The purpose of this Commission is to promote public awareness of the existence of human trafficking within Hillsborough County; Establish, through relationship building within the community, educational programming opportunities for the public and key industries to recognize the indicators of human trafficking and learn to report suspected human trafficking; and Advocate strategies, financially and otherwise, to aid rescued victims of human trafficking; and Support local and statewide efforts to identify opportunities for positive impact and improved outcomes for victims and service providers through data collection, sharing, and analysis.
Heroes Against Human Trafficking Program
Membership
Members appointed by the Hillsborough Board of County Commissioners.
Maximum membership
The membership of this Commission shall be comprised of 20 members representing the following:
- A member of the Board of County Commissioners
- Two representatives of the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office (HCSO), with one being an officer with the Child Protective Unit, both designated by the HCSO
- A representative of the Tampa Police Department (TPD), as designated by the TPD
- A representative of the Temple Terrace Police Department, as designated by the Department
- A representative of the Plant City Police Department, as designated by the Department
- A representative of the Hillsborough County School District (HCSD), as designated by the HCSD
- A representative of the Hillsborough County Aviation Authority (HCAA), as designated by the (HCAA)
- A representative of the Port Tampa Bay, as designated by Port Tampa Bay
- A representative of the Office of the State Attorney for the Thirteenth Judicial Circuit (SA), as designated by the SA
There shall be seven individuals, each representing at least one of the following segments of our community:
- A representative of the Hillsborough County Public Defender for the Thirteenth Judicial Circuit (PD), as designated by the PD
- A representative of the Administrative Office of the Courts for the Thirteenth Judicial Circuit, as designated by the Chief Judge or his designee
- A representative of the Hillsborough County Commission on the Status of Women, as designated by the Commission on the Status of Women
- Community/Victim Services, as designated by Redefining Refuge
- Tourism Industry, as designated by Visit Tampa Bay
- Hotel Industry, as designated by the Hillsborough County Hotel & Motel Association
- Hospital/Medical Profession, as designated by the Crisis Center of Tampa Bay
- Religious Institutions
- Human Trafficking Community Advocate
- Lived Experience Expert, as designated by Created, Healing Root and Victims 2 Survivors
The Commission may appoint non-voting participants and/or liaisons who may participate in meetings but may not vote.
Length of Term
Terms are initially staggered as follows, and all subsequent terms are for two years:
- Categories A – L, two year terms
- Categories M – S, initially one year term
Authority
Resolution R19-141, adopted December 4, 2019 by the BOCC.
Meeting details may change with very little notice. Please check back closer to the meeting date to verify if the schedule, location (if applicable) and/or meeting type (virtual, hybrid, in-person) have changed.
Meeting Information
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Times
Last Wednesday of the month, bi-monthly at 1 PM, unless otherwise noted in the current schedule below
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Commission on Human Trafficking (COHT) Schedule
Due to the uncertain conditions of COVID-19, the annual meeting schedule is to be determined. We will list meeting schedules as they are announced and meeting materials when they are available.
Date Time Meeting Type Agenda Link Feb. 4, 2021 1 PM Hybrid To be posted -
Meeting types
- In-person meetings (no virtual element)
- Take place at County Center - 26th Floor, Conf. Rm. A & B, 601 E. Kennedy Blvd. in downtown Tampa
- Hybrid, in-person quorum
- A quorum of the board meets in-person, all others meet virtually
- Location for board members (no general members of the public admitted):
County Center - 26th Floor, Conf. Rm. A & B
601 E. Kennedy Blvd.
Tampa, FL 33602 - Location may change for each meeting, check back closer to the meeting date to verify location
- Virtual (no in-person location)
- All board members and other participants access the meeting through virtual methods
- In-person meetings (no virtual element)
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Accessing Meetings
The public and the media can access the meetings in the following ways:
Live
- Hillsborough County's YouTube Meeting Channel
- Our website's Live Meetings link, also found in our Newsroom
- The County's HTV channels on cable television: Spectrum 637 and Frontier 22
Recorded
The meeting will be captioned on the screen as well.
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Public Participation and Comments
You can sign up to speak during the public portion of the regular virtual Commission on Human Trafficking (COHT) meeting.
Contact Person
Heather Curry, Ph.D.
Coordinator of Special Projects
Homeless Projects
(813) 274-6844
Member | Position/Appointed By | Dates of Service | |
---|---|---|---|
A | The Honorable Kimberly Overman | Board of County Commissioners | 02/19/2020 - 11/18/2021 |
B | Major Geoffrey Harris | HCSO | 02/19/2020 - 02/28/2022 |
B | Ms. Iris Corey-Dunaway | HCSO - Child Protective Unit | 02/19/2020 - 02/28/2022 |
C | Deputy Chief Lee Bercaw | Tampa Police Department | 02/19/2020 - 02/28/2022 |
D | Captain Robert Staley | Temple Terrace Police Department | 06/17/2020 - 06/30/2022 |
E | Corporal Gerald Baker | Plant City Police Department | 06/17/2020 - 06/30/2022 |
F | The Honorable Karen Perez | HC School District | 02/19/2020 - 02/28/2022 |
G | Detective Sergeant Kevin Durkin | Aviation Authority | 02/19/2020 - 02/28/2022 |
H | Mr. Charles Klug | Port Tampa Bay | 02/19/2020 - 02/28/2022 |
I | The Honorable Andrew Warren | State Attorney for the Thirteenth Judicial Circuit | 02/19/2020 - 02/28/2022 |
J | The Honorable Julianne Holt | Public Defender for Thirteenth Judicial Circuit | 06/17/2020 - 06/30/2022 |
K | Chief Judge Ronald Ficarrotta | Administrative Office of the Courts for the Thirteenth Judicial Circuit | 06/17/2020 - 06/30/2022 |
L | Ms. Elizabeth Gutierrez | Commission on the Status of Women Representative | 06/17/2020 - 06/30/2022 |
M | Ms. Jennifer Glaister | Community Victims Services - designated by Redefining Refuge | 02/19/2020 - 02/28/2021 |
N | Mr. Santiago Corrada | Tourism Industry - designated by Visit Tampa Bay | 02/19/2020 - 02/28/2021 |
O | Hotel Industry - designated by the HC Hotel & Motel Association | ||
P | Ms. Kathleen Kempke | Hospital/Medical Profession - designated by the Crisis Center of Tampa Bay | 02/19/2020 - 02/28/2021 |
Q | Ms. Brenna Taylor | Religious Institution | 02/19/2020 - 02/28/2021 |
R | Ms. Dotti Groover-Skipper | Community Advocate for Human Trafficking | 02/19/2020 - 02/28/2021 |
S | Constance Rose | Lived Experience Expert | 06/17/2020 - 06/30/2022 |
*Reappointed