Nationwide support services for families and professionals in the prevention, investigation, and prosecution of abducted, endangered, and sexually

Transcription

1 Nationwide support services for families and professionals in the prevention, investigation, and prosecution of abducted, endangered, and sexually exploited children

2 As the nation s resource center for child protection, the spearheads national efforts to help locate and recover missing children and raises public awareness about ways to help prevent child abduction, endangerment, and sexual exploitation. A private, nonprofit organization established in 1984, the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC) operates under a Congressional authorization, per 42 U.S.C and other federal legislation, and works in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Justice s (DOJ) Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) in coordinating the efforts of law enforcement, social-service agencies, elected officials, judges, prosecutors, educators, and the public and private sectors to find missing children, eliminate child sexual exploitation, and prevent child victimization. NCMEC is a national voice, mobilizer, and advocate for those too young to vote or speak up for their own rights our children. NCMEC is working to make children s childhoods safer. From its creation in 1984 through June 2010 NCMEC has played a role in the recovery of more than 154,500 children, assisted law enforcement with more than 168,700 missing-child cases, received more than 2.5 million telephone calls through the nationwide, toll-free Hotline To obtain the most up-to-date information about child safety *** obtain publications to assist families, attorneys, healthcare and law-enforcement professionals, and the public *** view pictures of missing children *** learn more about available resources, THE-LOST ( ), and received more than 915,600 reports on the CyberTipline at NCMEC has circulated millions of photographs of missing children, has a current missing-child recovery rate of 97.5%, and has trained more than 275,800 professionals nationwide and in other countries. NCMEC accomplishes this through the many services offered. visit NCMEC s award-winning website at 2

3 AMBER Alert AssisTANCE NCMEC has been assigned the task of managing the America s Missing: Broadcast Emergency Response (AMBER) Alert Secondary Distribution System, under the direction of DOJ, the agency that coordinates the AMBER Alert Program on a national level. This system was designed to enhance the alerting capabilities of AMBER Alert activations for local and state/territorial AMBER Alert Programs. This allows law enforcement the ability to use many additional outlets to alert the public by first notifying NCMEC. NCMEC then redistributes the Alert to all approved Secondary Distributors, thus allowing law enforcement more time to concentrate on investigating the abducted-child case. Secondary distributors include authorized wireless carriers, Internet-content providers, and major retailers. These distributors must enter into an agreement and have the capability to distribute AMBER Alert messages to a geographically targeted audience defined by the AMBER Alert activating law-enforcement agencies. NCMEC also assists DOJ by maintaining and providing statistical data regarding all AMBER Alerts. To view those reports visit and from the home page respectively click on the AMBER Alert and Resources links. CALL Center Calls for Service Regarding Missing and Sexually Exploited Children NCMEC s Call Center receives toll-free calls from many countries throughout the world via a 24-hour, toll-free Hotline at THE-LOST ( ); receives lead/sighting information from the public via the toll-free Hotline and voice-over calls received through NCMEC s website; provides assistance to professionals and families in the search for missing children and effort to assist sexually exploited children; receives requests from families with travel-reunification needs; assists hearing-impaired callers and coordinates access to communicate with callers in 180 different languages; provides direct, after-hours assistance to law enforcement; and provides safety information to help prevent the abduction and sexual exploitation of children. The NCMEC Call Center also manages the Child Pornography Tipline on behalf of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), the U.S. Postal Inspection Service (USPIS), the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and the U.S. Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS). CASE ANALYSIS DIVISION Case Support and Information Analysis The Case Analysis Unit (CAU) provides analytical support to NCMEC Case Managers and law-enforcement officials in their efforts to locate and recover missing children. Because children are reported missing for different reasons, the CAU assists with a wide variety of case types including family abductions; runaways; lost, injured, or otherwise missing; and nonfamily abductions. In addition the CAU supports law enforcement with cold cases and investigations into the victimization of children through prostitution. One of the primary responsibilities of the CAU is to assess new leads regarding these cases and add value to the information by providing the most current and relevant information possible to law enforcement. Analysts utilize the NCMEC database and external, public-data sources, including the Internet, in order to analyze leads and complete technical-assistance reports. Attempted Abduction and Sex Offender Tracking NCMEC s Special Analysis Unit (SAU) is comprised of Sex Offender Tracking, Attempted Abductions, and Research analyst teams. The main duty of NCMEC s Sex Offender Tracking Team (SOTT) is to serve as the information clearinghouse for any law-enforcement agency regarding noncompliant, absconded sex-offender issues. SOTT will conduct searches to assist law-enforcement agencies and state/territorial registries in their investigations of noncompliant sex offenders and provide them with technical-assistance reports to assist in 3

