Stricken language would be deleted from and underlined language would be added to present law.
Act 1003 of the Regular Session
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State of Arkansas As Engrossed: H4/14/25 1
95th General Assembly A Bill 2
Regular Session, 2025 SENATE BILL 620 3
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By: Senator Irvin 5
By: Representative Beaty Jr. 6
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For An Act To Be Entitled 8
AN ACT TO PROVIDE A SAFETY VALVE FOR A MINOR 9
DEFENDANT WHO IS ALSO A VICTIM OF HUMAN TRAFFICKING; 10
TO AMEND THE HUMAN TRAFFICKING ACT OF 2013; TO CREATE 11
AN APPEAL RIGHT FOR A MINOR DEFENDANT WHO IS ALSO A 12
VICTIM OF HUMAN TRAFFICKING; AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES. 13
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Subtitle 16
TO PROVIDE A SAFETY VALVE AND APPEAL 17
RIGHT FOR A MINOR DEFENDANT WHO IS ALSO 18
A VICTIM OF HUMAN TRAFFICKING; AND TO 19
AMEND THE HUMAN TRAFFICKING ACT OF 2013. 20
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BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ARKANSAS: 22
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SECTION 1. DO NOT CODIFY. Legislative intent. 24
The General Assembly intends for courts to consider whether a minor has 25
been a victim of human trafficking before transferring a delinquency matter 26
to the criminal division of circuit court or imposing a sentence upon the 27
person. 28
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SECTION 2. Arkansas Code § 5 -2-210 is amended to read as follows: 30
5-2-210. Human trafficking — Affirmative defense. 31
(a) As used in this section ,: 32
(1) "Nonviolent criminal offense" means a criminal offense that 33
does not constitute a violent crime as defined in § 16 -90-1101; and 34
(2) “victim Victim of trafficking of persons” means a person who 35
has been subjected to trafficking of persons, § 5 -18-103. 36 As Engrossed: H4/14/25 SB620
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(b) It If a person is eighteen (18) years of age or older, it is an 1
affirmative defense to prosecution for an offense listed under subsection (c) 2
of this section if at the time a person engaged in the conduct charged to 3
constitute the offense the person was: 4
(1) A victim of trafficking of persons; and 5
(2) Engaged in the offense as a direct result of the trafficking 6
of persons. 7
(c) The affirmative defense under this section may be raised only in a 8
prosecution for one (1) or more of the following offenses: 9
(1) Forgery, § 5-37-201; 10
(2) Defrauding a prospective adoptive parent, § 5-37-216; 11
(3) A prostitution offense under § 5 -70-101 et seq.; 12
(4) Obscene performance at a live public show, § 5 -68-305; or 13
(5) A controlled substance offense under § 5-64-401 et seq. § 5-14
64-402 et seq. that is not a Class Y felony. 15
(d) If a person is seventeen (17) years of age or younger, it is an 16
affirmative defense to prosecution for a nonviolent criminal offense if at 17
the time a person engaged in the conduct charged to constitute the offense 18
the person was: 19
(1) A victim of trafficking of persons; and 20
(2) Engaged in the offense as a direct result of the trafficking 21
of persons. 22
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SECTION 3. Arkansas Code § 5 -18-103(a) and (b), concerning the offense 24
of trafficking of persons, are amended to read as follows: 25
(a) A person commits the offense of trafficking of persons if he or 26
she knowingly: 27
(1) Recruits, harbors, transports, obtains, entices, solicits, 28
isolates, provides, or maintains a person when he or she knows or reasonably 29
should know that the person will be subjected to involuntary servitude; 30
(2) Benefits financially or benefits by receiving anything of 31
value from participation in a venture that he or she knows or reasonably 32
should know is engaged in conduct prohibited under subdivision (a)(1) of this 33
section; 34
(3) Subjects a person to involuntary servitude; 35
(4) Recruits, entices, solicits, isolates, harbors, transports, 36 As Engrossed: H4/14/25 SB620
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provides, maintains, or obtains a minor for commercial sexual activity; 1
(5) Sells or offers to sell travel services that he or she knows 2
or reasonably should know include an activity prohibited under subdivisions 3
(a)(1)-(4) of this section; 4
(6) Recruits, entices, solicits, isolates, harbors, transports, 5
provides, maintains, or obtains a pregnant woman for the purpose of causing 6
