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National Hispanic
Caucus Of State
Legislators Supports
A Partnership With
The National Center
For Missing
And Exploited
Children
WHEREAS, There are
nearly 800,000
children reported
missing each year;1
WHEREAS, On average
2,100 children are
reported missing to
law-enforcement
agencies each day;2
WHEREAS, 58,200
children were
victims of non-family
abductions in a one-year
period of time;3
WHEREAS, The
percentage of
minority children
among missing
children appear
slightly higher than
their percentage in
the U.S. population;4
WHEREAS, Researchers
have found that in
40% of these cases,
there are “unknowing
witnesses” with
information that may
be crucial to the
resolution of the
investigation;7
WHEREAS, We are
seeing an increase
in the number of
reported cases of
child sexual
exploitation;8
WHEREAS, This
country’s future is
dependent upon the
growth and
development of
children;
THEREFORE, BE IT
RESOLVED, that the
National Center for
Missing & Exploited
Children and the
National Hispanic
Caucus of State
Legislators agree
that the problems of
missing and
exploited children
are grave concerns
of our organizations
and the nation; and
the consequences of
these actions
against our children
threaten the
foundation of our
country’s existence.
THEREFORE, BE IT
FURTHER RESOLVED,
that the National
Center for Missing
and Exploited
Children and the
National Hispanic
Caucus of State
Legislators do
hereby join in
partnership to
support National and
Local efforts aimed
at educating
families and
communities about
the perils of
missing and
exploited children,
what protective
measures families
should take to keep
their children
safer, and how to
respond and seek
help from law
enforcement agencies
and social services
when needed.
This resolution was
adopted this
November 18, 2006,
at the National
Hispanic Caucus of
State Legislators
Executive Committee
& BBA Annual Meeting
held in San Juan,
Puerto Rico.
Assemblyman Felix W.
Ortiz, NY
NHCSL President
Footnotes:
1According to
Andrea J. Sedlak,
David Finkelhor,
Heather Hammer, and
Dana J. Schultz in
“National Estimates
of Missing Children:
An Overview,”
National Incidence
Studies of Missing,
Abducted, Runaway,
and Thrownaway
Children,
Washington, DC:
Office of Juvenile
Justice and
Delinquency
Prevention, Office
of Justice Programs,
U.S. Department of
Justice, October
2002, page 5,
797,500 children
were reported
missing in 1999
[hereinafter
Sedlak].
2Daily average of
2,184 is derived
from 797,500 reports
made in 12 months of
1999.
3Sedlak, supra note
1, page 10.
4Id., page 8.
5Robert D. Keppel,
Joseph G. Weis, and
Kenneth A. Hanfland.
Case Management for
Missing Children
Homicide
Investigation.
Olympia, Washington:
Office of the
Attorney General,
State of Washington
and U.S. Department
of Justice’s Office
of Juvenile Justice
and Delinquency
Prevention, May
1997, page 23.
6Id., page 13.
7Id., page 29.
8Reports of sexually
exploited children
have increased to
the National Center
for Missing &
Exploited Children’s
CyberTipline from
9,668 reports in its
first full year of
operation in 1999 to
81,939 reports in
2003. These numbers
are summarized from
NCMEC Quarterly
Progress Reports by
John B. Rabun
published in
Alexandria,
Virginia, by the
National Center for
Missing & Exploited
Children
respectively January
13, 1999/page 37,
January 13,
2000/page 36,
January 8, 2003/page
27, and January 14,
2004/page 29. |
