BILL ANALYSIS SENATE COMMITTEE ON PUBLIC SAFETY Senator Mark Leno, Chair A 2009-2010 Regular Session B 3 4 AB 34 (Nava and Cook) As Amended June 10, 2010 Hearing date: June 22, 2010 Penal Code AA:dl MISSING PERSONS: LAW ENFORCEMENT INFORMATION SHARING HISTORY Source: More Kids Prior Legislation: SBx1 12 (Thompson) - Ch. 6, Stats. 1994 SB 2282 (Presley) - Ch. 1456, Stats. 1988 Support: Crime Victims United of California Opposition:None Known Assembly Floor Vote: Not Relevant KEY ISSUES SHOULD THE STATE'S VIOLENT CRIME INFORMATION CENTER (VCIC) BE REQUIRED TO RELEASE INFORMATION REGARDING MISSING OR UNIDENTIFIED PERSONS TO THE NATIONAL MISSING AND UNIDENTIFIED PERSONS SYSTEM? (More) AB 34 (Nava and Cook) PageB SHOULD LOCAL LAW ENFORCEMENT BE REQUIRED TO SUBMIT REPORTS OF MISSING PERSONS UNDER THE AGE OF 21 OR PERSONS BELIEVED TO BE AT RISK TO THE DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE (DOJ) FOR INCLUSION IN THE VCIC AND THE NATIONAL CRIME INFORMATION CENTER (NCIC) DATABASES WITHIN TWO HOURS, INSTEAD OF THE CURRENT FOUR HOURS, AFTER THE RECEIPT OF THE REPORT, AS SPECIFIED? PURPOSE The purpose of this bill is to improve the state's mechanisms for facilitating swift searches for missing persons by requiring 1) the state's VCIC to release information regarding missing or unidentified persons to the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System, and 2 ) local law enforcement to submit reports of missing persons under the age of 21 or persons believed to be at risk to the DOJ for inclusion in the VCIC and the NCIC databases within two hours, instead of the current four hours, after the receipt of the report, as specified. Current law requires the Attorney General to "establish and maintain the VCIC to assist in the identification and the apprehension of persons responsible for specific violent crimes and for the disappearance and exploitation of persons, particularly children and dependent adults. The center shall establish and maintain programs which include, but are not limited to, all of the following: developing violent offender profiles; assisting local law enforcement agencies and county district attorneys by providing investigative information on persons responsible for specific violent crimes and missing person cases; providing physical description information and photographs, if available, of missing persons to county district attorneys, nonprofit missing persons organizations, and schools; and providing statistics on missing dependent adults and on missing children, including, as may be applicable, family abductions, nonfamily abductions, voluntary missing, and lost children or lost dependent adults." (Penal Code 14200.) Current law further requires the Attorney General to establish within the center and maintain "an online, automated computer (More) AB 34 (Nava and Cook) PageC system designed to effect an immediate law enforcement response to reports of missing persons," and requires the Attorney General to make information available to law enforcement agencies regarding active files maintained pursuant to these provisions, as specified. (Penal Code 14201.) This bill would require the center to "release specific information, determined by the DOJ, contained in law enforcement reports regarding missing or unidentified persons to the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System to assist in the search for the missing person or persons." Current law requires local law enforcement to "accept any report, including any telephonic report, of a missing person, including runaways, without delay and shall give priority to the handling of these reports over the handling of reports relating to crimes involving property. In cases where the person making a report of a missing person or runaway, contacts, including by telephone, the California Highway Patrol, the California Highway Patrol may take the report, and shall immediately advise the person making the report of the name and telephone number of the police or sheriff's department having jurisdiction of the residence address of the missing person and of the name and telephone number of the police or sheriff's department having jurisdiction of the place where the person was last seen. In cases of reports involving missing persons, including, but not limited to, runaways, the local police or sheriff' s department shall immediately take the report and make an assessment of reasonable steps to be taken to locate the person. If the missing person is under 16 years of age, or there is evidence that the person is at risk, the department shall broadcast a "Be On the Look-Out" bulletin, without delay, within its jurisdiction." (Penal Code 14205(a).) Current law further provides that if "the person reported missing is under 16 years of age, or if there is evidence that the