Lynn’s Warriors Statement Today marks a long overdue victory for survivors. The Trafficking Survivors Relief Act has officially been signed into law, ending nearly a decade of advocacy and struggle to correct one of the cruelest injustices facing trafficking victims.

Human trafficking survivor and advocate, Hollie Nadel, announced that she has been granted a presidential pardon, just as the Trafficking Survivors Relief Act (H.R. 4323) was signed into law, marking a profound moment of personal legal closure and a significant step forward for survivors nationwide.

The bipartisan Trafficking Survivors Relief Act, introduced in the U.S. House by Rep. Russell Fry (R-SC-7), establishes a federal process to vacate convictions and expunge arrest records for certain offenses committed by trafficking victims as a direct result of their exploitation. For survivors, criminal records tied to coercion and abuse often remain long after their escape, creating lifelong barriers to employment, housing, education, and financial stability.

According to the International Labour Organization, human trafficking generates an estimated $236 billion annually worldwide, with a substantial portion moving through legitimate financial systems. Many victims are forced into financial crimes by their traffickers. When victims are not properly identified, they are often arrested and prosecuted, leaving them punished for crimes they were forced or coerced into committing.

Hollie Nadel, who testified before Congress in support of the legislation, is a survivor of both labor and sex trafficking. After graduating cum laude from Ithaca College and in her early twenties, she was trafficked for eight years and forced to commit financial crimes through violence, threats, and coercion, including threats against her family. She ultimately escaped her traffickers only after being arrested.

Today’s announcement of her presidential pardon brings closure to a chapter of her own story—but she emphasizes that pardons alone are not a solution for most survivors.