Ditullio v. Boehm, No. 10-36012 (9th Cir. 2011)
Annotate this CaseAppellee pled guilty to one count of conspiracy to engage in human trafficking, and admitted that between 2001 and December 22, 2003, he conspired with others to provide controlled substances to several minors and recruited them to engage in sexual activity. Appellant alleged that she was one of the victims identified in appellee's plea agreement and sought compensatory and punitive damages under the Trafficking Victims Protection Act (TVPA), 18 U.S.C. 1589 et seq. The district court certified an interlocutory appeal on two questions: (1) whether the TVPA permitted recovery of punitive damages, and (2) whether the TVPA's civil action provision, 18 U.S.C. 1595, applied retroactively to conduct occurring before its effective date, particularly when the perpetrator could have engaged in sex trafficking after the statute's effective date. The court held that the TVPA permitted recovery of punitive damages because it created a cause of action that sounded in tort and punitive damages were available in tort actions under the common law. The court also held that section 1595 could not be applied retroactively to conduct that occurred before its effective date.
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