person is at risk, the local police, sheriff's department, or the California Highway Patrol shall submit the report to the Attorney General's office within four hours after (More) AB 34 (Nava and Cook) PageD accepting the report. After the California Law Enforcement Telecommunications System online missing person registry becomes operational, the reports shall be submitted, within four hours after accepting the report, to the Attorney General's office through the use of the California Telecommunications System." (Penal Code 14205(b).) This bill would revise this subdivision to provide that if the person reported missing is under 21 years of age, or if there is evidence that the person is at risk, the law enforcement agency receiving the report shall, within two hours after the receipt of the report, transmit the report to the DOJ for inclusion in the VCIC and the NCIC databases. RECEIVERSHIP/OVERCROWDING CRISIS AGGRAVATION IMPLICATIONS The severe prison overcrowding problem California has experienced for the last several years has not been solved. In December of 2006 plaintiffs in two federal lawsuits against the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation sought a court-ordered limit on the prison population pursuant to the federal Prison Litigation Reform Act. On January 12, 2010, a federal three-judge panel issued an order requiring the state to reduce its inmate population to 137.5 percent of design capacity -- a reduction of roughly 40,000 inmates -- within two years. In a prior, related 184-page Opinion and Order dated August 4, 2009, that court stated in part: "California's correctional system is in a tailspin," the state's independent oversight agency has reported. . . . (Jan. 2007 Little Hoover Commission Report, "Solving California's Corrections Crisis: Time Is Running Out"). Tough-on-crime politics have increased the population of California's prisons dramatically while making necessary reforms impossible. . . . As a result, the state's prisons have become places "of extreme peril to the safety of persons" they house, . . . (Governor Schwarzenegger's Oct. 4, 2006 Prison Overcrowding State of Emergency Declaration), while (More) AB 34 (Nava and Cook) PageE contributing little to the safety of California's residents, . . . . California "spends more on corrections than most countries in the world," but the state "reaps fewer public safety benefits." . . . . Although California's existing prison system serves neither the public nor the inmates well, the state has for years been unable or unwilling to implement the reforms necessary to reverse its continuing deterioration. (Some citations omitted.) . . . The massive 750% increase in the California prison population since the mid-1970s is the result of political decisions made over three decades, including the shift to inflexible determinate sentencing and the passage of harsh mandatory minimum and three-strikes laws, as well as the state's counterproductive parole system. Unfortunately, as California's prison population has grown, California's political decision-makers have failed to provide the resources and facilities required to meet the additional need for space and for other necessities of prison existence. Likewise, although state-appointed experts have repeatedly provided numerous methods by which the state could safely reduce its prison population, their recommendations have been ignored, underfunded, or postponed indefinitely. The convergence of tough-on-crime policies and an unwillingness to expend the necessary funds to support the population growth has brought California's prisons to the breaking point. The state of emergency declared by Governor Schwarzenegger almost three years ago continues to this day, California's prisons remain severely overcrowded, and inmates in the California prison system continue to languish without constitutionally (More) AB 34 (Nava and Cook) PageF adequate medical and mental health care.<1> The court stayed implementation of its January 12, 2010 ruling pending the state's appeal of the decision to the U.S. Supreme Court. On Monday June 14, 2010, the U.S. Supreme Court agreed to hear the state's appeal in this case. This bill would not aggravate the prison overcrowding crisis described above. COMMENTS 1. Stated Need for This Bill The authors state in part: Every year an estimated 800,000 children are reported missing, more than 105,000 in California alone. This equates to more than 2,000 children each day. A large proportion of those are abducted by non-family members under suspicious or unknown circumstances. A number of high-profile missing children cases within the last decade have brought to light the need to bring California's laws and processes for missing person response and recovery in the 21st century. In 2009 in California, 105,171 