Urgent: Right now the trial of 16 year old Jordan Hampton, a minor sex trafficking victim, begins in Killeen, Texas. Jordan, along with his 19 year old sister, Jessica, were charged with capital murder of a known sex buyer in June 2020. They have been in jail for over two years and in September 2022 will stand trial with the possibility of spending their lives in prison.

The back story:

On June 23, 2020, then 18 year old Jessica Hampton and 15 year old Jordan Hampton were arrested, along with their alleged trafficker, Breez Collier, after the man who was alleged to have intended to buy and rape them was fatally shot.  

Child victims of sex trafficking should not be in jail because of their own trafficking. Any child involved in commercial sex is, by federal law, a victim of sex trafficking.

Jessica is prior victims of sex trafficking. Jordan and Jessica  have been in jail now for almost two years after being charged with capital murder. They are facing the possibility of life in prison without parole.  There is no physical evidence that they shot the gun.  Adult men present  at the scene of  the crime have failed polygraphs  and their trafficker has a long history of crimes.

We need your signatures as we advocate for their freedom.  

Jessica’s abuse began before she was a pre-teen when her uncle would force her to use drugs in order to sexually assault her. At 14, she met another teen girl who lured her to Colorado where she was then sex trafficked. She was found in an FBI raid and after months of struggle, she returned home to Killeen, Texas.  

A risk factor toward sex trafficking is prior child sexual abuse.

When Jessica received a job at a local thrift store, she met a 24 year woman named Breez who, posing as a friend, soon forced her into a life of sex trafficking.  Breez soon began to sexually abuse Jessica’s little brother, Jordan. Text messages between Breez and Jordan reveal messages of love and sex, an intoxicating blend for a 14 year old boy. What he thought was a romantic relationship was really what is known in the field of anti-trafficking as “grooming.” Children with prior histories of abuse are prime targets for the “love tactic” Breez used. His loyalty to Breez soon led him into being a victim of child sex trafficking, too. Studies indicate that upwards of 45% of trafficked children are boys. Jordan loved cooking, basketball, his little siblings and being a prankster. 

On June 14th, 2020, Breez took her two teen victims, Jessica and Jordan, to a parking lot where they were to work with her to rob 24-year-old former enlisted Army surgical technician Shareef Raekwon Ali-Barnett. Shareef was not new to purchasing sex. In April 2018, he was arrested for solicitation in conjunction with an illicit massage business, the second top location where sex trafficking occurs according to the National Human Trafficking Hotline. The deal was to purchase Jessica and Jordan in exchange for money and drugs. 

So, why isn't Jordan and Jessica’s own trafficking being investigated? Why aren’t  Jordan and Jessica being treated as survivors and offered care and therapy? Why must they face life without parole for a crime they both  witnessed while be sex trafficked?

The dynamics of sex trafficking have similarities to the power and control seen in domestic violence cases. Traffickers have a variety of ways of compelling their victims to behave from grooming and coercive tactics, to threats and overt acts of violence. In cases of sex trafficking, the trafficker often creates power dynamics among victims to maintain control.  

While in jail, there has been no investigation to our knowledge of their own trafficking.

Life in jail has only led to further trauma. The efforts of their attorneys, survivor leaders, and advocates to seek bond or therapeutic secure residential places have not succeeded.   Jessica is constantly under threat by her trafficker and Jordan has been placed in chokeholds, put in isolation, and sexually abused by female guards in the detention facility. A recent investigation into his abuse was launched.

“Jessica is a beautiful girl full of life. She has a family who loves her. Jordan felt like he had to protect his big sister when she came home. He even felt like he had to protect me. His little brother looks up to him. Jordan is just full of sunshine. He was also really great at football. When I close my eyes, I can see him playing with his siblings in the yard. Now, he’s stuck in a room and only allowed out an hour or less a day.  He has been losing weight, they put him in chokeholds and verbally abuse him daily. He’s sinking in that jail and I am seeing my sweet little boy fade behind those bars. “ - Amy Cage, mother of Jessica and Jordan Hampton

Jessica and Jordan’s situation is life-threatening. It’s also avoidable. We need your help right now. 

Please sign, share and visit us at www.freetiffany.org to learn how you can help support survivors, including Jessica and Jordan.