SAN DIEGO (KGTV) — San Diego has long been identified as a hotspot for human trafficking, and now, state and local leaders are taking stronger action to combat child exploitation.
I spoke with a survivor of human trafficking who says targeting buyers and supporting survivors is key to stopping this crime.
That survivor is now an advocate with the nonprofit Generate Hope, which provides long-term housing and care for trafficking survivors.
She says San Diego's tourism industry makes the region especially vulnerable, and this new law could help change the culture around buying sex.
"There was physical mental abuse, there was torture," said Keelin Washington, a sex trafficking survivor.
Washington's story did not begin with force or abduction; it began with attention.
"He made me feel loved. Four months later, he told me he needed help with rent and introduced the idea of selling myself. Not long after that, I was being sold on the streets of San Diego," Washington said.
She was just 14 years old. Over the next three and a half years, she was trafficked across more than a dozen states, controlled through fear, violence, and what she says was psychological bondage.
"One man's purchase can change the trajectory of a survivor for the rest of their life. This is not a victimless crime," Washington said.
Today, her life looks very different. I walked through a Generate Hope safe house, a quiet, secure space designed for healing.
Inside, the home feels warm, open, and intentionally comfortable, with spacious bedrooms, natural light, and common areas that feel more like a family home than a shelter.
Advocates say that sense of safety and even luxury is by design because survivors deserve a place where they can finally exhale.
Washington's experience highlights a much larger issue in San Diego.
"Anytime there is a large amount of men and a large amount of money, trafficking goes through the roof," Washington said.
That reality played out during Operation Home for the Holidays, a multi-day sting targeting sex trafficking and exploitation across San Diego County. Twenty survivors were rescued and dozens of men were arrested on suspicion of soliciting sex.
Now, new laws are taking aim at the demand side of the sex trade. As of Jan. 1, 2026, it is a felony to buy sex from anyone under 18. Before it was a misdemeanor to solicit sex from a 16- or 17-year-old.
Loitering with intent to purchase sex is once again a misdemeanor. And funding is being directed toward survivor services, including housing, counseling, and job support.
San Diego County District Attorney Summer Stephan says these changes give law enforcement stronger tools to intervene earlier and send a clear message to buyers.
"Get it through your skull: If you buy sex from a minor, you will face a felony," Stephan said.
A shift from survival to healing, from blame to accountability.
Generate Hope says homes like this, combined with stronger laws and enforcement, are essential in giving survivors a real chance to rebuild their lives.