children were reported missing, according to the Department of Justice. Of that number: o 47,407 were male; o 57,764 were female; o 100,043 were determined to be runaways; o 268 were reported "lost;" ---------------------- <1> Three Judge Court Opinion and Order, Coleman v. Schwarzenegger, Plata v. Schwarzenegger, in the United States District Courts for the Eastern District of California and the Northern District of California United States District Court composed of three judges pursuant to Section 2284, Title 28 United States Code (August 4, 2009). (More) AB 34 (Nava and Cook) PageG o 12 went missing as a result of catastrophe; o 45 were abducted by strangers; o 1,210 went missing at the hands of a family member; o 349 were abducted under suspicious circumstances; and o 3,244 went missing under unknown circumstances. In 1983, federal law was amended to require law enforcement agencies to notify the National Crime Information Center (NCIC) of missing children within 4 hours of a report being filed. According to a 1997 study, Case Management for Missing Children Homicide Investigation, the murder of an abducted child is a rare event?yet 76.2% of abducted children who are murdered are dead within three hours of the abduction. House Resolution 4472, the Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act, signed into law in 2006 by President George W. Bush, provided additional missing children funds to states that implemented a number of new mandates - one of which was an updated, 2 hour NCIC notification timeframe. To date, only Ohio has complied with the Act due to complexities in meeting mandates. In 2008, Florida separately acted, as part of the Jennifer Kesse and Tiffany Sessions Missing Person Act to require a 2 hour NCIC notification timeframe for state law enforcement agencies. AB 34 replicates this action by requiring that California's local law enforcement agencies report information to NCIC and the California Violent Crime Information Center . . . in a similar timeframe. Under federal law, information on missing persons may also be disclosed to the National Center for Missing (More) AB 34 (Nava and Cook) PageH and Exploited Children (NCMEC), a 501 (c)(3) nonprofit organization. In recent years, however, a number of nonprofit organizations have been created, including Klaas Kids, for purposes of raising awareness about missing children, educating parents and families about safe child practices (i.e. "Stranger Danger"), and for assisting law enforcement agencies in their searches for the missing. Concurrently, local governments across California have faced nearly ten years of budget reductions as the state grapples with ongoing fiscal crises. Consequently, many communities have seen cutbacks in the numbers of their front line police officers. With this in mind, AB 34 provides that the CVIC shall release information contained in missing persons reports to specified (national entities), that may assist in the search for said missing person(s). . . . 2. What This Bill Would Do As explained above, this bill would do the following with respect to the state's mechanisms for facilitating swift searches for missing persons: 1) require the state's VCIC to release information regarding missing or unidentified persons to the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System; and 2 ) require local law enforcement to submit reports of missing persons under the age of 21 or persons believed to be at risk to the DOJ for inclusion in the VCIC and the NCIC databases within two hours, instead of the current four hours, after the receipt of the report, as specified. WOULD THIS BILL ENHANCE THE ABILITY OF LAW ENFORCEMENT TO FIND MISSING PERSONS MORE QUICKLY? 3. Background: DOJ Missing and Unidentified Persons Unit (More) AB 34 (Nava and Cook) PageI The DOJ provides the following information on its website: The Missing and Unidentified Persons Unit in the California Department of Justice assists law enforcement and criminal justice agencies in locating missing persons and identifying unknown live and deceased persons through the comparison of physical characteristics, fingerprints and dental/body X-rays. Subscribe to receive Missing Persons Bulletins in your e-mail inbox. In California, a missing person is someone whose whereabouts is unknown to the reporting party. This includes any child who may have run away, been taken involuntary or may be in need of assistance. It includes a child illegally taken, held or hidden by a parent or non-parent family member (See California Penal Code Sections 277-280 ). There is NO waiting period for reporting a person missing. All California police and sheriffs' departments must accept any report, including a report by telephone, of a missing person, including runaways, without delay and will give priority to the