Article: Why did Chanti Die?

An Activist Takes on Berkley Landlord for Alleged Sex-Trafficking

It was a rainy Saturday on January 22, 2000, when I read in the local newspaper that a 62-year-old East Indian man called Lakireddy Bali Reddy -- the richest landlord in Berkeley, California (aside from the University of California) -- had been accused of "bringing at least three young girls from India for sex."

"Sex" in this context means rape, for the two girls were under 18 years of age (the criterion for child status in California). In the United States, sexual intercourse between adults and children or adolescents under the age of consent constitutes statutory rape, which is ...

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