The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Court: Sex trafficking can be defense for homicide
A woman accused of killing a man can argue at trial that she was justified because he was sexually trafficking her, Wisconsin’s Supreme Court ruled Wednesday in a decision that could help define the limits of legal immunity for trafficking victims nationwide.
The justices ruled 4-3 that a 2008 state law that absolves trafficking victims of criminal liability for any offenses committed as a direct result of being trafficked extends to first-degree intentional homicide. However, they said Chrystul Kizer must first provide evidence for a trial judge that her decision to kill Randall Volar was connected to being trafficked before she can invoke immunity.
“Chrystul Kizer deserves a chance to present her defense and today’s decision will allow her to do that,” Kizer’s attorney, Katie York, said. “While the legal process on this matter is far from over, we, along with Chrystul and her family, believe the decision today affirms the legal rights provided by Wisconsin statute to victims of sex trafficking facing criminal charges.”
Kizer, 22, contends she met Volar on a sex-trafficking website. She says he sexually assaulted
her and sold her to others for sex. According to court documents, Kizer put a gun in her bookbag in June 2018 and told her boyfriend that she was going to shoot Volar because she was tired of him touching her.
She traveled from Milwaukee to Volar’s home in Kenosha, shot him in the head, burned down his house and stole his BMW, according to court documents. Kizer was 17 at the time, old enough to be considered an adult in Wisconsin’s justice system. She faces charges including arson and first-degree intentional homicide, which carries a mandatory life sentence.
Nearly 40 states have passed laws that give trafficking victims at least some level of criminal immunity, according to Legal Action of Wisconsin, which provides legal help for low-income people.
The court found that the extent of trafficking victims’ immunity is ambiguous but doesn’t include any limiting language and therefore applies to homicide.
“The defendant must produce some evidence on which a reasonable jury could find that the defense applies,” Justice Rebecca Dallet, a liberal, wrote for the majority. “Thus our interpretation does not create the kind of blanket immunity for victims of human trafficking that the State fears.”