On March 18, Jayson Miller was convicted of five felony charges: attempted trafficking in persons, attempted rape of a child, attempted patronizing a victim of sexual servitude, attempted involuntary deviate sexual intercourse, and unlawful contact with a minor. Miller’s conviction followed a 2-day trial wherein the jury was presented with detailed evidence of his attempts to engage in sexual contact with a 10-year-old girl.
As the CSE Institute previously reported, preceding his arrest in February 2025, law enforcement conducted an investigation which revealed that Miller had spoken with a woman regarding his desire to engage in sexual contact with the girl. Law enforcement then organized an undercover operation, and Miller arranged to travel to Pike County and pay $200 to rape the child. He had brought with him a bag of candy, and was arrested upon arrival.
In addition to thanking the Criminal Investigation Division of the Pike County District Attorney’s Office for their dedication to pursuing child sex offenders, District Attorney Ray Tonkin credited the juryfor Miller’s successful prosecution: “Jurors of all walks of life were called to hear the case, and it is credit to them listening carefully to the detailed evidence of the abhorrent behavior of the Defendant that led them to the guilty verdict on all charges.”
Miller’s convictions are the result of a proper charging decision, and a correct application of Pennsylvania’s trafficking law to the facts of this case. Because children can never consent to be bought or sold for sex, in order to prove sex trafficking of a minor, the prosecution must only show that an individual recruited, enticed, solicited, patronized, advertised, harbored, transported, provided, obtained, or maintained a child for the purpose of commercial sex. By traveling to engage in sex acts with a 10-year-old for $200, Miller attempted to patronize a child for the purpose of commercial sex.
The CSE Institute commends the Pike County District Attorney’s Office for utilizing the human trafficking statute to target the demand and prosecute those who buy sex, as well as the jury for their attention to the facts and adherence to the law. We encourage law enforcement to continue investigating sex buyers and utilizing the sex trafficking statute to prosecute defendants like Miller. Appropriately charging sex buyers under this statute reflects the gravity of the offense of patronizing prostitution and holds buyers accountable for their role in perpetuating commercial sexual exploitation. Targeting the demand for paid sex is essential for reducing trafficking as a whole.
Miller is scheduled to be sentenced on June 26, 2026. The CSE Institute will continue to provide updates as they become available.
All views expressed herein are personal to the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Villanova University Charles Widger School of Law or of Villanova University.