From Awareness to Action: Building a More Compassionate Approach to Human Trafficking

by Chief Taylor Parlier, Rose Hill Police Department

Two years ago, I began directing my focus toward what I believed was an under-investigated issue in my region, human trafficking.  As I began to investigate this issue and learned the most basic aspects of sex and labor trafficking, I became aware of a conference put on by the Leadership Institute to Combat Human Trafficking. 

I quickly realized that I really didn’t have a proper understanding of what human trafficking is or what it can look like – a humbling realization for someone with sixteen years of experience in this profession. While at this conference I met, spoke with, and learned from leaders in local investigations, prosecutions, department heads, and most importantly survivors.  Each perspective gave me new insights to consider when supporting survivors– or more often, individuals who have experienced something horrific.

Building Trust

They taught me the power of silence when building someone’s trust, the power of a full or empty stomach, but most importantly, the humanity given to a person by not judging them, especially when they feel most vulnerable.  

These leaders in their field were the ones who introduced me to Spotlight . Since returning from the conference, I have continued to use and spread knowledge of Spotlight to area investigators who had not been aware of its existence either.  

I work for a rural/suburban police department of a bedroom community, on the outskirts of one of the largest metropolitan areas in my state. We don’t have hotels or a highway, so our more aggressive and visible human trafficking is limited. However, we have successfully used Spotlight  to find at-risk youth who are primarily runaways. Additionally, before other rural agencies became familiar with Spotlight, I was able to locate trafficking victims in their communities.

Knowing Better - Doing Better

Thanks to the knowledge I gained at the human trafficking conference, including gaining access to Spotlight, we have greatly improved our visibility into this often overlooked or unseen tragedy. We implemented a questionnaire to help identify survivors and shifted to a more trauma-informed interview approach.

While I have not been able to “recover” a victim yet, I feel our department has become more knowledgeable and compassionate since adopting Spotlight. We routinely search for individuals in need and continue strengthening our ties with local service providers and victim advocates.  

Collaboration & Innovation

The work of organizing, compiling, and sharing critical information is challenging, but it’s essential to making a difference. Thanks to tools like Spotlight, we’re better equipped to help those in need and hold traffickers accountable. From my corner of Kansas, I remain grateful for the innovations that make this fight more effective, and I look forward to continuing this work—alongside others—until every survivor is seen, heard, and supported.