HOW TO PREVENT ABDUCTIONS
- Teach your child his or her Full Name, Address (including City and State) and Telephone Number (including Area Code). Make sure that your child knows how to make an Emergency Call.
- Keep a File with your child’s photographs (taken at least once a year), Fingerprints, DNA, Dental, and Medical records. If your child is under 2, take a picture 4 times a year.
- Teach your child to avoid strangers, especially those who offer them presents or ask to take their pictures.
- Never leave your child alone in a car. Always accompany your child when using a Public Rest Room.
- Tell Your Child to NEVER answer the door when an ADULT is not present or answer the Telephone when there is no adult present.
- Teach your child what to do if he or she becomes separated while shopping. Instruct your child to go to
- the NEAREST checkout counter for HELP and NOT the parking lot.
- Make sure that your child’s school or day care center WILL NOT release your child to anyone without a prior arrangement. Setup a code word that the facility and your child will know, if they are to be picked up by someone other than yourself.
- Give your child permission to say NO to an adult. Emphasize that NO ONE has the right to touch them or ask them to keep a secret from you.
WHAT TO DO IF YOUR CHILD IS MISSING
- If your child is missing from home, search the house checking closets, piles of laundry, in and under beds, inside large appliances, and inside vehicles, including trunks—wherever a child may crawl or hide.
- If you still cannot find your child, immediately call your local law enforcement agency.
- If your child disappears in a store, notify the store manager or security office. Then immediately call your local law-enforcement agency. Many stores have a Code Adam plan of action— if a child is missing in the store, employees immediately mobilize to look for the missing child.
- When you call law enforcement, provide your child’s name, date of birth, height, weight, and any other unique identifiers such as eyeglasses and braces. Tell them when you noticed that your child was missing and what clothing he or she was wearing.
- Request that your child’s name and identifying information be immediately entered into the National Crime Information Center (NCIC) Missing Person File.
- After you have reported your child missing to law enforcement, call the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children on their toll-free telephone number: 1-800-THE-LOST (1-800-843-5678).
- Call FRIENDS and RELATIVES to organize a search party and to put up posters.
