The release of information about the powerful cadre of men associated with convicted sex offender and accused sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein ' known as the Epstein files ' has been a long time coming. I'm a clinical psychologist who studies intimate violence ' from child abuse to domestic violence and sexual assault. After more than two decades in this field, I wasn't surprised to hear someone minimize the abuse of adolescents. My research and the work of other researchers across the country have shown that victims who disclose their abuse are often met with disbelief and blame. Unlike stereotypes of teens being kidnapped out of parking lots, people who traffic minors use a range of tactics and build relationships with the teens and tweens they're targeting. Getting young people to trust and depend on the traffickers is part of entrapping them. The researchers found it was common for traffickers to use flattery or romance to entrap adolescents. Some built trust with the teens by...
learn more