4 the location and apprehension of these fugitives. SOTT Analysts will search for potential links to other open and unsolved cases of missing and sexually exploited children across broad time and geographic parameters and provide any possible matches to law enforcement. SOTT Analysts also actively work with the U.S Marshals Service (USMS). The SAU s Attempted Abduction Analysts verify attempted abductions reported in the media and to NCMEC, analyze the data received for trends and patterns among the incidents, and prepare and disseminate special bulletins when necessary to alert NCMEC staff members and law enforcement of any emerging abduction patterns. The Attempted Abductions team compiles a weekly summary, which is made available to law-enforcement agencies nationwide, in hopes of generating leads and identifying similarities among cases. Research Analysts collect and analyze data about child abduction and sexual exploitation to develop a broader body of knowledge about specific cases and national trends. Quantitative and qualitative reports are produced for use by internal staff members and law enforcement. These reports also assist in the development of data-driven, prevention strategies. EXPLOITED CHILDREN DIVISION Identification of Child Victims NCMEC s Child Victim Identification Program (CVIP) serves as the clearinghouse in the United States for child-pornography cases and main point of contact to international agencies for victim identification. Established in 2002, CVIP serves two main functions. First CVIP assists prosecutors in cases involving the possession, production, and distribution of child-pornography images using NCMEC s Child Recognition and Identification System (CRIS). CRIS, created by and developed at NCMEC, assists CVIP staff members by sorting and organizing images of identified child victims. After an analytical review and confirmation of the CRIS process, a report is generated allowing the submitting prosecutor or law-enforcement officer to gather additional information about the images. Second the CVIP Analysts attempt to identify unknown child victims featured in pornographic images using Image Analysis. Image Analysis is the process of documenting clues within the images that may reveal the location of the child victim(s) and/or information about where the crime was committed. Once a possible location is identified, law enforcement is contacted and a localized search of the child victim/suspect is launched. Online Reporting of Child Sexual Exploitation The CyberTipline, at allows concerned individuals and Electronic Service Providers to report information regarding the possession, manufacture, and distribution of child pornography; online enticement of children for sexual acts; child victims of prostitution; sex tourism involving child victims; extrafamilial molestation of children; unsolicited obscene material sent to children; misleading domain names; and misleading words or digital images on the Internet. CyberTipline Analysts process CyberTipline reports; disseminate leads; and provide technical assistance to federal, state/territorial, local, and international law-enforcement agencies investigating cases involving the sexual exploitation of children. The CyberTipline also maintains a contact list for many major Electronic Service Providers in the United States. Sexual Exploitation Prevention NCMEC s Exploited Children Division (ECD) serves as a resource center for the public, families, law enforcement, and others regarding 4

5 issues of sexual exploitation of children. ECD Analysts maintain expert knowledge about emerging technologies. Because of this knowledge, ECD Analysts also fulfill the role of Internet-safety experts within the NetSmartz411 program a premier helpdesk and hotline for answering questions about Internet safety, technology, and the Web. Concerned adults are welcome to use NetSmartz411 to better understand the opportunities and challenges children may face when online. Visit and click on the Ask an Expert tab or contact NETS411 ( ) to ask a question. FAMILY ADVOCACY DIVISION NCMEC s Family Advocacy Division (FAD) provides case-specific intervention designed to enhance service delivery to the families served by NCMEC. Staffed by master-level trained, child-welfare professionals FAD proactively works with families, law enforcement, social-service agencies, other family-advocacy agencies, and legal professionals to provide technical assistance regarding reunification practices for missing children, referrals, support, and crisis-intervention services. In addition FAD coordinates the Office for Victims of Crime grant-funded Victim Reunification Travel program assisting in the return of children to the United States who are victims of international abduction and triages cases of extrafamilial child exploitation and provides referrals, support, and case follow-up. FAD also coordinates the Family Advocacy Outreach Network, a proactive initiative designed to partner with licensed treatment professionals throughout the United States who are able to provide brief, therapeutic intervention or long-term support; manages Team HOPE, a peer-support program for families of missing and sexually exploited children; and manages the CyberTipline SAFEGUARD project, a multifocused program designed to provide job-specific training and consultation to staff members of NCMEC s ECD. MISSING CHILDREN DIVISION Assistance in National and International Missing-Children Cases Staff members within the Missing Children Division (MCD) work with families of missing and abducted children, the investigating law-enforcement agencies, FBI, and USMS to provide technical assistance and all available search resources. MCD also works with the U.S. Department of State s Diplomatic Security Service (DSS) on cases regarding international abductions. Staff members also maintain up-to-date case information and regular contact with families and investigative agencies. Many services are provided including Forensic Services - NCMEC provides support and resources to the cold cases of long-term missing children and cases of unidentified human remains to victims believed to be children or young adults through the Forensic Services Unit. This Unit also provides strategies for and assistance to law enforcement and medical examiners/coroners in cases of child homicides and identification. - Through this Unit NCMEC also provides computerized age progression of the photographs of longterm missing children, reconstruction of facial images from morgue photographs of unidentified deceased juveniles so posters may be made to assist in the child s identification, technology assistance in creating artist composites, assistance in identifying children whose images are found in confiscated pornography, and training in imaging applications and techniques. The Unit participates in the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs), a national database for the public, law enforcement, and medical examiners/coroners, and the Combined DNA Index System (CODIS) for law enforcement. These are databases with many functions to help with investigations and the identification of recovered children. 5

