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smith and jones

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Where do you start to look for a missing person? Where do you start on this web page? There is no place here that says start. What are you supposed to do? How do you file a missing person report? What are the best places on internet to look? Are there any tricks using internet? I thought I saw someplace on here that said don't put a person's picture up? Why is that? If you are trying to find them I would think that would be the most helpful piece of information you could have.
 
I'm not an expert, and there are many people at WS that can help, but the first thing I would say is that if you have someone missing, you contact your local police department to find out how to file a missing person's report. They will most likely direct you to their office and have you fill out a form regarding the missing person, it's good to bring a photo if you have it and as much information about the person that you have (SS#, DOB, etc) then someone may interview you briefly. If the person missing is under 18 they may have other steps, I don't know. If you think someone is missing, report this to the police as soon as possible!
 
This information comes from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children at www.missingkids.com and the Polly Klaas Foundation at www.pollyklaas.org

To report someone missing:

-call your local law enforcement agency
-When you call law enforcement, provide the persons name, date of birth, heigth, weight, and any other unique identifiers such as eyeglasses and braces. Tell them when you noticed that they were missing and what clothing he or she was wearing. Get them a picture as soon as possible.
-Request that their name and identifying information be immediately entered into the National Crime Information Center (NCIC) Missing Person File.

If the person missing is a child, call the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children on their toll-free telephone number: 1-800-THE-LOST (1-800-843-5678). Also call the Polly Klaas Foundation at 800-587-4357.

If the person missing is an adult, you can contact the National Center for Missing Adults at 1-800-690-FIND. Their web site is www.theyaremissed.org

The Polly Klaas foundation also has a template for flyers. All of the basics are there, and you just enter the persons information and a picture, and then distribute the flyers. Make sure you get permission before putting up flyers in any businesses. You can find the template for flyers at http://www.pollyklaas.org/yourchild/flyer_templates.html

I hope this helps.
 
smith and jones said:
Where do you start to look for a missing person? Where do you start on this web page? There is no place here that says start. What are you supposed to do? How do you file a missing person report? What are the best places on internet to look? Are there any tricks using internet? I thought I saw someplace on here that said don't put a person's picture up? Why is that? If you are trying to find them I would think that would be the most helpful piece of information you could have.
Click to expand...
First, take a deep breath.

Second, contact your nearest Law Enforcement agency and give them as much information as possible on the person you fear missing. They will ask the questions, but have available...a current photo, height, weight, age, birthmarks, scars, medical, or any other information you can provide as to the physical identity or the last location, the person or persons to see them, the circumstances, and the hours leading up to them being missing. The police will direct you as to whatever else they determine they need or want before they decide where the case will be placed.

Third, nothing will be posted on the internet unless Law Enforcement (LE) or the family has posted it prior. Here is where you can continue with everyone here who has great info on how to do just that.

I just wanted to post the initial stages first.

Do you have someone missing?
 
Yes there is someone who is missing. She is an adult. I care about her and miss her very much. I don't have much information, just birthdate, description and last address. I have a video which I will try and get a picture off of. It would help if I had a program to do this. I have never met any of her family, and her friend I know isn't being very helpful.
How would you go about talking to homeless shelters about finding someone?
 
Due to confidentiality, most homeless shelters will not provide information to anyone except LE, but you could send a photo and missing person's flyer asking for it to be posted. The flyer should ask for any information to be called into LE.
 
I do not know if you can do very much unless you are related, or you think there is foul play involved. In both cases the police would be the first stop. Adults are allowed to go missing and so the police don't always work it to hard. You can take a picture to the shelters in your area and ask if anyone has seen her. Good luck.
 
Smith and Jones, do you know this person's name? Where/ when did you last see/hear from her? How is it that you know this person that you want to find? Is there a reason that you would be reluctant to check with the police? Why are you looking for this person?

Please don't be put off by so many questions. It is just that the info you have given so far is very vague. The more info you post , the easier it is to find someone.

Susan
 
TGIRecovered said:
Smith and Jones, do you know this person's name? Where/ when did you last see/hear from her? How is it that you know this person that you want to find? Is there a reason that you would be reluctant to check with the police? Why are you looking for this person?

Please don't be put off by so many questions. It is just that the info you have given so far is very vague. The more info you post , the easier it is to find someone.

Susan
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The reason I haven't given much info so far is that I didn't want to give out any information that I shouldn't, and I'm just trying to learn the system here. There aren't any instructions, no starting point, no help file. I would think there would be a clear procedure for doing something like this generally, and for using the web site.
So, her name is Mary Ann Kilbourne. She is my previous girl friend. I miss her and worry about her. I haven't heard from her since Feb 2006. Her friend has heard from her since then but not for months now. She is 50, about 5' 4", average weight, brown straight hair, blue/green/gray eyes, and smokes. She is very nice, gentile, and quiet. She also has mental illness and should have medication. She is from Lakewood (Cleveland) Ohio. Her friend said she drove her car to Chicago, ran out of money, and abandoned the car. The car was in her ex husbands name so they contacted him and he had it towed back here. That's just about everything I know except last address and birth date. I haven't gone to "LE" as you call them because I have just started working on this, and from past experience cops are hostile and don't do their job anyway. I will file a missing person report though shortly.
How can this web site help me find her? What where and how are the best contacts to help do this and get the information out there?
 
