A survivor’s story: One woman’s journey through child trafficking and recovery in Kentucky

KENTUCKY (ABC36 NEWS NOW) — In the second part of a two-part series examining child trafficking in the Commonwealth, ABC36 News Now is sharing the story of a woman whose life has been shaped by trauma — and resilience.

To protect her identity as a trafficking survivor involved in a previous sting operation, she is being identified as “Chelsea” throughout this story.

Chelsea says her abuse began when she was just four years old, growing up in what she describes as a deeply unsafe environment. She says her biological father, whom she identifies as her first trafficker, struggled with alcoholism and worked as a corrections officer.

“It started as young as I could remember, and my first trafficker was my biological father, who was also a very avid alcoholic and also worked as a corrections officer,” Chelsea said.

Chelsea says her father’s addiction fueled years of abuse and exploitation, including bringing other men into their home.

“He used to traffic me to his friends,” she said. “At that time, growing up with it, you don’t have a concept of what is going on or the depths of it. I would see money being switched out when they arrived, and at that time obviously I didn’t know that meant I was being sold. I just knew that was something that took place before these horrific men came and did whatever they wanted.”

After her parents divorced, Chelsea says she spent time in her father’s custody, while her mother — who Chelsea says struggled with drug addiction — had her during the week. Chelsea says her father’s focus was no longer on parenting.

“It started out at home — incestuous child sexual abuse,” she said.

When asked how long the abuse involving her father’s friends continued, Chelsea said it lasted until she was about seven or eight years old.

She says that experience left her confused about what love was supposed to look like.

“I reflected a lot as a child and tried to find ways to potentially do whatever I could to make it stop,” Chelsea said. “Whether that was stop fighting and just comply… or thinking, ‘My mother wasn’t doing this to me, so is this what real love is supposed to look like?’”

Chelsea says fear kept her from fully telling her mother what was happening.

“The main threat was he was going to kill my mom,” she said.

She says the abuse eventually stopped as she got older.

“I guess between my weight gain and my age, I kind of aged out for him and his friends,” Chelsea said. “The closer I became to a teenager, he was more turned off and disgusted by my appearance and my age.”

Today, Chelsea works as a rideshare driver. She says multiple shoplifting arrests — which she attributes to the long-term effects of trafficking — have made it difficult to find other employment.

Detective Lynn, who works with trafficking cases, says current laws often fail survivors like Chelsea. He says the Victims of Trafficking and Violence Protection Act, which has been adopted into Kentucky law, does not go far enough to help survivors rebuild their lives.

According to Lynn, the law does not adequately allow trafficking victims to expunge criminal records tied to their exploitation, creating barriers to housing, employment and stability.

He says too often, the system fails to consider how survivors are expected to transition back into everyday life after years of trauma.