handling of the report. (More) AB 34 (Nava and Cook) PageJ Schools are part of the network to help find missing children, not only through notices required to be given to a public school district or private school within 10 days of a child's disappearance but also through use of our Missing Person Bulletin. By making photographs of missing persons available, we seek to aid in the identification and recovery of missing persons. According to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children , one in six missing children are recovered as a direct result of someone recognizing their photo and notifying authorities. We also offer resources on this website for locating missing persons and safeguarding your children. (More) The following offers a summary of some of our programs. Further information is available by selecting the program categories on the left menu. Missing Persons Search. A searchable database of missing persons allows you to look for a missing person by name, description, county and several other categories. Missing Children Clearinghouse. The Clearinghouse provides a nationwide, toll-free hotline to receive tips on the whereabouts of missing persons. Call toll-free: 1-800-222-FIND (1-800-222-3463) Featured Missing Children and Adult Cases. The number of active missing person cases averages around 25,000 in California. The Featured Missing Children and Featured Missing Adults highlight cases where photographs have been submitted by law enforcement for use in accordance with laws and policies for sharing the image of the missing person. To have a photograph added, family members of a missing person should submit their photographs to the law enforcement agency taking the missing person report. Featured Unidentified Person. There are currently over 2,100 reports of unidentified persons in our automated database. Periodically, we will be providing (More) AB 34 (Nava and Cook) PageL photographs or drawings of selected cases.<2> 4. Background: The National Crime Information Center As explained above, this bill would require the swift inclusion of specified missing person report information to DOJ which would be included in the NCIC databases. The NCIC includes the following information about its mission on its website: The National Crime Information Center, or NCIC, was launched on January 27, 1967 with five files and 356,784 records. By the end of 2009, NCIC contained more than 15 million active records in 19 files. NCIC averages 7.5 million transactions per day. NCIC helps criminal justice professionals apprehend fugitives, locate missing persons, recover stolen property, and identify terrorists. It also assists law enforcement officers in performing their official duties more safely and provides them with information necessary to aid in protecting the general public. About the records: The NCIC database currently consists of 19 files. There are seven property files containing records of stolen articles, boats, guns, license plates, parts, securities, and vehicles. There are 12 persons files containing the Supervised Release; National Sex Offender Registry; Foreign Fugitive; Immigration Violator; Missing Person; Protection Order; Unidentified Person; U.S. Secret Service Protective; Gang; Known or Appropriately Suspected Terrorist; Wanted Person; and Identity Theft Files. The system also contains images that can be ---------------------- <2> http://ag.ca.gov/missing/. AB 34 (Nava and Cook) PageM associated with NCIC records to help agencies identify people and property items. The Interstate Identification Index, which contains automated criminal history record information, is accessible through the same network as NCIC. . . . How NCIC is used: Criminal justice agencies enter records into NCIC that are accessible to law enforcement agencies nationwide. For example, a law enforcement officer can search NCIC during a traffic stop to determine if the vehicle in question is stolen or if the driver is a wanted by law enforcement. The system responds instantly. However, a positive response from NCIC is not probable cause for an officer to take action. NCIC policy requires the inquiring agency to make contact with the entering agency to verify the information is accurate and up-to-date. Once the record is confirmed, the inquiring agency may take action to arrest a fugitive, return a missing person, charge a subject with violation of a protection order, or recover stolen property. Cooperation is key: NCIC has operated under a shared management concept between the FBI and federal, state, local, and tribal criminal justice users since its inception. There are two facets to the shared management concept-policy and functional. . . .<3> *************** --------------------------- <3> http://www.fbi.gov/hq/cjisd/ncic.htm. AB 34 (Nava and Cook) PageN