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Date: 06-02-2023
Case Style:
Case Number: 2:22-cr-00135
Judge: Madeline H. Haikala
Court: United States District Court for the Northern District of Alabama (Jefferson County)
Plaintiff's Attorney: United States Attorney’s Office in Birmingham
Defendant's Attorney:
Description: Birmingham, Alabama criminal defense lawyer represented Defendant charged with sex trafficking minors.
Marlette Laishell Smith aka “Lala,” 29, of Rome, Georgia, recruited two minor females (15 and 16 years of age) into prostitution for her own financial gain. The minor victims were stranded in Memphis, Tennessee, and were trying to get back home to California. Smith met them on a stairwell at the Motel 6 in Memphis – the minor victims were hungry, had no money, no place to stay, no mode of transportation, only the clothes on their back, and an uncharged cell phone. Smith told them that she would help them get back home if they would go with her to Alabama and make $200 each. Smith drove the minors to Georgia then to Alabama where she sexually trafficked them.
“The commercial sexual exploitation of children causes long-lasting harms to child victims and the entire community,” said U.S. Attorney Escalona. “The fight to prevent and disrupt exploitation would be impossible without the support of our federal, state, and local law enforcement partners. We are especially grateful for the work of FBI Birmingham in apprehending the defendant in this case.”
“This sentence sends a strong message to those who prey on minors and abuse their trust. The victims, who found themselves in a vulnerable state entrusted this person for assistance in returning home. The FBI is dedicated to ensuring the safety and security of the victims and reuniting them with their families,” said FBI Special Agent in Charge Carlton L. Peeples. “I am proud of the diligent work of FBI Birmingham’s Child Exploitation Human Trafficking Task Force, the Homewood Police Department, and other law enforcement partners who assisted in bringing this individual to justice.”
The FBI Birmingham’s Child Exploitation Human Trafficking Task Force (CEHTTF) investigated the case along with the Homewood Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorneys R. Leann White and Darius Greene prosecuted the case.
18:1591(a)(1),(b)(2), and (c) SEX TRAFFICKING OF CHILDREN OR BY FORCE, FRAUD OR COERCION
(1-2)
18:2423(a) COERCION OR ENTICEMENT OF MINOR FEMALE
(3-4)
Outcome: Defendant was sentenced to 300 months in prison followed by 20 years of supervised release.
Plaintiff's Experts:
Defendant's Experts:
Comments: