Human trafficking is everywhere, especially here in GA. This new app will help you report it
Sex trafficking is a $10 billion industry, and it's happening everywhere.
We've found a new app that is designed to make it easier to report traffickers to the police.
Lala Appleberry said she eventually learned that her boyfriend - the man she trusted - was a trafficker.
'It started with hugging, touching, kissing, things like that. And it grew. It became more, the ask became more,' Appleberry said. 'I didn't realize it was boyfriend to trafficker. It was, 'This is my boyfriend and I'm going to help him' cause we live together and we're doing this together. I'm his Bonnie, he's my Clyde. He needs help, and he has helped me.
Unfortunately, her story is very common.
TRENDING STORIES:
Pope Leo XIV: Who is the first American pope?
Hall County teacher accused of having inappropriate relationship with middle schooler
North Georgia paramedic accused of installing camera in ambulance office restroom
'This could be happening in your neighborhood and your bougie neighborhood in Milton, or Cobb County, or Johns Creek, or Peachtree City, or Buckhead, or Brookhaven. It is happening, it could be on your street, and you might not know,' said Titania Jordon, chief parent officer of Bark Technologies.
Bark helps parents keep track of the online activity of their kids.
Jordon was in Washington as details of Operation Burn Notice were revealed.
The multi-agency undercover effort targeting sex trafficking nabbed 17 people in Henry County.
'There's a new app called Simply Report out. That helps to fight human trafficking. You know, unfortunately, the National Human Trafficking Hotline has left too many victims without help,' Jordon said.
Simply Report helps users identify and report trafficking indicators to the authorities.
'It's going to empower those who are involved in trafficking, those victims and hopefully survivors, to be able to report without worrying that they're going to get arrested for being in this industry,' Jordon said.
Here is how you can download the app: Apple, Google Play
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
New York Post
38 minutes ago
- New York Post
Biden only hand-signed one pardon during final spree, and it was his most controversial one
Former President Joe Biden only signed one pardon by hand during his final weeks in office, and it was his most controversial one. The Justice Department is reviewing the list of people granted pardons by Biden amid new concerns about his use of an autopen to automatically sign documents and concerns about his state of mind and mental acuity in his final months in office. Biden used his final weeks as commander in chief to grant clemency and pardon more than 1,500 people in what his White House described as the largest single-day act of clemency by a U.S. president. 4 Joe Biden with Donald Trump. POOL/AFP via Getty Images Biden appears to have signed those final pardons, including preemptive pardons for members of his family, Dr. Anthony Fauci, Gen. Mark Milley and members and staff of the House committee investigating Jan. 6. But the former president signed one by hand for his son. Biden pardoned his son Hunter in December 2024 after vowing to the American people for months he would not do so. Hunter Biden was found guilty of three felony gun offenses during special counsel David Weiss' investigation. The first son was also charged with federal tax crimes over his alleged failure to pay at least $1.4 million in taxes. Before his trial, Hunter Biden entered a surprise guilty plea. Former President Biden in December 2024 announced a blanket pardon that applies to any offenses against the U.S. that Hunter Biden 'has committed or may have committed' from Jan. 1, 2014, to Dec. 1, 2024. 'From the day I took office, I said I would not interfere with the Justice Department's decision-making, and I kept my word even as I have watched my son being selectively, and unfairly, prosecuted,' the former president said. 4 Biden's use of an autopen is under scrutiny by Trump. AFP via Getty Images 'There has been an effort to break Hunter — who has been five and a half years sober, even in the face of unrelenting attacks and selective prosecution. In trying to break Hunter, they've tried to break me — and there's no reason to believe it will stop here. Enough is enough. 'I hope Americans will understand why a father and a president would come to this decision.' Weiss, who charged Hunter Biden, blasted the former president for pardoning his son, saying his characterizations of the yearslong probe were 'wrong' and 'unfairly' maligned Justice Department officials. Weiss, in the report, blasted the president's decision to pardon and the press release to the public that 'criticized the prosecution of his son as 'selective,' 'unfair,' 'infected' by 'raw politics' and a 'miscarriage of justice.'' 'This statement is gratuitous and wrong,' Weiss wrote in his report. 'Other presidents have pardoned family members, but in doing so, none have taken the occasion as an opportunity to malign the public servants at the Department of Justice based solely on false accusations.' In another section of the report, Weiss noted that, in light of the presidential pardon, he 'cannot make any additional charging decisions,' adding it would be 'inappropriate' to discuss 'whether additional charges are warranted.' 'Politicians who attack the decisions of career prosecutors as politically motivated when they disagree with the outcome of a case undermine the public's confidence in our criminal justice system,' Weiss wrote. 'The President's statements unfairly impugn the integrity not only of Department of Justice personnel, but all of the public servants making these difficult decisions in good faith. 4 Hunter Biden was pardoned by his father in his last days in office. Ron Sachs – CNP for NY Post 'The President's characterizations are incorrect based on the facts in this case, and, on a more fundamental level, they are wrong.' Biden's use of an autopen for signatures is under investigation by Attorney General Pam Bondi. President Donald Trump directed Bondi to investigate whether certain individuals working for Biden conspired to deceive the public about his mental state while also exercising his presidential responsibilities by using an autopen. In a memo Wednesday, Trump said the president of the U.S. has a tremendous amount of power and responsibility through the signature. Not only can the signature turn words into laws of the land, but it also appoints individuals to some of the highest positions in government, creates or eliminates national policies and allows prisoners to go free. 'In recent months, it has become increasingly apparent that former President Biden's aides abused the power of Presidential signatures through the use of an autopen to conceal Biden's cognitive decline and assert Article II authority,' Trump wrote. 4 Damilic Corp. president Bob Olding anchors a sheet of paper as the Atlantic Plus, the Signascript tabletop model autopen. AP 'This conspiracy marks one of the most dangerous and concerning scandals in American history. The American public was purposefully shielded from discovering who wielded the executive power, all while Biden's signature was deployed across thousands of documents to effect radical policy shifts.' He added that Biden has experienced 'serious cognitive decline' for years, and the Department of Justice recently concluded Biden should not stand trial despite clear evidence he broke the law, because of his mental state. 'Biden's cognitive issues and apparent mental decline during his presidency were even 'worse' in private, and those closest to him 'tried to hide it' from the public,' Trump said. 'To do so, Biden's advisors during his years in office severely restricted his news conferences and media appearances, and they scripted his conversations with lawmakers, government officials, and donors, all to cover up his inability to discharge his duties.' Fox News Digital's Greg Wehner contributed to this report.
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Contributor: Trump has a gift for identifying America's problems (and making them worse)
Every now and then, the torrent of news serves up a grim little reminder: Maybe Donald Trump wasn't entirely wrong in his cultural critiques. Not because he's a prophet — God forbid — but because America has gone so far off the rails that his perspective starts to make a certain amount of sense. That's the mood I've been in lately. And no, I'm not just talking about the recent spate of stories about Joe Biden's cognitive decline and what many see as a cover-up. Nor am I talking about reports that Dems are spending $20 million to try to learn how to (re)connect with alienated American men who feel ignored and see the Democratic Party as too weak. Those are just subplots. I'm talking about how President Trump — for all his bluster, baggage and baffling syntax — continues to speak to realities that polite society has decided are too ugly to discuss. Things like uncontrolled immigration, violent crime and foreign adversaries who laugh at perceived American weakness. Consider the following, if only as case studies on why Trump's dark little worldview continues to resonate. Exhibit A: Mohammed Sabry Soliman, the Egyptian national accused of lobbing Molotov cocktails during an antisemitic attack in Boulder, Colo., had overstayed his visa and filed for asylum. It's not a good look for our immigration policy — as though we're importing our own pogroms. Exhibit B: In Virginia, body-cam footage shows Jamal Wali — an Afghan who was an interpreter for U.S. forces — opening fire on police during a traffic stop and shouting that he should've joined the Taliban. Which raises the uncomfortable question: How thoroughly are we vetting the people we bring into this country? Exhibit C: Omer Shem Tov, a recently freed Israeli hostage, told CNN that his captors suddenly treated him better after Trump won the 2024 election. It wasn't because they liked Trump, but because they were scared of him. Which, oddly enough, may have been a side effect of Trump's posturing to look tough. Individually, these stories could be dismissed as one-offs. Together, they sketch a crude, uncomfortable truth: Trump's instincts — however vulgar — often land somewhere in the vicinity of prescient. For example, the recent wave of attacks on Jewish Americans comes as the Trump administration is citing campus antisemitism as justification for deportations and cuts to college funding. At the same time, Trump has blocked most refugees from entering America and recently pushed to end protections for Afghan interpreters and other wartime allies. While many of us decry the lack of compassion and inhumanity inherent in these policies, Trump's message is caveman-simple: Fear works. Even terrorists understand it. That's the whole point of 'peace through strength.' The bad guys get it. And, increasingly, so do voters. To the taste-making class, these concerns might not matter much. But out in the real world — you know, where people lock their doors and pay their taxes — they're not theoretical. They're Tuesday. Now, does this mean Trump's solutions are good? Legal? Morally defensible? No. He governs like a guy with a hammer who thinks everything is a nail. But, in the eyes of many Americans, at least he's swinging the damn thing. Meanwhile, Democrats look like they're waiting for permission to open their own toolbox. This is the terrain Trump thrives on. He projects dominance — or at least the illusion of it — while his opponents are giving HR-executive vibes. And here's the crazy part: Underneath the layers of narcissism, the carnival barking and the conspiracy-peddling, there are hints of greatness — a blueprint for serious leadership that addresses lingering, overlooked problems. Sadly, it's one that Trump himself will never follow. Imagine a version of him — stripped of the spite, grift and performative rage — who actually cared about governing. He'd fix the asylum system. Fund immigration judges to do proper vetting. Appoint competent people instead of family members and sycophants to run our intel and defense departments. Stop trying to undermine the rule of law. Speak in full sentences. He could weed out truly dangerous elements, scare the hell out of our global enemies and still earn the respect of our friends and allies. I could go on. But that's fantasy talk. Like trying to teach a bear ballet — you'll waste your time and probably get mauled. Because Trump doesn't want to govern. He wants to dominate. He wants spectacle. He wants the feud. The man's not interested in building — only demolishing. It's the difference between being a strongman, a showman and a statesman. Trump knows how to be the first two. He has no use for the latter. And that's the tragic comedy of it all. While liberals pretend the smoke isn't there, Trump sees the fire — and instead of reaching for a hose, he grabs a gas can. Meanwhile, voters who are exhausted, scared and angry keep thinking, 'Well, at least he noticed the fire.' Matt K. Lewis is the author of 'Filthy Rich Politicians' and 'Too Dumb to Fail.' If it's in the news right now, the L.A. Times' Opinion section covers it. Sign up for our weekly opinion newsletter. This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Chicago Tribune
2 hours ago
- Chicago Tribune
Letters: Ukraine is using the weapons of the future
Most wars are started on the basis of the previous war and then upgraded during the next war. Today we are spending hundreds of billions on weapons that are ready to fight the last war against countries that were using weapons from their previous war. Fancy jets and ships are going to be worthless. The war in the Ukraine is a great example of today's technology. The Ukrainians have damaged or destroyed most of the Russian Black Sea Fleet while they were at sea or tied to a dock. They hit air bases, warehouses, troop concentrations and refineries with their drones. Smaller drones have destroyed armored personnel carriers, trucks and tanks. Even smaller ones are being used to kill soldiers at the front. All of that was done without putting a soldier in danger. Most of the drones are GPS controlled. Some are by controllers using drone videos