Arizona approves life imprisonment as a penalty for sex trafficking of minors

Arizona voted in favor of life imprisonment, and no possibility of parole, for those convicted of child sex trafficking offenses. It is the main provision of Proposition 313, which the state's citizens voted for at the polls.

This Wednesday results show 64.47% of votes in favor with 99% of precincts counted. Arizona law defines sex trafficking of minors as "using a minor for the purpose of prostitution, or causing a minor to be used in prostitution, including transporting, recruiting, or providing a minor to engage in prostitution or any sexually explicit performance."

Prior to Proposition 313, state law provides for sentences of between 10 and 13 years in prison when the victim is under 15 years of age. During the campaign that introduced this proposition, Arizona county sheriffs strongly recommended adoption of these reforms.

The fact that Arizona is a border state was one of the reasons why the promoters of this reform assured that raising sentences is fundamental. According to a state report analyzing child sex trafficking in Arizona, between 2021 and 2023, victims were located in 11 of Arizona's 15 counties, most of them female and with a history of sexual assault and substance abuse.

According to election data, Mohave County was the most supportive of the adoption of Proposition 313, with 75% of the canvass in favor. Maricopa County, the most populous, garnered 64% and Coconino County, the least populous, 54%. The results prove that the consensus around this reform is broad throughout the state.

Only a few activist groups campaigned against Proposition 313. These are groups that do not believe that minimum sentences should be mandatory for sentencing, even in these cases, and that sentences should be based on the individual conditions of the criminals case.