NJ's Annual Human Trafficking & Awareness Event - New Jersey Office of Attorney General

Lyndsay Ruotolo is the First Assistant Attorney General. Ruotolo previously served as Director of the Division of Criminal Justice from July 2021 until May 2022. Prior to her appointment as Director of DCJ, Ruotolo served as Acting Union County Prosecutor, where she launched the “Intelligence-Driven Prosecution Unit” to combat violent crime. She also previously served as an Assistant U.S. Attorney in the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Jersey, where she worked in the area of violent crime prosecution, and before that as a line Assistant Prosecutor in Union County. Ruotolo has also worked in the area of commercial litigation at the law firm of McElroy, Deutsch, Mulvaney & Carpenter and clerked for the Honorable Ellen L. Koblitz as the Presiding Judge of General Equity (Bergen County), and then as Judge of the Superior Court of New Jersey, Appellate Division. Ruotolo received her B.F.A. from the Tisch School for the Arts at New York University, and her J.D. from New York Law School.

Matthew J. Platkin was appointed by Governor Phil Murphy to serve as the state’s 62nd Attorney General on February 3, 2022, and confirmed to that role with bipartisan support by the New Jersey Senate on September 29, 2022.

As New Jersey’s chief law enforcement officer, Attorney General Platkin has prioritized the safety of New Jersey residents, focusing on combating violent crime and implementing innovative public safety strategies. He has specifically targeted gun crimes and auto thefts, resulting in significant reductions in both areas during his tenure. He has also spearheaded efforts to change how law enforcement responds to mental health emergencies by connecting individuals to resources, underscored by the innovative ARRIVE Together program.

The Attorney General leads a department that touches upon nearly every aspect of life in New Jersey. Its sweeping responsibilities include investigating and prosecuting crimes, representing the State’s interests in court, enforcing strong consumer protection and civil rights statutes, regulating important industries and overseeing over 38,000 law enforcement officers throughout the state. Attorney General Platkin believes that at the center of this work is public trust. With that goal in mind, he has made it a priority to utilize available resources and authority to root out public waste and abuse, eradicate corruption, hold regulated businesses and industries accountable, defend civil rights, end bias and discrimination, and increase transparency concerning law enforcement conduct.

Since his appointment, Attorney General Platkin has established several new offices within the Department of Law and Public Safety. These include the Statewide Affirmative Firearms Enforcement Office, the Division of Violence Intervention and Victim Assistance and specialized units within the Division of Criminal Justice dedicated to prosecuting human trafficking and complex financial crimes. He has spearheaded the creation of the Reproductive Rights Strike Force and partnered with the Governor’s Office and Legislature to protect access to reproductive healthcare.

Before becoming Attorney General, Platkin served as Chief Counsel to Governor Murphy from January 2018 to October 2020. As Chief Counsel, he oversaw an office of attorneys that advised the Governor on all legal matters, including legislation, executive orders, administrative regulations, and litigation.

In addition to his work in public service, Platkin also worked in private practice, having served as a partner at Lowenstein Sandler in the White-Collar Criminal Defense and Business Litigation practice groups.

Previously, he worked as an associate at Debevoise & Plimpton in New York City, where he focused on internal investigations and civil and criminal matters before the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York, the U.S. Department of Justice, the New York Department of Financial Services, and various regulatory agencies.

Prior to law school, Platkin began his career as a policy advisor at the Brookings Institution in Washington D.C., working with members of Congress on job growth and economic recovery. He also served as an organizer in San Antonio, Texas.

Platkin was born and raised in New Jersey, growing up in Morris County, and graduated from Madison High School. He received his Bachelor of Arts from Stanford University, and his Juris Doctor from Stanford Law School, where he was an editor of the Stanford Law Review. He lives in Montclair with his wife, Sophia, and children, Robert and Maya.

Patricia Teffenhart, Executive Director, Division of Violence Intervention and Victim Assistance, Department of Law and Public Safety

Patricia Teffenhart (she/her/hers) was appointed by Attorney General Platkin to serve as the inaugural Executive Director of the new Division of Violence Intervention and Victim Assistance (VIVA) in the Department of Law and Public Safety (the Department) in September 2022. VIVA ensures that a trauma-informed, survivor-centered focus is centered in all work of the Department.

Prior to serving in her current capacity, Patricia was the Senior Vice President of Strategic Initiatives, for the New Jersey Chamber of Commerce where she led initiatives to support and expand the business community’s commitment to, and advancement of, diversity, equity, and inclusion.

