The Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children in New York City, 1982-2007

This multi-method project sought to gain a better understanding of the commercial sexually exploited children (CSEC) population, particularly its size, characteristics, needs, and geographic spread in New York City. It represents a first attempt to understand the CSEC population in a major metropolitan area and to examine a concerted institutional effort to meet its needs. Three forms of data were collected in the project: questionnaire data, interview data, and network data. The project used Respondent Driven Sampling (RDS) to identify commercial sexually exploited children (CSEC) in New York City. Interviews were conducted with 230 youths between January 2006 and December 2007. Quantitative surveys regarding the frequency and quality of cross-stakeholder communication were administered at the beginning of the evaluation and one year later. For the purpose of trend analysis of CSEC related offenses, research staff obtained citywide arrest and prosecution data on child prostitution, exploitation, and solicitation of a minor. The New York City Criminal Justice Agency (CJA) provided arrest data for arrestees under 19 years of age in all five boroughs of New York City from January 1, 1998 through December 31, 2006.