Quinnipiac University School of Law to host seventh annual Human Trafficking Awareness Week

Press release

NORTH HAVEN, Conn. – Feb. 11, 2026 – The Quinnipiac University School of Law’s Human Trafficking Prevention Project will hold its seventh annual Human Trafficking Awareness Week, Feb. 16–19, at the School of Law on Quinnipiac’s North Haven Campus, 370 Bassett Road.

Working with local and national advocates, the HTPP has assembled a slate of engaging, free events designed to educate members of the Quinnipiac community, the legal community and the public about one of the most pressing human rights issues of our time. Events will take place throughout the week and will include interactive programming, panel discussions and expert-led conversations examining human trafficking through legal, public health, and policy lenses.

“Using force, fraud and coercion, traffickers control their victims, often requiring them to commit a range of illegal acts and then threatening to expose them to criminal prosecution,” said Sheila Hayre, clinical professor of law and HTPP adviser. “Victims are regularly prosecuted for a range of crimes resulting from their trafficking, and their stories of victimization often remain hidden as their cases wind through the criminal justice system.”

This year, Human Trafficking Awareness Week features a panel of human trafficking and criminal justice experts to explore whether our current system of sentencing adequately takes into account certain forms of victimization at sentencing and to debate whether our state needs its own Survivors Justice Act or Domestic Violence Survivors Justice Act for sentencing victims of trafficking and other similar crimes.

Among the week’s programming, HTPP will highlight three featured events:

“REEL vs. REAL: Sextortion, a Public Health Crisis”

Tuesday, Feb. 17, noon-1 p.m.

This interactive session explores sextortion and the ways youth, including boys, are targeted, groomed, and coerced online. Through media clips, role play, and current research, the session challenges popular portrayals and stereotypes while emphasizing who is most at risk and why evidence-based prevention and response strategies matter.

Tuesday’s presenter is Nathan Earl, a master of publich candidate at the Yale School of Public Health and a Student Research Fellow with the Solomon Center for Health Law and Policy at Yale Law School. Earl also serves as secretary-designate of the New Haven Youth Commission.

“We are honored to have Nathan return for a third year in a row, given his public health approach to understanding and addressing human trafficking and his focus on the trafficking of men and boys in particular,” said Victoria Caputo, executive chairwoman of HTPP.

Panel Discussion: “Sentencing Reform for Crime Victims: Does Connecticut Need a Survivors Justice Act?”
Wednesday, Feb. 18, 6-8 p.m.

This panel will bring together human trafficking and criminal justice experts to discuss whether Connecticut should adopt its own Survivors Justice Act for crime victims entangled in the criminal legal system. While similar legislation has passed in New York and other states, proposed bills in Connecticut (SB-1502 and HB-7236) were rejected during the last legislative session. Panelists will examine the role of victimization in sentencing, the extent to which current systems account for it, the fiscal implications of SJA legislation, and concerns about potential unintended consequences.

The discussion will be moderated by the Hon. Joette Katz (Ret.), former Connecticut Supreme Court justice and former commissioner of the Department of Children and Families, and include John Doyle, New Haven State’s Attorney; Audrey A. Felsen, partner at Koffsky & Felsen, LLC; Sheila Hayre, clinical professor of law and faculty advisor for Quinnipiac Law’s Human Trafficking Prevention Project; Tammara McCoy, outreach specialist with the Survivor’s Justice Project; Kate Mogulescu, professor of clinical law and director of the Criminal Defense & Advocacy Clinic at Brooklyn Law School; and Erin Williamson, chief program and strategy officer at Love 146.

“Ripped from the Headlines: Jeffrey Epstein, Sean Combs (‘Diddy’), and Andrew Tate”
Thursday, Feb. 19, noon-1 p.m.

What do you really know about the high-profile sex trafficking in the news recently? For answers, two Quinnipiac-affiliated state prosecutors will discuss the cases of Jeffrey Epstein, Sean Combs and Andrew Tate, and the special challenges such cases present, including the legal standards that make these cases hard to win, balancing prosecutorial zeal with victim protections, navigating the media and public perceptions, and more.

Thursday’s speakers are Cindy Lill, an assistant state’s attorney in the judicial district of New Haven, and Ronald Weller, an assistant state’s attorney with the Office of the Chief State’s Attorney.

Events will continue throughout the week. A full schedule is available in the event flier and online. To register or for more information, visit the website of HTPP’s co-sponsor, the Connecticut Bar Foundation.