Tennessee Code Annotated
Tenn. Code Ann. § 39-13-308 (2026)
Trafficking for forced labor or services
✓ current as of May 2026
- (a) A person commits the offense of trafficking persons for forced labor or services who knowingly:
- (1) Recruits, entices, harbors, transports, provides, or obtains by any means, or attempts to recruit, entice, harbor, transport, provide, or obtain by any means, another person, intending or knowing that the person will be subjected to involuntary servitude; or
- (2) Benefits, financially or by receiving anything of value, from participation in a venture that has engaged in an act described in § 39-13-307.
- (b) In addition to any other amount of loss identified or any other punishment imposed, the court shall order restitution to the victim or victims in an amount equal to the greater of:
- (1) The gross income or value of the benefit received by the defendant as the result of the victim's labor or services; or
- (2) The value of the victim's labor as guaranteed under the minimum wage and overtime provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) (29 U.S.C. § 201 et seq.), or the minimum wage required in this state, whichever is higher.
- (c)
- (1) Trafficking for forced labor or services is a Class C felony.
- (2) Trafficking for forced labor or services is a Class A felony if the victim was more than twelve (12) years of age but less than eighteen (18) years of age.
Acts 2008, ch. 1140, § 3; 2022, ch. 1089, § 3; 2022, ch. 1115, § 20.
Notes of Decisions
Cited in 2
cases (2 in the last 5 years), 2023–2026 · leading case: State of Tennessee v. Johnny Summers Cavin (Tenn. 2023).
State of Tennessee v. Johnny Summers Cavin (Tenn. 2023). “, Tenn. Code Ann. §§ 39-13-308 (b) (2018 & Supp.”
State of Tennessee v. James Hewitt & Kelli Hewitt (Tenn. Crim. App. 2026). “The Defendants did not attach to the instant motion copies of the warrants, but according to discussions during the preliminary hearing held on July 15, 2025, the transcript of which they attached to their motion, they face potential charges on one count of involuntary labor…”
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