Community Policing Week Town Hall: What To Do When Kids Go Missing

Tuesday evening I attended the What To Do When Kids Go Missing town hall for Adam McFadden’s Community Policing Week and the information that was provided was eye opening. 

Often times we receive phone calls from frustrated parents who are looking for their kids that have went missing but feel like the Rochester Police Department isn’t trying to find their child.

The frustration from loved ones of those missing is understandable however, educating yourself before a crisis like this happens can help you tremendously.

So what I learned Tuesday evening is as soon as you discover a person is missing or has run away call 911 immediately. DO NOT WAIT!

Deputy Chief Wayne Harris explained do not wait to call 911 when a a child goes missing like in the movies 24-72 hours that is just not true. Call 911 right away!

Did you know that over 90% of the missing persons reported in Rochester are runaways?  In 2015 there were about 18,000 runaways reported in Rochester and in 2016 roughly 17,000.

In 2015 there were no stranger abductions in Rochester, NY which is great.

Most runaways are between the ages of 13-15 and that is typically the age of children forced into sex trafficking.

Let’s talk a little bit about Amber Alerts which is a sensitive topic because we often feel that children who are African-American do not receive that alert when they go missing.

When a child (age18 and under) goes missing and is believed to be injured, in a harmful situation including death, or is a danger to themselves or others, mentally and/or physically challenged, or has mental health concerns that is the ONLY time an Amber Alert is issued. Those are examples of “extenuating situations”.

Amber Alerts are not issued to adults (age 18 and over) or runaways in non-extenuating situations.

Education and awareness is imperative when it comes to missing persons.

One last thing when you report a child that has runaway it is extremely important for the family and friends of the missing person to work with police.

When you call 911 be prepared to give them all the information they need – EVERYTHING! Do not keep out the fact that your child might be mixed up with the wrong people or they do drugs – your child won’t get in trouble police need the information to find them.

Remember the more the police know the faster they will bring your child home.