HARRISBURG, Pa. (WHTM) -- Justice Maddox walks the streets of Central Pennsylvania trying to reach at-risk youth. Maddox herself is a survivor of domestic violence and sexual abuse, and she is also the founder and CEO of Justice House of Hope.
"They call me the Nightwalker because I'm out at 11, 12, 1 o'clock at night," Maddox said. "I've been there, and I understand, and I want to help and give them hope."
She started her nonprofit Justice House of Hope to make sure victims of human trafficking have the resources they need.
"We don't push or force them, but we just give them the information, let them know that we're here," Maddox said.
Maddox helps people like 28-year-old Anastasia, identified in this story only by her first name to protect her privacy. Anastasia aged out of foster care at 18 with nothing.
"I had no phone, I had no money, I didn't even have citizenship," Anastasia said.
"I met my trafficker at a Wawa," she said, and at first he helped her, giving her shelter, food, and money. But then he said she owed him, and that's when it started.
"By the time it got scary and by the time it got violent, I was already trapped, I was too deep in," Anastasia said.
For six months, Anastasia was trafficked. One particularly violent night, her trafficker threw her into a coffee table. "I had blood all over my forehead," she said.
Anastasia finally ran, breaking her phone and deleting social media, trying to disappear. It took years, but she got back on her feet. But she did it alone.
She says a program like Justice House of Hope would have provided her with some needed support.
"It would have given me a light at the end of the tunnel. I didn't see a light for a long time," Anastasia said.
Now she helps Maddox, giving victims a place to go. Right now Maddox helps place victims in foster care, but she says her goal is to have her own safe house, giving kids a "safe haven that they would need."
Maddox says her mission also includes raising awareness. Both she and Anastasia say they want people to be alert for signs of trafficking because knowing the signs can help save lives.
Learn more about Justice House of Hope and signs of trafficking here.
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