WaivedIFP | 18-usc-1591 18-usc-1594 circuit-split criminal-sentencing double-jeopardy mandatory-minimum sex-trafficking statutory-interpretation | When two Sex Trafficking statutes combine into a single Count, does the penalty for Sex Trafficking Conspiracy under 18 U.S.C. Section 1594(c) which h… |
| 23-6310 | In Re Joseph Emerson | 2023-12-20 | Denied | Response WaivedIFP | civil-procedure civil-rights constitutional-rights due-process fbi-misconduct free-speech interstate-sex-trafficking privacy-violation sex-trafficking social-media-manipulation standing talent-agency-fraud | THE FBI SINCE 2013 IS INVADING MY PRIVACY EVERY SOCIAL NETWORK. ENCLOSED IS A ACTIVE LAWSUIT CRAIGSLIST RIGGING JOURNEYMAN PIPEFITTERS BOOKS A TEN YEA… | |
| 23-5830 | Joseph Emerson v. Craigslist/Craig Newmark, et al. | Ohio | 2023-10-18 | Denied | Response WaivedIFP | civil-procedure civil-rights corporate-conspiracy defamation due-process fbi-interference interstate-commerce interstate-sex-trafficking legal-obstruction sex-trafficking standing union-job-rights | A PERSON HAS A RIGHT TO PRIVACY A WEBSITE WITHOUT FBI AND LAW AGENCIES STALKING AND SEX PREYING BETWEEN. THEY ARE USING DEFAMATION PLAINTIFF TELLING F… |
| 23-5445 | William Bazemore v. United States | Second Circuit | 2023-08-25 | Denied | Response WaivedIFP | abuse-of-discretion crime-of-violence criminal-procedure district-court factual-findings guilty-plea section-1591 sex-trafficking voluntariness withdrawal | I WHETHER THE DISTRICT COURT ABUSED ITS DISCRETION WHEN IT DENIED DEFENDANT'S MOTION TO WITHDRAW HIS GUILTY PLEA AND FAILED TO MAKE FACTUAL FINDINGS N… |
| 22-695 | Jane Does No. 1–6, et al. v. Reddit, Inc. | Ninth Circuit | 2023-01-25 | Denied | Relisted (2) | child-pornography civil-action civil-liability communications-decency-act internet-immunity sex-trafficking statutory-interpretation third-party-liability | Whether the exception to CDA immunity contained in 47 U.S.C. § 230(e)(5)(A)—which states "Nothing in this section (other than subsection (c)(2)(A)) sh… |
| 22-6293 | Dkyle Jamal Bridges v. United States | Third Circuit | 2022-12-13 | Denied | Response WaivedIFP | 4th-amendment automobile-exception confrontation-clause confrontation-right fourth-amendment franks-hearing plain-view sentencing-factors sex-trafficking testimonial-hearsay | 1. Did the automobile exception to the Fourth Amendment justify the warrantless search of Petitioner's vehicle, which had in plain view only innocuous… |
| 22-5355 | Carlocito Slim, aka Carlocito Ponce Slim v. United States | Eighth Circuit | 2022-08-15 | Denied | Response WaivedIFP | age-of-consent criminal-intent criminal-law due-process entrapment law-enforcement-conduct mens-rea sex-trafficking statutory-interpretation victim-age | I. Whether a defendant can be convicted under 18 U.S.C. §§ 2422(b) or 1591(a)(1) on the basis of inconsistent ages of a single non-existent victim giv… |
| 21-1409 | Prince Bixler v. United States | Sixth Circuit | 2022-05-03 | Denied | Response Waived | controlled-substances cross-examination federal-rule-of-evidence-412 fifth-amendment prostitution sentencing-enhancement sex-trafficking sixth-amendment | 1. Whether Bixler's rights under the Fifth and Sixth Amendments to the United States Constitution were violated by a pretrial ruling that he could not… |
| 21-7567 | Cornell Devore Rhymes v. United States | Fourth Circuit | 2022-04-06 | Denied | Response WaivedIFP | 6th-amendment confrontation-clause constitutional-confrontation credibility criminal-defendant-rights evidence-rule-412 federal-rule-of-evidence-412 prior-sexual-history sex-trafficking witness-testimony | Does a court violate a defendant's constitutional right to confront witnesses against him when, in a non-consensual sex trafficking case, the court re… |
