Ogden case against human trafficking and prostitution confirmed despite controversial expert statements | dishes

A man convicted of human trafficking and running a prostitution operation in Ogden alleged that an expert falsely incited the jury against him, but a state court denied his appeal.

Joseph Moore, 49, argued that his public defender gave ineffective advice for failing to question the testimony of a prosecution witness about the evils of human trafficking. But the Utah Court of Appeals upheld his convictions Friday.

Moore, of Evanston, Wyoming, was arrested in Ogden in March 2018 on charges of human trafficking and the aggravated exploitation of prostitution, both first degree and minor third degree offenses.

The main witness against him was a 16-year-old girl who said she was recruited into the ring by an older girl aged 22 who authorities later said was only 18 “sex acts with clients, where Moore drives you to and from appointments and is there as a “muscle” if necessary, she says.

The girls could each earn $ 200 to $ 300 per appointment, more than if they acted in one-on-one sessions, she testified. Moore took an estimated 40% of the proceeds, she said.

The girls were interested in the income, but Moore threatened them that they would be kicked out of their homes if they didn’t bring in any money, according to witness statements.

Much of the statements made by the expert in the Moore trial in January 2019 had nothing to do with the details of his case, but rather related to the methods of recruiting traffickers; the victims’ fear, anger, depression, and other trauma; and the lucrative nature of human trafficking.

Moore’s appellate attorney said the “irrelevant and inflammatory statements” about child trafficking in general had “nothing to do with” the details of Moore’s case. This “ignited the jury and prevented him from a fair trial,” claimed the lawyer.

The Salt Lake City Court of Appeals found that Moore’s attorney did not deny the testimony and that the judge of the 2nd had the applicability to the facts of this case. ”Valencia found that the expert“ essentially gave a presentation to the jury about Trafficking stopped ”and that some of their statements, including“ Comments that children (victims) are virgins ”were divorced from the facts.

Valencia suggested lawyers add an instruction from the jury suggesting that the jury is ignoring any expert statements found to be irrelevant. The public defender agreed.

Moore’s appellate attorney argued that the public defender should have applied for a wrongful proceeding because of the expert opinion. The appellate court ruled, however, that even if the defense was inadequate, Moore “did not convince us that the jury would have been reasonably likely to have reached a different judgment” had the expert testimony been prevented. The court said the case against Moore was still strong.

Valencia sentenced Moore to five years in prison for trafficking in human beings, the same for serious exploitation of prostitution, and zero to five years for lesser allegations of exploitation.

The case has been investigated by the Ogden Police Department and the Utah District Attorney’s Task Force on Child Exploitation.