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Law Aims to Help Resolve Missing Persons Cases

Law enforcement officers say Michigan is ranked third in the nation for most missing persons. A new law aims to help solve their cases.

Under the legislation signed by Governor Rick Snyder, law enforcement agencies will be required to enter missing person information into the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System.

Michigan State Police Detective-Sergeant Sarah Krebs is with the department’s Missing Persons Coordination Unit. She says this law will change the nature of how the law enforcement investigates missing persons.

“You have photographs. You can look at people and immediately decide whether or not it’s the same person,” she said.

“Back in the 1980s you were seeing missing children on milk cartons. That’s how you found out somebody was missing. That was how we distributed information like that. In today’s world with today’s technology we have the Internet. Why aren’t we using it?” she added.

The database is also free and can be used by anyone – not just law enforcement.