An immigrant worker from Kenya is suing journalist and former Knight Fellow Wanja Njuguna-Githinji for human trafficking, which is defined by the United Nations as the holding of persons against their will.

Born into poverty, Alice B., who asked to remain anonymous, left her daughter and native homeland in Kenya in pursuit of new opportunities. She claims that she arrived in the United States in 2002 with Njuguna-Githinji, who promised sufficient pay to support her famiy back in Kenya.

According to Alice’s attorneys, Nancy Harris and Kathleen Kim, Njunguna-Githinji’s promises were empty.

“Alice came to the U.S. with Njuguna-Githinji in the hope of a better life,” Harris said. “Instead she was mistreated by Njuguna-Githinji, who failed to pay Alice hourly wages that comply with federal minimum-wage standards.”

Kim added, “In addition to hourly wage violations, there is substantial evidence that our client was a victim of false imprisonment, fraud and intentional infliction of emotional distress.”

Although fully aware of her alleged mistreatment, Alice refrained from contacting authorities after she was threatened that she would be deported if she spoke to others about her work, Harris said.

Human Biology Prof. William Abrams, the defendant’s attorney, said that these charges are false and extraneous.

“In my 24 years of practice, I’ve never heard of a person accusing someone of peonage and false imprisonment,” Abrams said. “These accusations are scandalous and outrageous. This case is smearing the good name of a very respected journalist and a human being.”

Njuguna-Githinji attended Stanford for a year after winning a prestigious Knight Fellowship for journalism. During that time, she attended Abrams’ death-penalty course.

“I greatly enjoyed working with her and admired her for her work as a journalist and student,” Abrams said “She was very courageous and outstanding. Next thing I know, she comes to me in 2003 and says that she is being falsely charged for mistreating an employee.”

Abrams, who was an undergraduate at Stanford in the 1970s, began his career in law because it seemed to offer an opportunity to affect change, he said. He took this case pro bono.

“Alice’s attorneys have to provide the facts for these claims. I am certain that these accusations have no merit at all,” Abrams said.

However, attorneys Kim and Harris said they have proof of Alice’s mistreatment.

“We have a substantial amount of evidence that Alice’s story is truthful,” Harris said. “And we will demonstrate before a jury that she was poorly treated and not paid fairly.”

Kim, a member of the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights of the San Francisco Bay area, provides legal assistance to people of color, immigrants and refugees. She currently is currently leading the organization’s Human Trafficking Project, and is working on this case as a co-counsel with Harris, a member of the Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe law firm.

According to U.N. estimates, nearly four million people are trafficked each year and forced into labor. In the United States, this figure reaches over 50,000. To help remedy this problem, several groups around the world and in California, including the U.N.’s Global Programme against Trafficking in Human Beings, work to promote international awareness of the problem, train law enforcement officers and strengthen victim support.