6 On-Site Assistance to Law-Enforcement Agencies - Team Adam sends investigative Consultants to the site of serious child abductions, missing-child incidents, and sexual-exploitation cases. Members of Team Adam are retired law-enforcement professionals selected for their career experience and specialized knowledge in the fields of child abduction and sexual exploitation. These rapid-response Consultants work in full cooperation with federal, state/territorial, and local law enforcement, providing investigative, search, analytical, and technical support, as well as equipment and other resources. They also assist victim families by connecting them with a network of support and assisting them with media inquiries as appropriate. Team Adam assistance is free-of-charge to law enforcement. - Project ALERT (America s Law Enforcement Retiree Team) is a corps of approximately 175 retired law-enforcement professionals who donate their time and expertise to the law-enforcement community. Project ALERT Representatives participate in a variety of ways with cases and specialize in long-term, missing-children cases. They perform a wide range of functions including the review, organization, and analysis of cases. They provide recommendations about investigative strategies and technical resources; assistance with case interviews; training to law enforcement; and awareness initiatives to communities. This free resource is available to requesting agencies in need of seasoned investigators, critical resources, and additional personnel to resolve missing-child cases. Photo Distribution Through a network of more than 300 active private-sector partners, millions of photographs of missing children have been disseminated. NCMEC maintains an up-to-date database of missing-children posters online; coordinates national media exposure of missing-children cases through its partnership with major television networks, leading nationwide publications, and major corporations; and coordinates features such as broadcast fax and targeted poster distribution to quickly disseminate vital information regarding missing and abducted children to key locations throughout the nation. PROMOTION OF COMMUNITY AWARENESS Child-Safety Education and Outreach NCMEC/Florida is the central point for NCMEC education about child identification and safety. To learn more about child identification, safety programs, and publications to assist with educational and community-outreach needs contact or flbranch@ncmec.org. NetSmartz Workshop NetSmartz is an educational resource for children of all ages, parents, guardians, teachers, and law enforcement, which uses animation, real-life stories, music, and games to teach children how to be safer while online and in the real world. NetSmartz engages children while empowering them to make smarter choices about their personal safety. This resource may be accessed at Technical Assistance to Prosecutors and Other professionals in the Legal Community Legal and technical issues related to child sexual exploitation are dynamic and often challenging to law-enforcement officials and other professionals. NCMEC provides technical assistance to prosecutors, law-enforcement officers, and civil attorneys in the investigation and prosecution of cases involving child pornography and child sexual exploitation at the state and national level including provision of 6

7 Assistance to prosecutors, civil attorneys, and law-enforcement officers regarding specific cases Information regarding case and statutory law Affidavits, sentencing letters, and other trial-related materials Amicus curiae briefs for the Supreme Court of the United States and other courts nationwide for select cases relating to NCMEC s mission and Congressional authorization Assistance with analysis of NCMEC s CyberTipline, CVIP, and other reports generated by ECD Articles, manuals, and other research materials about relevant legal issues Assistance with presentations to schools, town meetings, and other public forums regarding the investigation, prosecution, and prevention of child pornography and sexual exploitation TRAINING Training of Law-Enforcement, 911 Call Center, Criminal/Juvenile-Justice, Healthcare, and Other Professionals NCMEC provides training in all aspects of cases involving missing and sexually exploited children. NCMEC s courses are conducted at regional sites; the Jimmy Ryce Law Enforcement Training Center in Alexandria, Virginia; and the Polisseni Law Enforcement Training Center in Rochester, New York. Infant-Abduction Prevention NCMEC provides technical assistance and training to nursing associations, hospital-security associations, and law-enforcement agencies and also conducts on-site assessments of healthcare facilities regarding the prevention of newborn and infant abductions and the investigation of such cases. This project was supported by Grant No MC-CX-K001 awarded by the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, Office of Justice Programs, U.S. Department of Justice. Points of view or opinions in this document are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. Child Pornography Tipline, Child Victim Identification Program, CyberTipline, National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, NetSmartz, NetSmartz411, THE-LOST, Project ALERT, and Sex Offender Tracking Team are registered service marks of the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children. Copyright 2001, 2007, 2009, and 2010 National Center for Missing & Exploited Children. All rights reserved. NCMEC Order #87. To learn more about the existence and nature of other programs being carried out by federal agencies to assist missing and sexually exploited children and their families visit or call to obtain Federal Resources on Missing and Exploited Children (NCJ ). 7