Salt Lake City declines to charge anti-child-trafficking activist with sexual assault | Utah
A Salt Lake City-based district attorney is declining to file charges against the founder of an anti-child trafficking organization made famous by the 2023 movie Voice of Freedom, following sexual assault allegations filed by multiple women.
District attorney Sim Gill issued a statement on Friday saying there was “insufficient admissible evidence” and his office declined to file charges against Tim Ballard in connection with the allegations.
“This does not mean that we disbelieve or disparage a survivor’s account; rather, it means that the law requires evidence strong enough to eliminate any reasonable doubt for a jury,” Gill said in the statement.
In two lawsuits, women accused Ballard of exploiting his position as the founder of Operation Underground Railroad and exploiting their desire to help combat child trafficking.
One case was dismissed while on appeal, while another is still active, the Salt Lake Tribune reported.
“Tim Ballard is innocent, so the fact that there will be no charges makes perfect sense,” said Ballard’s attorney, Mark Eisenhut. “We hope the authorities will strongly consider the charges against false accusers.”
Ballard resigned from Operation Underground Railroad amid allegations of sexual assault.
In October 2023, five Utah residents filed a lawsuit alleging that Tim Ballard sexually assaulted and emotionally abused women recruited to take part in his organization’s efforts to rescue sex trafficking victims.
The case named Ballard; Operation Underground Railroad, which he headed until he resigned in August following similar allegations; and board members are considered defendants.
“Defendant Ballard knowingly, knowingly, or recklessly assaulted and sexually assaulted Plaintiffs because all sexual contact was for the purpose of helping rescue children and women who were victims of human trafficking under the Couples’ Ruse,” the lawsuit states.
The complaint came later Deputy News reported allegations of sexual and business misconduct and was rebuked by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints: accused He accused Ballard of trying to exploit his friendship with a senior church apostle for “personal gain and activities deemed morally unacceptable”.
According to the report, Ballard invited female staff and volunteers to accompany him on overseas missions by playing the role of his wife, then forced them to share his bed or shower together, saying it was necessary to deceive traffickers.
One of the women Vice spoke to said she received photos of Ballard in only his underwear, showing off his fake tattoos. Another woman was reportedly asked “how far she was willing to go” to rescue enslaved children.
Ballard, who investigates child sex trafficking as a special agent for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), was portrayed in Voice of Freedom by actor Jim Caviezel, whose repetition of QAnon theories drew condemnation from the film’s director, Alejandro Monteverde.
Despite being a surprise hit at the summer box office, Voice of Freedom was variously described by critics as “QAnon-adjacent” and “Maga-friendly” and used the “Make America Great Again” slogan favored by Donald Trump’s supporters.
The Associated Press contributed to this report
