“Got Sold a Dream and It Turned into a Nightmare”: The Victim-Offender Overlap in Sexual Exploitation

Pimp-controlled sex trafficking in the United States often situates a male trafficker at the top of the organization, with a female “bottom girl” as second-in-command.

This victim occupies the position of victim-offender, where she is simultaneously being victimized by a trafficker while also forced to commit trafficking offenses against others in the operation.

Until now, research dedicated to understanding the victim-offender overlap has relied solely on data from those involved in the criminal justice system.

This article, authored by Angie C. Henderson & Shea M. Rhodes, broadens the scope of this area of work.