Prior to joining the Chamber, Patricia served as Executive Director of the New Jersey Coalition Against Sexual Assault (NJCASA) from 2013-2021. Under her leadership, NJCASA had a record of policy-making success, including expansion of the sexual assault forensic evidence timeline; successfully advocating for the passing of the Sexual Assault Survivors Protection Act of 2015; creating and Co-Chairing the Governor’s appointed Campus Sexual Assault Task Force; mandating regular training for law enforcement and prosecutors; closing loopholes in the hiring practices of school employees to protect children from sexual predators; expanding New Jersey’s civil statute of limitations for sexual assault; creating a restorative justice pilot project; and increasing appropriations for sexual violence services in the New Jersey State Budget from $900K to $12.6M.

Patricia is a proud graduate of Douglass College and holds a Master’s in Public Administration from the Rutgers School of Public Affairs and Administration. She has dedicated her career to the promotion and advancement of women and girls, having worked for county-wide, statewide, and national feminist organizations.

Theresa L. Hilton is an Assistant Attorney General (AAG) and Deputy Director of the New Jersey Division of Criminal Justice (DCJ), Office of the Attorney General. AAG Hilton supervises the DCJ Human Trafficking and Victim-Centered Crimes Bureau, Major Threats Bureau, Bias Bureau, and Environmental Crimes Bureau. AAG Hilton is also responsible for developing trauma-informed strategies for the eradication of domestic violence and sexual assault across New Jersey. Recently, AAG Hilton served as the Acting Mercer County Prosecutor from August to December 2024.

Before joining DCJ in September 2022, AAG Hilton spent seven years as an assistant prosecutor with the Union County Prosecutor’s Office, with her last assignment as the supervisor of the Domestic Violence Unit. In this role, AAG Hilton oversaw a ten-person team of prosecutors, detectives, and advocates working to hold offenders accountable and support victims and their families. AAG Hilton began her career as an active duty assistant staff judge advocate of the United States Air Force, where she was involved in the investigation and prosecution of multiple sexual assault allegations, among other responsibilities. She is currently a Lieutenant Colonel in the Air Force Reserve.

AAG Hilton received her B.A. in Mathematics from Hamilton College, New York, in 2003 and her J.D. from the University of California, College of the Law, San Francisco (formerly University of California Hastings College of the Law) in 2007.

Rolidel Czekajlo, LSW, is the Senior Director of Services at Covenant House New Jersey (CHNJ) where she has worked for 21 years. In her current role, she supervises the New Jersey Statewide Human Trafficking Victim Services Program, the street outreach specialists, statewide volunteer services, residential programming and CHNJ food services.

Rolidel graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Sociology from the University at Albany, a SUNY school and a Master’s Degree in Social Work from Rutgers University. She is a licensed Social Worker in the State of New Jersey.

She is a consultant with the National Human Trafficking Training and Technical Assistance and a graduate of the Human Trafficking Leadership Academy.

Jessica Kitson is the Director of Legal Advocacy at Volunteer Lawyers for Justice (VLJ), where she oversees the legal work for the organization’s eight distinct legal programs. Jessica is a national expert on advocacy for human trafficking survivors, representing survivors through VLJ’s New Jersey Human Trafficking Survivors Legal Assistance Program, and serving as a consultant with the Survivor Reentry Project (SRP), a national training and technical assistance project. She is a co-author of a report by the SRP: Workable Solutions for Criminal Record Relief: Recommendations for Prosecutors Serving Victims of Human Trafficking. Jessica also leads VLJ’s broader advocacy efforts, targeting systems and policies that impede equitable access to justice.

Prior to joining VLJ in 2014, Jessica was director of the Eric R. Neisser Public Interest Program at Rutgers Law School where she oversaw all public interest and pro bono programming. Jessica was previously at Duane Morris LLP as public interest counsel and served as an adjunct professor at Rutgers Law, teaching seminars on domestic violence law and human trafficking.

Jessica is a member of the New Jersey Attorney General’s Human Trafficking Task Force and the New Jersey Supreme Court Committee on Gender in the Courts. She received her BA in history and women’s studies from Rutgers College and her Juris Doctor from Rutgers Law School where she was co-editor-in-chief of the Women’s Rights Law Reporter.

Michele Lefkowitz is the Director of Legal Programs for Partners, a non-profit organization that advocates in the courts and through policy for victims of domestic and sexual violence and their children. Michele has been a practicing attorney for over 20 years. Beginning her career in complex commercial litigation, Michele eventually found her passion as a pro bono attorney working with abused women and children. Michele transitioned to public interest work in 2012 when she joined Partners. Since joining Partners, she has helped hundreds of victims obtain Final Restraining Orders, custody of their children, and financial stability through awards of child and spousal support. Michele leads an excellent team of attorneys and paralegals that provide high quality legal advocacy for all of Partners’ clients. Michele not only advocates in court, but has also done significant work in helping to effect systemic change in policies that impact the safety, wellbeing, and quality of life of all domestic and sexual violence victims in New Jersey. Michele is a graduate of Fordham University School of Law and New York University. She is admitted to practice in New Jersey, New York, several Federal District Courts, and the Second Circuit Court of Appeals. She serves as a member of five county Domestic Violence Working Groups, the NJ State Domestic Violence Working Group, and sits on multiple New Jersey Supreme Court Committees.

