Abraham Lincoln famously observed that “a house divided against itself cannot stand.” Well, neither can a house without walls.

The help that Gov. Jan Brewer promised victims of human trafficking in her State of the State address became law Tuesday, increasing penalties and establishing being a victim of sex trafficking as a defense in child prostitution cases.

An anti-human trafficking bill championed by the wife of U.S. Sen. John McCain will now go to Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer, also a vocal supporter of the bill.

WASHINGTON – For those who think slavery exists only in history books, Tucson resident Beth Jacobs has a message. “Trafficking does not discriminate. It will find you at home, at church, or on the Internet,” said Jacobs, who said she was forced into prostitution as a teenager. “It can find you anywhere.”

WASHINGTON – Visas to enter the U.S. are typically a hot commodity: The government stopped taking applications for its 2014 allotment of 65,000 H-1B work visas after just four days, for example.

But not the T-visa.

The governor’s Task Force on Human Trafficking wants lawmakers to enact tougher penalties on pimps who sell underage prostitutes and customers who pay them, while easing punishments against child prostitutes and treating them more as victims under the law.

Tough-talking Arizona Sheriff Joe Arpaio is warning civilians who embark on armed patrols in remote desert terrain that they could end up with "30 rounds fired into" them by one of his deputies.

The Governor’s Task Force on Human Trafficking took its first steps Wednesday in trying to clean up Arizona’s illicit sex trade in time for the 2015 Super Bowl to be played in Glendale.

Arizona should have a zero tolerance policy for men who engage in sexual intercourse with underage prostitutes, a former congresswoman said Tuesday. Linda Smith, founder of the advocacy group Shared Hope International, presented the state with a grade of C for its efforts to protect children from sex trafficking.

Perhaps law enforcement's biggest roadblock in combating human trafficking in Arizona and elsewhere is a conspicuous absence of victims, a group of officials and advocates said Feb. 1.