(Radio Iowa) – Iowa judges soon will be able to appoint attorneys to represent victims of human trafficking diagnosed with a mental disability if they’re called to testify against their alleged abuser. The move is part of a law that will go into effect July 1st. It also sets a mandatory minimum sentence for human traffickers convicted of a class B felony, so they’d have to serve as least half of their prison sentence before being eligible for parole or a work release program. During House debate of the bill, Representative Mark Thompson of Belmond said if the human trafficking victim is a child, the sentence is far higher.

“If the victim is a minor, then it’s upwards to life,” Thompson said, “which conceivably should be the penalty any time a person is treated like a piece of livestock.”

Last year, lawmakers increased state penalties for human trafficking. Most cases of human trafficking are handed in federal courts, but an Iowa Department of Public Safety report shows there were six cases in Iowa courts last year involving human trafficking of minors and one case involving an adult who was subjected to forced labor.