Mississippi House Speaker forms human trafficking panel

JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — A panel created by Mississippi House Speaker Philip Gunn is looking for ways to reduce human trafficking in the state.

The Clarion Ledger reported the Speaker’s Commission on Public Policy conducted a session entitled “Mississippi: A Road Block to Human Trafficking” on Wednesday in Jackson.

More than 100 national, state and local experts and advocates including law enforcement and lawmakers took part in the session.

Gunn said he hopes the panel can make recommendations for legal improvements before lawmakers meet in January.

Gunn said the problem exists in Jackson and elsewhere in the state and he hopes to find way to rescue people trapped in those operations.

Mississippi’s Interstates 10 and 55 make it easy for victims of human trafficking to be moved through, into and out of the state.

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Information from: The Clarion Ledger, http://www.clarionledger.com