Laura Magnone serves as the Bureau Chief of the Human Trafficking and Cyber Bureaus within the Division of Criminal Justice at the New Jersey Attorney General’s Office. In this role, she oversees the investigations and prosecutions of human trafficking, sexual assault, and child exploitation cases.

Laura joined the Attorney General’s Office in 2023, following an accomplished career as a Senior Assistant Prosecutor with the Morris County Prosecutor’s Office. There, she worked in the Sex Crimes and Child Endangerment Unit, prosecuting numerous first-degree cases. Most notably, Laura led the prosecution of Morris County’s first human trafficking trial, securing a guilty verdict and a 40-year state prison sentence.

Laura, a dedicated career prosecutor, has also served as an Assistant Prosecutor with the Hudson County Prosecutor’s Office, where she gained experience in the Appellate, Juvenile, Homicide, and Special Victims Units.

Her expertise in human trafficking cases has earned her commendations for both investigations and successful prosecutions. Additionally, she has served as the legal advisor to the New Jersey Sex Crimes Officers’ Association.

Laura currently serves on two New Jersey Supreme Court Committees: The Criminal Practice Committee and The Jury Selection in Civil and Criminal Trials Committee. These appointments reflect her dedication to advancing New Jersey’s criminal justice system

Melissa Cramer has been the emergency department nurse manager at St. Joseph’s Health Wayne since 2021. Prior to serving in the role, highlights of her 16 year career in the emergency department include serving as a bedside and charge nurse. Her specialties include trauma and psychiatric emergencies. She earned her BSN from Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey and is currently enrolled in the PMHNP program at Chamberlain University.

Teaching experience includes Trauma Nurse Core Curriculum and Stress First Aid. She is a proud member of the nursing team that created and implemented St. Joseph’s Health’s anti-trafficking program. Melissa continues to focus her practice on caring for the most vulnerable and underserved members of the community.

Nicole Fusco MSN, RN, CEN, FN-CSA, SANE A, SANE P is a Registered Nurse with over twenty years of Nursing experience in Emergency Nursing and over nine years of consecutive experience as a Forensic Nurse Examiner. Nicole began her career as a forensic nurse for Passaic County while working as the Assistant nurse manager of the Emergency Department in Chilton Medical Center in Pompton Plains, NJ. As her love for forensic nursing grew, she then moved to a full-time position in 2020 where she is now the Forensic Nurse Examiner, Sexual Assault Response Team (SART), and BREATHE coordinator for the Middlesex County Prosecutor’s Office. She has been a member of the International Association of Forensic Nurses since 2015. Nicole has served on the Northern Chapter Emergency Nurses Association board in several different roles and currently is serving as the President of the IAFN New Jersey chapter. Under the leadership of Nicole Fusco in 2021 Sexual Assault services were expanded to three new hospital sites allowing increased access to services for victims in Middlesex County. In 2022, again under the leadership of Nicole Fusco, the Middlesex County Prosecutors Office and the Forensic Nursing team expanded their services to serve the victims of non-fatal strangulation throughout their county. Nicole is also involved in the education of the statewide expansion of non-fatal strangulation services throughout New Jersey. Nicole is currently teaching the forensic nursing program at Rutgers University.

Kaitlyn Zedalis is the Associate Director of Research, Learning, & Advocacy for the Covenant House Action and Research Tank (CHART) at Covenant House New Jersey. Kaitlyn oversees agency initiatives related to program evaluation, strategic planning, research, and advocacy. Kaitlyn is a consultant for the National Human Trafficking Training & Technical Assistance Center and assists organizations across North America on the topics of human trafficking screening and assessment, trauma informed care, and best practices for serving survivors of human trafficking. She has co-authored published research on labor trafficking by forced criminality and the intersection of youth homelessness, disabilities, and human trafficking.

Kaitlyn has a Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology and a Master’s degree in Social Work from Stockton University, where she currently serves as an adjunct professor. She is a Licensed Social Worker and Licensed Clinical Alcohol and Drug Counselor in the State of NJ.

Ingrid Johnson, RN, MSN is the mother of a survivor of Human Trafficking. She is the manager of Patient Access at Overlook Medical Center, a member of Atlantic Health System. There she is the co-chair for the Atlantic Health System Human Trafficking Committee. Ingrid serves as a member of the New Jersey Coalition Against Human Trafficking and its Healthcare and Speakers Bureau Committees, Human Trafficking Advisory Council led by the American Hospital Association, and as a Commissioner on the New Jersey Commission on Human Trafficking. She serves nationally as an advocate for victims of Human Trafficking as well as other vulnerable populations.