| 21-6977 | Lavont Flanders, Jr. v. United States | Eleventh Circuit | 2022-01-27 | Denied | Response WaivedIFP | 18-usc-1591 constitutional-challenge constitutional-claims equitable-tolling habeas-corpus habeas-petition postal-service-interference pro-se-litigant sex-trafficking sua-sponte-dismissal | (1) The Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals has entered a decision in conflict to the United States Supreme Court and other Circuit Courts which prohibi… |
| 21-6433 | Jaimian Rashaad Sims v. United States | Fifth Circuit | 2021-11-29 | Denied | Response WaivedIFP | administration-of-justice beyond-reasonable-doubt criminal-procedure due-process federal-criminal-cases fifth-circuit-review jury-conviction sex-trafficking standard-of-review sufficiency-of-evidence | I. On Appeal JAIMIAN RASHAAD SIMS challenged the following: (1) the sufficiency of the evidence for the jury conviction for conspiracy to sex traffic … |
| 21-5843 | Brandon Lamar Pruitt v. United States | Ninth Circuit | 2021-10-01 | Denied | Response WaivedIFP | circuit-split constitutional-rights criminal-law due-process fifth-amendment jury-instruction mens-rea sex-trafficking statutory-interpretation | 1. The federal sex trafficking statute requires that the government prove the defendant knew his/her own actions would cause the victim to engage in a… |
| 21-459 | Jane Doe v. Facebook, Inc. | Texas | 2021-09-27 | Denied | Amici (3)Relisted (6) | communications-decency-act immunity internet-platform-immunity legal-liability platform-misconduct publisher-liability section-230 sex-trafficking third-party-content | Does Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act provide immunity from suit to internet platforms in any case arising from the publication of third-… |
| 21-5002 | Jalil Lemason Robinson v. United States | Tenth Circuit | 2021-07-02 | Denied | Response WaivedIFP | age-of-consent criminal-intent criminal-law due-process entrapment jury-instruction predisposition sex-trafficking undercover-operation undercover-operations | An undercover officer created a fake social media profile for a fictitious 18-year-old woman on a website where a user must expressly represent her ag… |
| 20-6938 | Muhammad E. Milhouse v. Camba Inc. Staff Members, et al. | Second Circuit | 2021-01-26 | Denied | IFP | civil-procedure civil-rights criminal-law due-process federal-statute freedom-of-religion freedom-of-speech prosecutorial-discretion sex-trafficking standing statutory-interpretation | Question not identified. |
| 20-5905 | Travon Jarvel Jackson v. United States | Ninth Circuit | 2020-10-05 | Denied | Response WaivedRelisted (2)IFP | confrontation-clause criminal-procedure evidence-admissibility federal-rules-of-evidence rule-412 rule-608b sex-trafficking sixth-amendment witness-impeachment | A. Whether evidence of prior prostitution activity that is inadmissible under Rule 412 of the Federal Rules of Evidence to rebut a claim of sex traffi… |
| 20-5737 | Jesse Lewis v. United States | Eleventh Circuit | 2020-09-17 | Denied | Response WaivedIFP | criminal-procedure criminal-trial due-process juror-misconduct jury-impartiality jury-selection religious-bias sex-trafficking sixth-amendment | Whether, at petitioner's trial for sex trafficking—in which the government's case rested on evidence of the defendant's conduct as a procurer of prost… |
| 20-5576 | Sarina Ann Williams v. United States | Eighth Circuit | 2020-09-02 | Denied | Response WaivedIFP | circuit-split congressional-intent conspiracy federal-law sentencing-guidelines sex-trafficking | Whether the crime of Conspiracy to Engage in Sex Trafficking by Force, Fraud, and Coercion, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1594(c), carries a base offens… |
| 20-5153 | Jamiell Sims v. United States | Third Circuit | 2020-07-23 | Denied | Response WaivedIFP | 18-usc-1594 conspiracy criminal-conspiracy criminal-law federal-jurisdiction federal-statute force-fraud-coercion offense-level sentencing sentencing-guidelines sex-trafficking | What is the base offense level for conspiracy to commit sex trafficking by force, fraud, or coercion in violation of 18 U.S.C. §1594(c)? |
