Trafficking Survivor Heads Louisiana Commission as State Reports 1,350 New Victims

Michelle Johnson, a survivor of a multi-year sex trafficking operation, has assumed the role of chair for the Governor’s Human Trafficking Prevention Commission and Advisory Board in Louisiana, spearheading state efforts to combat exploitation as authorities report a significant rise in identified victims. Johnson, whose testimony was instrumental in the conviction of her trafficker, now coordinates policy and advocacy in a state where officials identified 1,350 new trafficking victims in 2024 alone.

According to federal court records, Johnson was trafficked between 2007 and 2011 by Carlos Lampley. Lampley utilized a network of hotels and truck stops across Baton Rouge, New Orleans, and surrounding parishes to exploit Johnson and others. Following a Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) sting operation, Lampley was arrested and subsequently sentenced to 40 years in federal prison for trafficking a child for sexual purposes, human trafficking, and attempted human trafficking. Johnson testified against Lampley, providing critical evidence regarding the coercion and abuse inherent in the operation.

Data released by the state indicates that of the 1,350 new victims identified in 2024, the majority were under the age of 17. Officials point to the convergence of Interstates 10, 12, and 55 as a geographic facilitator for the trade, allowing traffickers to move victims rapidly across jurisdictions. Jordyn McDempsey, a criminal investigator for the Louisiana State Police Special Victims Unit, noted that recruitment has evolved beyond traditional street-level coercion to include grooming operations at schools, hospitals, and rehabilitation centers.

Legislative measures have been enacted to address the crisis, driven in part by Johnson’s advocacy. Act 130, known as “The Michelle Johnson Act,” was passed in 2021 to facilitate the expungement of criminal records for trafficking survivors who were forced into illicit activities. In 2023, the legislature passed Act 662, establishing a dedicated hotline and allocating $4 million annually to victim services. Furthermore, in 2025, Louisiana implemented a statute reclassifying the purchase of sex as a felony, targeting the demand side of the illicit market.

Despite the increase in victim identification—which has more than tripled since 2017—law enforcement data reveals a disparity in prosecution rates. Louisiana recorded 46 human trafficking arrests in 2024, a figure roughly equivalent to arrest numbers from eight years prior. Prosecutors cite challenges including complex digital evidence, jurisdictional issues, and the necessity of victim cooperation in building cases against traffickers.

Strategic Enforcement Outlook

The disparity between the high number of identified victims and the relatively low number of specific trafficking arrests suggests that while detection and support infrastructure have improved, the prosecutorial pipeline remains bottlenecked by the complexity of these federal and state crimes. The shift in 2025 to felonize the purchase of sex represents a strategic pivot toward demand-reduction, aiming to disrupt the economic model of trafficking rings. However, officials warn that labor trafficking remains an under-resourced area of investigation compared to sex trafficking. It is important to note that all individuals arrested or charged in connection with ongoing trafficking investigations are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.