Human Sex Trafficking Investigation Results in 24-count Indictment

The alleged crimes occurred in January and February of 2019.

55-year-old Tracy Steven Rasberry was arrested July 1, 2020. Photo: Multnomah County Sheriff

(PORTLAND, Ore.) - Today, Multnomah County District Attorney Rod Underhill announced the filing of a 24-count indictment against 55-year-old Tracy Steven Rasberry following a human sex trafficking investigation.

A Multnomah County grand jury charged Rasberry with 24 counts of promoting prostitution. According to court records, the alleged crimes occurred in January and February of 2019.

Under Oregon law, a person commits the crime of promoting prostitution if, with intent to promote prostitution, they knowingly:

own, control, manage, supervise or otherwise maintain a place of prostitution or a prostitution enterprise; induce or cause a person to engage in prostitution or to remain in a place of prostitution; receive or agree to receive money, goods, property, services or something else of value, other than as a prostitute being compensated for personally rendered prostitution services, pursuant to an agreement or understanding that the money, goods, property, services or something else of value is derived from a prostitution activity; or engage in any conduct that institutes, aids or facilitates an act or enterprise of prostitution.

Police located and arrested Rasberry on July 1st in the 1800 block of Northeast 122nd Avenue in Portland, Oregon.

The Multnomah County District Attorney’s Human Trafficking Team is litigating this case. The team includes two attorneys, an investigator and a victim advocate.

Additionally, an attorney assigned to the MCDA gang unit is available to help prosecute cases and support the team as trafficking routinely intersects with gang violence.

The Multnomah County District Attorney’s Human Trafficking Team works to protect victims utilizing a three-prong approach:

(1) aggressively prosecuting those who traffic victims to sex buyers; (2) reducing demand for exploitation in all forms to include a dedicated focus on a reduction of sex buyers; and (3) ensuring adequate protection and support for victims of human trafficking.

If you are involved in sex trafficking, or know of someone who is being trafficked, call the National Human Trafficking Hotline at 1-888-373-7888 or 9-1-1.

NOTE: A charging document is only an accusation of a crime. Rasberry is innocent unless and until proven guilty.

Source: Multnomah Co. District Attorney's Office