Hailey Dunn's dad attends Traffick911 rally, claims police wasted time

 Hailey Dunn's dad attends Traffick911 rally, claims police wasted time

COLORADO CITY, Texas -- Hailey Dunn’s dad, Clint Dunn, made the trip from Colorado City, Texas to Mansfield to speak at an anti-human trafficking rally put on by Traffick911 Sunday and told supporters he believes authorities wasted a week while they investigated his daughter’s disappearance as if she’d run away.

Dunn joined hundreds of people at the rally and said while he doesn’t want to think his daughter could be the victim of human trafficking, he can’t rule it out.

"I've been scared of that since the beginning. That's why I went to Mexico twice handing out flyers," said Dunn.

Working with Traffick911, Dunn said, has shown him human trafficking doesn’t just happen in third world countries, “It’s everywhere, places you wouldn’t expect. It’s an epidemic in America,” he said. He’s right.

“People can’t forget, they have to remember Hailey,” he said. He also said he would continue his efforts until Hailey is found.

Clint’s ex-wife, and the mother of Hailey, Billie Dunn, had also been invited to attend the rally. However, last week police released information that over 100,000 pornographic photos and videos had been found on a computer seized by Mitchell County sheriff’s officers at her ex-boyfriend’s mother’s home and hundreds more were found in Billie’s bedroom dresser on a memory stick.

She canceled her appearance.

Billie’s former boyfriend, Shawn Adkins, is the only suspect in the case.

"He was the last one to see my daughter alive, and that's why I think the police are spotlighting him," Clinton Dunn said. "I don't want to think he's guilty. If he's guilty, that means my daughter is probably dead, and I don't want to think like that."

Dunn said he thinks precious time was wasted because officers working on his daughter’s case were inexperienced in tracking missing children. Elizabeth Ennen’s family shares his frustration.  Read: How runaway status impedes family’s efforts.

"After two months, we're still at square one," he said. "We need better laws, and we need to start thinking outside the box on these cases."

The Star-Telegram reported that former U.S. Rep. Linda Smith, D-Washington, now head of Shared Hope International, said her group gave Texas a "C" grade when it characterized the laws the state has on the books regarding trafficked children.

For example, someone who employs a child in a sexually oriented business faces a year in jail or a fine of up to $4,000, she said.

"Penalties for buying a child should reflect the seriousness of the crime," she said.

Traffick911 President Deena Graves said men must stop buying pornography and patronizing strip clubs.

"On any given night I can take you to a place in your hometown where you can buy a child with whom you can have sex," Smith said.

"They bring these girls to the strip clubs to show them off. You can find them there any night of the week."

Source: Star-Telegram