[If the person missing is an adult, you can contact the National Center for Missing Adults at 1-800-690-FIND. Their web site is www.theyaremissed.org ]


Their 800 number is constantly busy and their email doesn't work.
 
smith and jones said:
The reason I haven't given much info so far is that I didn't want to give out any information that I shouldn't, and I'm just trying to learn the system here. There aren't any instructions, no starting point, no help file. I would think there would be a clear procedure for doing something like this generally, and for using the web site.
So, her name is Mary Ann Kilbourne. She is my previous girl friend. I miss her and worry about her. I haven't heard from her since Feb 2006. Her friend has heard from her since then but not for months now. She is 50, about 5' 4", average weight, brown straight hair, blue/green/gray eyes, and smokes. She is very nice, gentile, and quiet. She also has mental illness and should have medication. She is from Lakewood (Cleveland) Ohio. Her friend said she drove her car to Chicago, ran out of money, and abandoned the car. The car was in her ex husbands name so they contacted him and he had it towed back here. That's just about everything I know except last address and birth date. I haven't gone to "LE" as you call them because I have just started working on this, and from past experience cops are hostile and don't do their job anyway. I will file a missing person report though shortly.
How can this web site help me find her? What where and how are the best contacts to help do this and get the information out there?
Click to expand...

I'm sorry to hear that police have treated you poorly in the past. How have they been hostile? If you have approached them about finding someone in the past, did they give a reason for not being helpful?
I see that you figured out that LE stands for "law enforcement". Those abbreviations can be confusing!
Thank you for providing her name and other info. How was her mental state when you last spoke with her? Was she friendly to you? Did she seem to be happy or depressed or frightened? These could be valuable clues.

Susan
 
You can ask to speak to a missings persons detective in the police department when you call. They are experts in this field, and all of those I know are kind and compassionate because they do deal with families and friends in a fragile state.

Maybe you'd feel more comfortable talking to a woman detective? As everyone here has said, your first step IS to contact LE, and maybe speaking to an expert or a woman may help you feel more at ease.

After this is reported, they may tell you that she is indeed not missing, just hard to reach. If she is indeed missing from the general population, then they will list her on the proper channels and we will all help you find your friend. :D

Best of luck
MG
 
If she has been missing for this long, it would seem her family should be the ones to file a report and may have done so.

LE would be reluctant to file on the word of a previous boyfriend/girlfriend who has obviously been out of touch with her for a time due to various reasons. How do police know you aren't just using them to locate her for personal reasons?

This isn't the type of missing person case we would indulge in at WS either, in my opinion.
 
SeriouslySearching said:
If she has been missing for this long, it would seem her family should be the ones to file a report and may have done so.

LE would be reluctant to file on the word of a previous boyfriend/girlfriend who has obviously been out of touch with her for a time due to various reasons. How do police know you aren't just using them to locate her for personal reasons?

This isn't the type of missing person case we would indulge in at WS either, in my opinion.
Click to expand...

Well said.
I can think of one reason a person would consider all LE to be hostile and not doing their jobs...I guess most criminals don't like cops. There are some bad cops out there and probably a few who are just burned out, but most work hard to protect the citizens they serve.
If I recall correctly, on the old TV show "Alias Smith and Jones" spent most of their time running from the law.( But boy, were they good lookin'!) Not implying anything, just sayin'!

Some of my ex's might say I have mental problems. Sometimes when you aren't interested, acting like a lunatic is a good way to get them to leave you alone!:crazy:

Susan
 
First of all, it hasn't been taking my password for 3 days so I haven't been able to respond.

TGIRecovered said:
I'm sorry to hear that police have treated you poorly in the past. How have they been hostile?]

Everything from not doing their job to getting beaten for no reason.

[I see that you figured out that LE stands for "law enforcement". Those abbreviations can be confusing!]

Yes I did a lot of reading here before I started writing. Abbreviations, especially computer abbreviations are some of the most annoying part of computing. There are so many of them and its like trying to read code. Typing is so fast and easy that there's no reason to use abbreviations. When there's something as important as the subjects being discussed here, every possible attempt should be made to be clear and complete. So everybody just stop with the abbreviations and type the words out.

[Thank you for providing her name and other info. How was her mental state when you last spoke with her? Was she friendly to you? Did she seem to be happy or depressed or frightened? These could be valuable clues.

Susan
Click to expand...

She was fine as far as I could tell. She was friendly. She didn't seem upset or anything.


After finishing this reply it did not come out the way it was supposed to. Part of my reply is mixed in with the quote. What I said is not in brackets, the quote is [] .
 
smith and jones said:
[If the person missing is an adult, you can contact the National Center for Missing Adults at 1-800-690-FIND. Their web site is www.theyaremissed.org ]


Their 800 number is constantly busy and their email doesn't work.
Click to expand...


I finally got through to them on their regular number with the help of the phone company. I left them a message and they sent me email. They said their staff was cut down to 2, and they are moving, so their web page, email and phone number are screwed up. I wrote back, but I had more trouble getting through. I got a message to them and they said to make the police report first.
 
SeriouslySearching said:
If she has been missing for this long, it would seem her family should be the ones to file a report and may have done so.

This isn't the type of missing person case we would indulge in at WS either, in my opinion.
Click to expand...


Her family is not looking for her. Her friends are not looking for her. Nobody is looking for her, so I have to look for her. What is ws??
 
smith and jones said:
Her family is not looking for her. Her friends are not looking for her. Nobody is looking for her, so I have to look for her. What is ws??
Click to expand...

I might be off base here, but is it possible they know exactly where she is and may not be telling you? You mentioned that she was an ex-girlfriend. People become ex's for a reason. I have ex's that I certainly would not want to run into anytime soon. It might make me uncomfortable if I found out someone I hadn't seen in over a year was calling friends and family to track me down.

Sorry to seem so cold but that may be an angle to look at. However by your description of the circumstances in which she went missing, I understand why you are concerned. I think many of the posters here are correct that you may not have a lot of luck working with the police since you are not family.
 
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