Los Angeles County Supervisor Don Knabe released the following statement, after the United States Senate unanimously passed a resolution to enforce a subpoena issued to Backpage.com:
“I’m glad our representatives in the Senate were able to reach across the aisle to help protect young children from being sexually exploited for money. Backpage is a marketplace for child rapists, scumbag pimps, and predators to prey on kids who are forced to sell their bodies night after night for sex. They’ve shown neither remorse nor a willingness to help protect girls, some as young as 10-years old, from being bought and sold on the internet.
“Here in Los Angeles County—a major hub for child sex trafficking—the Board of Supervisors unanimously supported the Senate’s efforts to force Backpage to cooperate with a human trafficking investigation. Just last week, our Sheriff’s Department arrested three people who abducted a young girl and posted pictures of her on Backpage with the intent to sell her multiple times a night. She is not the first victim here in Los Angeles County to be bought and sold on Backpage. With the support of the US Senate, I hope we can eliminate one of the most active and lucrative avenues for sex trafficking in the country, and protect our most vulnerable children.”