GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. -- A legal firm in Grand Rapids has helped secure from Governor Whitmer a pardon for a survivor of human trafficking.
Warner, Norcoss & Judd partner Madelaine Lane represented Leslie F. King in the case.
"I think it helps shed light on the issue of human trafficking," she said. "And it's not just a problem in big cities or in far-off places across the ocean. It's a problem right here in Grand Rapids."
The Michigan Parole Board had recommended the pardon for King, clearing her path to become a licensed social worker by expunging her criminal record. The included sentences for prostitution, larceny, drug possession and more. King told the parole board her pimps beat her and forced her into illegal activity, starting when she was first trafficked at age 15.
Lane tells WOOD Radio some people don't qualify to have the criminal records expunged under the Clean Slate Act.
"Unfortunately, Leslie was one of those individuals. She was trafficked for two decades and, therefore, her history didn't qualify for expungement, just based on the number of offenses committed during that time period. So, a pardon was her only option," Lane said.
Warner attorneys partnered with The Joseph Project - a nonprofit that connects human trafficking survivors with pro bono legal services - to secure the pardon from Gov. Gretchen Whitmer in December.
King founded and now leads Sacred Beginnings , a Grand Rapids nonprofit that provides street outreach and safe housing to those who have been trafficked.
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