U.S. Attorney to Open Human Trafficking Conference in Manhattan

MANHATTAN, KAN. – U.S. Attorney Stephen McAllister will open the 2018 Human Trafficking Conference July 10 in Manhattan, Kan.

McAllister will speak at 8 a.m. Tuesday at the Manhattan Conference Center, 410 S. 3rd Street in Manhattan, to begin the two-day event. About 200 victim service providers, prosecutors, healthcare professionals, educators and law enforcement officers from across the state are registered to attend. The U.S. Attorney’s office is co-sponsoring the event with the Kansas Attorney General’s Office, the Riley County Attorney’s Office, the Kansas Law Enforcement Training Center and the Wichita State Midwest Criminal Justice Institute.

“What we all have in common is our desire to prevent human trafficking, to prosecute traffickers and to help survivors reclaim their lives and their freedom,” McAllister said.

The keynote speaker on Tuesday morning will be Peter Qualliotine of King County, Washington, where he is director of Men’s Accountability, Organization for Prostitution Services. He will describe his work with men who buy sex in a 10-week sex-buyer intervention program called Stopping Sexual Exploitation: A Program for Men.

In a presentation on the federal response to human trafficking, speakers from the Human Trafficking Unit of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division will discuss working with trafficking victims.

There is a $50 charge to attend and participants must register in advance. For more information, call Kim Reese at 316-617-2734.