Child Abduction

The number of children reported missing each year is staggering. The following precautions will help protect your child from abduction:

• Teach your children how to use telephones to call home, other places you might be, and 9-1-1 in an emergency. Also teach them how to answer the phone and door when you are not at home.
• Update regularly the photos and descriptions of your children in your home file. Have a set of fingerprints and footprints made.
• Know where your children are at all times. Never leave them unattended in a public place.
• Be sure your child knows what to do if you become separated in a public place.
• Explain to your child who a stranger is.
• Choose a secret word to use with your children in an emergency or a situation in which another person is pick them up.
• Explain in a non-frightening way tactics child abductors might use. Also tell your child how to respond.
• Walk to school with your child and point out possible danger spots like alleys and vacant lots. Ask neighbors to provide a "safe home" in an emergency.
• Be cautious in selecting others to care for your child.
• Listen to anything your child wants to report and discuss.