the pregnant woman to place her unborn child for adoption by: 7
(A) The use of or threatened use of physical force; 8
(B) The physical restraint or threat of physical restraint 9
of a person; 10
(C) Serious physical injury or threat of serious physical 11
injury to a person; 12
(D) Abuse or threatened abuse of law or legal process; 13
(E) Any scheme, plan, or pattern that has a purpose to 14
cause the pregnant woman to believe that, if the pregnant woman does not 15
place the unborn child for adoption, a person would suffer serious physical 16
injury or physical restraint; or 17
(F) Means of serious harm or threats of serious harm to a 18
person; or 19
(7) Benefits financially or benefits by receiving anything of 20
value from participating in an act described under subdivision (a)(6) of this 21
section; or 22
(8) Recruits, entices, solicits, isolates, harbors, transports, 23
provides, maintains, or obtains a minor for the purpose of causing the minor 24
to join or remain in a criminal organization or engage in a violation of 25
criminal law by: 26
(A) The use or threatened use of physical force; 27
(B) The causing of serious physical harm to another 28
person; 29
(C) The threat of causing serious physical harm to another 30
person; 31
(D) Coercion, duress, or menace; or 32
(E) Any scheme, plan, or pattern that has a purpose to 33
cause a minor to believe that, if the minor does not join or remain in the 34
criminal organization or engage in a violation of criminal law, another 35
person would suffer serious harm . 36 As Engrossed: H4/14/25 SB620
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(b) It is not a defense to prosecution under subdivision subdivisions 1
(a)(4) and (a)(8) of this section that the actor: 2
(1) Did not have knowledge of a victim's age; or 3
(2) Mistakenly believed a victim was not a minor. 4
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SECTION 4. Arkansas Code § 9 -27-318(g)(9), concerning factors that a 6
court is required to consider in a hearing on the transfer of a delinquency 7
matter to a criminal division of circuit court, is amended to read as 8
follows: 9
(9) Written reports , and other materials, and other information 10
relating to the juvenile's mental, physical, educational, and social history , 11
including without limitation exposure to adverse childhood experiences, 12
childhood trauma, involvement in the child welfare or foster care systems, 13
status as a victim of human trafficking, sexual abuse, or rape ; and 14
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SECTION 5. Arkansas Code § 9 -27-503(c)(9), concerning factors that a 16
court is required to consider in making a determination to designate a 17
juvenile as an extended juvenile jurisdiction offender, is amended to read as 18
follows: 19
(9) Written reports , and other materials, and other information 20
relating to the juvenile's mental, physical, educational, and social history , 21
including without limitation exposure to adverse childhood experiences, 22
childhood trauma, involvement in the child welfare or foster care systems, 23
status as a victim of human trafficking, sexual abuse, or rape ; and 24
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SECTION 6. Arkansas Code Title 16, Chapter 90, Subchapter 1, is 26
amended to add an additional section to read as follows: 27
16-90-123. Sentencing of juvenile or person convicted for offense 28
commited as juvenile - Factors. 29
If a person is convicted for an offense that the person committed when 30
he or she was less than eighteen (18) years of age, the court shall, in 31
addition to any other factors that the court is required to consider before 32
imposing a sentence upon the person, consider the following: 33
(1) The exposure of the juvenile or person who committed the 34
offense as a juvenile to adverse childhood experiences, childhood trauma, 35
involvement in the child welfare or foster care systems, status as a victim 36 As Engrossed: H4/14/25 SB620
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of human trafficking, sexual abuse, or rape, and the impact of trauma on the 1
juvenile’s behavior; and 2
(2) The differences between a juvenile offender and an adult 3
offender, including without limitation the diminished culpability of a 4
juvenile as compared to that of an adult and the typical characteristics of 5
youth. 6
/s/Irvin 7
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APPROVED: 4/22/25 10
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