Appeal scheduled in human trafficking case
Mar. 17—A Hunt County man is appealing his conviction and life sentence in a human trafficking case involving four children.
Jeffery Barrett was found guilty in February 2022 on a charge of continuous trafficking of a child. A sentencing hearing was conducted immediately after the verdict and the jury returned a sentence of life in prison.
Barrett will have to spend a minimum of 30 years in the Texas Department of Criminal Justice-Institutional Division before he can be considered eligible for parole.
The Fifth Court of Appeals in Dallas is scheduled to hear oral arguments in the case on April 4. The court's decision will be released at a later date.
Barrett's wife, Barbara Barrett of Greenville, was found guilty in September 2021 of the same charge and received a sentence of 99 years in prison. Barbara Barrett's appeal before the Fifth Court was held in October 2022. A decision regarding the appeal has not yet been announced.
The Barretts stood accused of abusing and neglecting their adopted children while forcing them to work in a puppy mill attached to their home.
The Texas Attorney General's Office of Human Trafficking and Transnational Organized Crime Division assisted the Hunt County District Attorney in the prosecution.
