As part of a Good Morning San Diego, Joshua Travers, Saved In America Case Manager and Law Enforcement Liaison, joined in a discussion about our organization’s 2020 accomplishments and the upcoming goals for 2021. As a bit of background, our group Saved In America began in December 2014 but was actually conceived in theory years prior. It was inspired by many stories, but perhaps none more impactful than the Brittanee Drexel case. 

The Brittanee Drexel Case

For those who may not recall the details, Brittanee was a 17-year-old girl who was forcibly taken from a spring break trip. She was violated and her body was then disposed of by her captors, throwing her to alligators. When founder Joseph Travers read an article about this harrowing case, he was sure it must have been an isolated incident. After all, here in America, things like that just didn’t happen to innocent young girls, right? Wrong. After a bit of research, the founder of Saved In America found out that sadly, this case was far from isolated and is in reality one of many such cases that see the innocence if not the very lives taken from children through sex trafficking. It was at that moment that idea behind Saved In America was born. 

Our 2020 Accomplishments & 2021 Goals 

In 2020, our all-volunteer, donation-funded organization was able to assist in the recovery of 11 children nationwide out of the sex trade industry, or nearly one child recovered virtually every month of the year. This was despite pandemic shutdowns, which made typical avenues of searching difficult or impossible. Since our inception, the total number of recoveries stands at more than 250 children. 

Not only does our organization assist in the recovery of missing, runaway and exploited children by working with parents and law enforcement, but SIA also provides much-needed boots on the ground, in addition to prosecuting all responsible parties. In fact, in 2020, in Nevada, we were able to assist in the prosecution of one sex trafficker who ended up being convicted and sentenced to eight years in jail. We believe that while rescue is the first step, justice has to be served and the perpetrators have to pay for their misdeeds. In 2021, our goal is to continue to find even more missing children and help their captures face the judgment they are due. #ChildSavedNotSold