Unfortunately, movies and TV continue to promote the out-of-date assumption that you must wait 24 hours before reporting someone missing. This is no longer true. In fact, law enforcement agencies are generally required to submit missing persons reports to the NCIC within two hours of first receiving notification of a missing person.
Anyone can report a person as missing. You do not have to be ‘next of kin.’ You can be a friend, employer, neighbor, partner, teammate, or extended family.
A missing person should be reported to the agency governing the county or city where the missing person was last seen or known to be. Most agencies will take a missing persons report by phone from parties who are reporting from different location.
When reporting someone as missing, be prepared to answer some questions. Police will ask for the proper spelling of the person’s legal name, and for their date of birth. They may ask about any other names they might use, such as nicknames or maiden names. They will ask for the address of places where the person lives or works, and who lives with them. In the case of a child, they may ask who has legal guardianship of them. They will ask about what kind of vehicle the person is known to own or drive, or how they get around (bus, bicycle, uber, etc). They will want to know detailed physical descriptions including age, race, hair color and style, eye color, height, weight, and last known clothing description, if possible. They will ask about any distinctive scars, marks, or tattoos. They might ask about a person’s general medical conditions or mental health status. They will want to know when and where a person was last seen and who they were with. They will also ask why you believe a person is missing and possibly in danger, as opposed to someone who has chosen to leave and not talk to anyone. Police will also ask for recent photos of the person.
Police need to know about any circumstances that may have lead a person to disappear. They don’t care whether someone might use drugs, or owe someone money for example, except where those events might lead them to go missing. It can help to determine whether a person went missing of their own volition.
It’s important to remain calm and patient and answer questions as thoroughly as possible. Officers are not being critical or accusatory when they ask questions. It’s common for them to ask whether you have checked the missing person’s home for instance, or why they are just now being reported missing when they have not been seen in months or years. This is background context that is needed to determine the urgency of the report.
After the officers have gathered information regarding the missing person, a report will be submitted to NCIC and the information forwarded to an agency’s Missing Persons division, where a detective will be assigned. The first steps law enforcement will take will be to check the last known residence and workplace of the person. They will check with local hospitals and the county jails to see whether a person has been admitted or arrested for any reason. A missing persons detective may request a cell phone ping from the service provider, or a gps location from a service such as OnStar if a vehicle has it equipped.
While this is taking place and law enforcement are beginning their investigation, the person reporting someone as missing can help by getting the missing person’s face out there. Making posts on social media, contacting any known family or friends of the missing person, contacting news media, and making early versions of flyers that can be posted and shared are some good starting points to consider.
When sharing posts on social media, try to use photos that accurately reflect a person’s real appearance (ie, no instagram filters, costumes, stage makeup, etc). Tag the person in the posts where possible so that friends and family can see them. Include the person’s last known location and when, as well as a vehicle description if possible.
Most of all, be patient, truthful, and optimistic and follow any instructions provided by law enforcement.