Ingrid earned her BSN and MSN from Seton Hall University. She is a member of the Sigma Theta Tau Honor Society – Gamma Nu Chapter and the Golden Key National Honor Society. In addition, Ingrid has received many accolades for her work in the community and around the nation and is passionate about advocating for others. She was honored by the Jefferson Awards and received the Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis Award for Outstanding Public Service Benefiting Local Communities. In 2020, Ingrid was selected as the Atlantic Health System recipient of the Great Place to Work For All Leadership Award.

Gina Cavallo is a leader, speaker and consultant in the anti-trafficking movement and a passionate advocate for victims and survivors of human trafficking. She is the founder and executive director of the survivor-led nonprofit organization, We RISE USA, and currently serves as Survivor Consultant & Board Vice-President for the NJ Coalition Against Human Trafficking (NJCAHT), Co-Chair on the Anti-Trafficking Task Force of the NJ Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics (NJAAP), and is an appointed member of the New Jersey Commission on Human Trafficking.

Lyndsay Ruotolo is the First Assistant Attorney General. Ruotolo previously served as Director of the Division of Criminal Justice from July 2021 until May 2022. Prior to her appointment as Director of DCJ, Ruotolo served as Acting Union County Prosecutor, where she launched the “Intelligence-Driven Prosecution Unit” to combat violent crime. She also previously served as an Assistant U.S. Attorney in the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Jersey, where she worked in the area of violent crime prosecution, and before that as a line Assistant Prosecutor in Union County. Ruotolo has also worked in the area of commercial litigation at the law firm of McElroy, Deutsch, Mulvaney & Carpenter and clerked for the Honorable Ellen L. Koblitz as the Presiding Judge of General Equity (Bergen County), and then as Judge of the Superior Court of New Jersey, Appellate Division. Ruotolo received her B.F.A. from the Tisch School for the Arts at New York University, and her J.D. from New York Law School.

Joselo Machuca: Detective II Joselo Machuca is a proud veteran of the United States Air Force, where he served as a Security Forces member in combat zones for six years with deployments to Iraq, Korea, and Kuwait. During his service, Detective Machuca’s heroic actions in combat earned him prestigious honors such as the Air Force Good Conduct Medal, Air Force Combat Action Medal, and Army Commendation Medal. Detective Machuca earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Finance with a concentration in Supply Management from Rutgers University, and an MB in Finance from William Paterson University.

Detective Machuca is a graduate of the New Jersey State Police Academy and is currently a task force officer with the FBI Newark Violent Crimes Task Force in addition to his assignments to the New Jersey State Police Special Investigations Section, High Tech Crimes Bureau, and Human Trafficking Unit. Detective Machuca specializes in investigating complex crimes including but not limited to human trafficking, sexual assault, promoting prostitution of minors, and related offenses.

In March 2024, the New Jersey State Police received a referral regarding a juvenile victim of human trafficking who was being subjected to repeated physical abuse and coerced into commercial sex acts. Throughout the investigation, utilizing the victim-centered approach, Detective Machuca was able to build enough trust with the victim that it enabled them to reveal details about the trafficking operation. Using the details provided by the victim and engaging with other State and Federal agencies, Detective Machuca was able to collect enough evidence to bring charges against the trafficker, a “John”, and a co-conspirator, effectively dismantling the entire operation.

Detective Machuca’s ability to navigate the complexities of digital forensics, coordinate with interagency partners, and effectively prosecute these cases underscores his outstanding professionalism and unwavering commitment to eradicating human trafficking and making New Jersey safer for everyone. This investigation not only resulted in the rescue and support of multiple victims but also disrupted a dangerous trafficking network, sending a clear message of justice to perpetrators.

Brianna Keys is the Director of Human Rights and Sustainability for the FIFA World Cup 26™ New York New Jersey Host Committee. She was previously Senior Policy Advisor to Governor Phil Murphy, covering issues related to Children and Families, Agriculture, and State. She led work on the Governor’s agenda across a diverse set of policy areas including youth mental health, childcare, child welfare, food security, agricultural sustainability, civic engagement, and elections.

Prior to her time in the Governor’s Office, Brianna was a researcher focusing on broadening participation in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) Education across the lifespan and broadening women’s engagement in politics.

Brianna holds a Master of Public Policy with a concentration in social and gender policy from Rutgers University. She was a graduate fellow at the Eagleton Institute of Politics.

NJ’s Annual Human Trafficking & Awareness Event

NJ’s Annual Human Trafficking

Prevention & Awareness Event

January 16, 2025

9:30 AM – 1:00 PM

AGENDA

Click names for bios (if available)

NJ’s Annual Human Trafficking

Prevention & Awareness Event

January 16, 2025

9:30 AM – 1:00 PM

AGENDA

Click names for bios (if available)

STATE OF NEW JERSEY | DEPARTMENT OF LAW & PUBLIC SAFETY

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