| 19-7195 | Matthew Davonn Weatherspoon v. Colorado | Colorado | 2020-01-07 | Denied | IFP | cell-phone-tracking civil-rights colorado-statute criminal-law due-process first-amendment fourth-amendment free-speech law-enforcement privacy-rights search-and-seizure sex-trafficking standing statutory-interpretation warrant-requirement | Question not identified. |
| 19-6826 | Jennifer Castro v. United States | Eleventh Circuit | 2019-12-03 | Denied | Response WaivedIFP | affirmative-defenses age-of-consent criminal-law criminal-statute human-trafficking mens-rea minor minor-victims prostitution prostitution-law reasonable-belief sex-trafficking statutory-interpretation strict-liability | Is 18 U.S.C. § 1591(a), which bars employing a minor to engage in prostitution, a strict liability offense requiring no proof of the defendant's knowl… |
| 19-6784 | Jermaine Whyte v. United States | Eleventh Circuit | 2019-11-27 | Denied | Response WaivedIFP | age-of-victim criminal-law criminal-statute due-process mens-rea reasonable-opportunity sex-trafficking statutory-interpretation strict-liability | Whether 18 U.S.C. § 1591(c) creates a self-standing strict liability offense with regard to the age of the victim that removes the mens rea element in… |
| 18-8050 | Alvaun Thompson v. United States | Second Circuit | 2019-02-21 | Denied | Response RequestedResponse WaivedRelisted (2)IFP | age-requirement aggravated-offense criminal-statute federal-criminal-law mens-rea minors sentencing sex-trafficking strict-liability under-14 | A federal criminal statute this Court has not construed, 18 U.S.C. § 1591, prohibits wide-ranging conduct that facilitates, directly or indirectly, th… |
| 18-7700 | Luther Gene Ray v. United States | Ninth Circuit | 2019-01-31 | Denied | Response WaivedIFP | criminal-law due-process federal-statute force-requirement human-trafficking interstate-commerce mens-rea sentencing sex-trafficking statutory-interpretation | Whether a conviction resulting in a fifteen-year mandatory minimum sentence under 18 U.S.C. § 1591 requires, as the statute says, that force "was used… |
| 18-7649 | Sergeyi Bazar v. United States | Ninth Circuit | 2019-01-29 | Denied | Response WaivedIFP | caminetti-v-united-states criminal-law federal-law mann-act mann-act-18-usc-2422 prostitution sex-trafficking sexual-conduct sexual-intercourse statutory-interpretation supreme-court-precedent united-states-v-bitty | 1. When Congress amended the Mann Act (18 U.S.C. § 2422) in 1986, did it overrule this Court's decisions in United States v. Bitty, 208 U.S. 393 (1908… |
| 18-6597 | Jazsmine Arielle Joseph v. United States | Fifth Circuit | 2018-11-08 | Denied | Response WaivedIFP | burden-of-proof child-trafficking confrontation-clause confrontation-rights conspiracy conspiracy-charge domestic-violence expert-testimony sex-trafficking | DID THE LOWER COURT ERR IN ITS DECISION, AS IT RELATES TO WHAT IS REQUIRED TO PROVE A CONSPIRACY CHARGE IN THE SEX TRAFFICKING OF A CHILD COUNT AND §2… |
| 18-6343 | Roberto Llerenas, Jr. v. United States | Ninth Circuit | 2018-10-16 | Denied | Response WaivedIFP | commerce-clause constitutional-challenge criminal-law due-process human-trafficking ninth-circuit reasonable-opportunity sex-trafficking statutory-interpretation statutory-vagueness vagueness | 1. Whether 18 U.S.C. § 1591 is unconstitutionally vague. |
| 18-6313 | Lacoya Washington v. United States | Fifth Circuit | 2018-10-12 | Denied | Response WaivedIFP | appeal conviction criminal-evidence criminal-law due-process evidence judicial-discretion sentencing sex-trafficking trial trial-severance | Whether there was sufficient evidence presented at trial to convict Lacoya Washington of the sex trafficking crime. Whether the Honorable Trial Court… |