Who ever said you have to wait 24 hours to report a missing person?

 

     If you've watched any TV detective shows or movies where a missing person was part of the plot, you've no doubt heard the police say you have to wait 24 or 48 hours to report a missing person.   Have you ever considered what might be lost in that time period?  How far can someone travel within the time it takes to actually become missing, and being noticed as missing, then waiting the allegedly required time frame to make the report.  That's a big distance and, potentially, a huge loss of evidence.  Well, the good news is that in the United States, you don't have to wait 24 seconds let alone 24 hours.  

    So, who can actually report someone missing?  Does it have to be a next of kin?  Well, in the vast majority of US jurisdictions, (it could vary), anyone can report anyone as missing whenever the circumstances warrant the report.  In California, where I worked for 32 years, you can report a missing person to ANY law enforcement agency regardless of the person's last known whereabouts.  To elaborate, if you live in Sacramento and you learn your San Diego friend is missing, you can report it to Sacramento Police.  Now, it would be better to call the San Diego Police Department and make the report over the phone if you have reason to believe the reported missing person was missing from their city, since any other Law Enforcement Agency taking the report is going to forward it to them anyway.  

    What happens when you report a juvenile as a missing person?  The response these types of reports are going to vary depending on the age and vulnerability of the missing child.  Is is a three year old or a 16 year old suspected voluntary runaway?  Every report and situation is different but in a nutshell, if it's a young child or critically dependent reported as missing, you're probably going to get a robust response depending on the resources available within your particular jurisdiction.  The police will respond and figure out the circumstances surrounding the missing child and act accordingly.  Assuming it's the parent or caretaker doing the reporting, the police are going to search your home; inside and out, looking for that child.  There have been several cases of missing children found either hiding or in distress within their own home, unbeknownst to the caretakers.  Responding officers are going to check the surrounding areas for witnesses, evidence, video, and pay a visit to any registered sex offenders living nearby.  Officers are going to be going door to door looking for evidence.  Depending on circumstances and environment, an airship may be brought in to conduct an arial survey along with Officers on horseback, off-road volunteers, dive teams, or bloodhounds may also be used.  an Amber alert may be issued along with other news and social media outlets.    If the missing child investigation is not resolved quickly, Law Enforcement may contact the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) who also have many resources available including investigative, technological, and good old fashioned man on the ground teams such as "Team Adam" which is comprised of retired law enforcement officers who will respond to assist law enforcement.  Investigators are going to be asking many uncomfortable and personal questions of those responsible for the care of the missing child, including asking for samples of DNA, photos, videos, and medical and dental records.  It's been said the police always suspect the family first; and with good reason, it is a likely starting point since those responsible for the missing child are usually the last person(s) to have had contact with the child.  

    When the missing person is presumed to be a runaway teen, Law Enforcement will respond, take a report and follow-up on any leads such as through social media, friends, computer or cell phone evidence, or the thoughts of parents, teachers, school resource officers, friends and relatives.  In the case of voluntary missing teens, the majority of them return on their own volition but there are cases where the child may become a victim of human trafficking or abduction.  In each case, a timely response and collection of evidence and information is paramount to a successful recovery of a missing child.  Access to the missing's personal computer, cell phones, emails, text messages, encrypted texting apps, and social media is vitally important.

    Every year there are about 600,000 people reported missing in the US with 89-92% of those being recovered according to the US National Missing and Unidentified Persons System.  California leads the way with the most reported missing persons followed by Florida, Texas, and Arizona.  When an adult is reported missing, the circumstances are going to dictate the response.  If the person appears to be a voluntary missing adult, where there is no evidence of a crime, the law enforcement agency is required to take the report and enter any known information (Vehicle plate, description) into a national database.  I have personally located such persons who were in no distress but had left their family for personal reasons and refused to have contact with them.  In those cases where the person is in good health, mentally sound, able to care for themselves and not in danger, there is nothing more to be done except take the missing person report out of the system, advise the reporting LE agency, and ask the person to contact their loved ones.  

    Sadly, according to the World Population Review, there are approximately 4400 unidentified bodies recovered every year in the US.  Some of these include migrants who died entering the US, but others are not identified for differing reasons.  To that end, it is important for those reporting someone as a missing person, to submit DNA, fingerprints, photos and dental records whenever possible.  

    If you or someone you know is dealing with a missing person, do what you can to stay in touch with the law enforcement detective responsible for the investigation.  If the missing person is a child and NCMEC has not been contacted, suggest your Investigator contact NCMEC at 1-800-the-lost, or www.missingkids.org.  Anyone can and should look at their website to familiarize themselves with the resources and tools available.  If the trail to your missing person has gone stale, consider hiring a private investigator.  Many are retired law enforcement detectives and some may even work pro bono or at a reduced rate.