with some now using AI. Russia is a second rate military and was caught cold on their invasion of Kyiv by drones, which have advanced faster than their defenses have been able to counter. A recent '60 Minutes' episode had an item about drones from an American company designing AI drones for our military. They range from small to the size of jet aircraft. Imagine an aircraft carrier group besieged by a thousand drones in the Persian Gulf or Arabian Sea. The entire fleet could be damaged or sunk. Imagine a cargo ship sailing into the Chesapeake Bay and launching hundred of drones at Washington D.C. and the Norfolk naval base. Imagine a dozen more ships scattered around the country using longer range drones. Most of our non-nuclear forces would be decimated. That could be tomorrow!While it is highly debatable that Larry Hoover should have his sentences commuted one thing that we need to focus on is why. While Mr. Hoover may not have been directly linked to anyone's murder, it is safe to assume that due to the nature of being a gang leader he may have ordered murders and probably influenced a lot of his members to commit heinous crimes as well. But as some are celebrating the move by President Donald Trump (hopefully not many), I am of the opinion that Trump is trying to sneak one past us. He has ordered the closing of the Job Corps: a program designed to tackle youth unemployment that has been in existence since 1964. Countless youth were able to take advantage of this program which probably kept them from the tentacles of street gang life. While Trump may seek the approval of some in the African- American community, hopefully they don't ignore the disastrous effects closing a program like Job Corps can readers must be familiar with the Broken Windows Theory of policing, introduced by James Q. Wilson and George L. Kelling in 1982, that suggested that unchecked small offenses like broken windows, graffiti, and litter lead to greater crimes and societal breakdown. Donald Trump and his posse are throwing as many rocks as they can as fast as they can at the windows of our republic, collaterally damaging the rule of law, trust, civility and other civilizational essentials in the process. They cannot operate to their own best advantage in a healthy democracy and legal system, so they are trying to undermine it by accustoming citizens to broken political and legal windows. Trump's ideal environment is one in which there is so much corruption and illegality that he can ask, 'Whaddya looking at me for?' It is working. Several prominent people (Anne Applebaum, Maria Ressa and Gary Kasparov) who are either scholars of authoritarianism or have been dissidents in nations ruled by authoritarians have expressed surprise, not at what Trump is doing, but at the speed with which his project to dismantle our republic is progressing. He has not matched Adolf Hitler's legal neutering of Germany's republic in only 53 days after taking power, but this is hardly a reassuring thought. I continue to be puzzled by the disinterest with which many people respond to what is happening. The scholars and dissidents whom I cited agree that we do not have as much time to turn back the threat to our nation as many people seem to think that we have. The hope that things will simply self-correct is a fading one. Our leverage diminishes daily. Those who are working at changing our system to one that they can control and profit from and use to inflict damage on the officially unfavored are counting on our apathy. We should, at least, be openly discussing what is happening. The usual rule about about avoiding the subject of politics should be suspended for as long as the threat lasts.I find it interesting that when the Democrats, under Joe Biden and his minions, literally threw money at anything that moved, very few Democrat voiced any criticism. I mean, what is a few trillion dollars here and there? Now that Republicans try to find a way to undo the massive deficits, Democrats are screaming about Republicans trying to cut the deficit, and complain bitterly about the GOP adding to it. Such short to Ashley Nunes' June 2 article 'Outrage over Trump's EV policies misplaced,' Mr. Nunes' essay clumsily dances around the paramount need for electric vehicles — the Earth is too hot and getting hotter. The devastation caused by climate change — wildfires, floods, excessive heat, more numerous and catastrophic storms — is wreaking havoc on the planet. According to the EPA, 29% of greenhouse gas emissions are from cars, trucks, buses, etc. Transportation electrification would contribute mightily to the abeyance and cessation of these current and future disasters, saving untold property and lives. Mr. Nunes' dubious arguments belie the cataclysm facing the world.
