Urge the Senate to Help Solve Missing Person Cases

Across the United States, it's estimated there are over 40,000 remains currently languishing without identification in coroner or medical examiner's offices. And if they're not identified, they won't stay there for long: Space is limited, so some of these John and Jane Doe's end up buried or cremated without ever being recognized.

Until recently, the only way for families and friends of missing persons to potentially claim a body was for them to call each and every office across the country. Now, though, as we've written here, a free federal database exists to help them. The problem? The database is only being used by an estimated 6.5% of law enforcement agencies -- a shockingly low number, given the successes it's had so far in helping solve cases.

There's a solution, though: Billy's Law, a bill pending in the Senate that could make it more feasible for law enforcement agencies to invest resources into the system -- and easier for friends and family to get some closure. Created in 2005 and launched in July 2009, the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs) gives local, state and federal law enforcement the ability to coordinate their information on missing or unidentified persons cases. Since it launched last year, NamUs has resolved 16 cases. Given the dismal rates of law enforcement participation, it's certain this number -- already impressive -- could be even higher. Show the Senate that you support helping law enforcement use the NamUs database by signing the petition below.

In 2007 the Bureau of Justice Statistics estimated that 4,400 unidentified remains are discovered each year. After one year, 1,000 of these will still go unidentified -- a tragedy that's multi-fold. For families unable to locate missing loved ones, emotional scars remain open. For law enforcement, cases likewise remain open -- funneling money and resources into missing person cases when they may have already been located (if not recognized) in other jurisdictions.

Case-in-point: Paula Beverly Davis. Davis was reported missing in 1987 at age 17, when she disappeared from her home in Kansas City. She left behind a young son and a family wracked with questions and grief. Although Davis' body was found only two days after her disappearance -- in Ohio -- her family would not get closure until she was identified in October 2009, thanks to NamUs. Using her sister's description, Stephanie Clack managed to find details about her sister in NamUs, entered by Ohio law enforcement who'd located Davis's body over 20 years earlier.

So what's keeping the other 93% of law enforcement agencies from using NamUs? Quite simply, not all law enforcement knows about the tool. And many of those who do can't bring themselves to allocate the resources to it during this period of budget constraints. But though inputting information into the system requires time, the more details that are included, the greater the chances that a case will be resolved.

Billy's Law (named for missing Billy Smolinksi) would provide $10 million in grant money targeted at law enforcement agency training on NamUs and supporting the man hours required to input unidentified decedents. Also, the bill would deliver $2.4 million per year to ensure the maintenance of the database in years to come.

Every year over 100,000 adults are reported missing. Traditionally, missing children have had a higher recovery rate simply because of their age, media attention and the fact that reporting is nationally mandated for those under the age of 18. Yet the same requirements don't exist for missing adults, meaning that many remain missing, while those recovered deceased often go identified. Billy's Law offers a crucial resource for both law enforcement and the families of missing people -- a way to take advantage of one of the best systems we've already built. Do your part and show the Senate your support for Billy's Law today.

Photo Credit: Pavel Tcholakov