For Further Information
For additional information on the UCCJEA, readers may contact the organizations listed and described below. Brief descriptions of selected publications available from each organization are also provided.
Organizations
American Bar Association (ABA)
Center on Children and the Law
740 15th Street NW., Ninth Floor
Washington, DC 20005–1009
202–662–1720
202–662–1755 (fax)
ctrchildlaw@abanet.org
www.abanet.org/child
The ABA Center on Children and the Law concentrates on legal issues that directly affect children. The Center’s Obstacles to the Recovery and Return of Parentally Abducted Children Project, funded by OJJDP and directed by Linda Girdner, Ph.D., documented problems that parents face when children are abducted interstate and internationally. Among the many recommendations contained in the original Obstacles Project’s final report was the need for streamlined, uniform procedures to expedite interstate enforcement of custody and visitation orders. In furtherance of that goal, the Obstacles Project’s Legal Director, Patricia M. Hoff, J.D., served as an advisor to the UCCJEA drafting committee. Although the Center currently has no ongoing projects related to parental kidnapping, its Web site includes an extensive collection of literature about parental kidnapping and links to other resources.
American Bar Association (ABA)
Section of Family Law
750 North Lake Shore Drive
Chicago, IL 60611–4497
Attn: Jeff Atkinson, ABA advisor to the
UCCJEA drafting committee
312–988–5000
www.abanet.org/family/home.html
The ABA is the largest voluntary association of lawyers in the United States, and its Section of Family Law is devoted to stabilizing and preserving the family. The spring 1998 issue of Family Law Quarterly, one of the section’s two publications, focused on two uniform laws that affect children and families: the UCCJEA and the Uniform Interstate Family Support Act. The ABA advisor to the UCCJEA drafting committee, Jeff Atkinson, is an active member of the Section of Family Law.
National Center for Missing and
Exploited Children (NCMEC)
Charles B. Wang International Children’s
Building
699 Prince Street
Alexandria, VA 22314–3175
800–843–5678
703–274–2220 (fax)
77431.177@Compuserve.com
www.missingkids.com
NCMEC is a private, nonprofit clearinghouse that was established in 1984 and operates under a congressional mandate. A resource center for child protection, NCMEC collects and distributes information on missing and exploited children and operates a national toll-free hotline, 800–THE–LOST (800–843–5678), for individuals to report missing children or request information. NCMEC assists families and can be of tremendous help to law enforcement in case management, case tracking, lead and information analysis, and coordination of responses across jurisdictional lines.
National Center for Prosecution of Child
Abuse (NCPCA)
99 Canal Center Plaza, Suite 510
Alexandria, VA 22314
703–739–0321
703–549–6259 (fax)
www.ndaa-apri.org/apri/programs/ncpca/ncpca_home.html
The National Center for Prosecution of Child Abuse recognizes child abuse as a crime for which perpetrators must be held accountable. Because no area of criminal justice has changed so rapidly in the past 15 years, the need for professional specialization is especially great. Committed to excellence in training, technical assistance, and publications, the National Center for Prosecution of Child Abuse is meeting that need. In cooperation with prosecutors and other child abuse professionals in the United States and internationally, the Center demonstrates concern for a particularly vulnerable group of crime victims based on the premise that children are entitled to equal treatment under the law.
National Conference of Commissioners
on Uniform State Laws (NCCUSL)
211 East Ontario Street, Suite 1300
Chicago, IL 60611
312–915–0195
312–915–0187 (fax)
www.nccusl.org
For more than 100 years, NCCUSL has promoted uniformity in State law and interstate cooperation by developing uniform acts and endeavoring to secure their enactment by the voluntary action of each State government. The conference includes commissioners from each State, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Drafting committees made up of commissioners are appointed to draft specific acts, and advisors and observers often participate in the drafting process. A draft uniform act must be read, section by section, at no fewer than two annual meetings before a decision is made, by vote of States, to promulgate the act as a Uniform Act.
NCCUSL approved the UCCJEA in 1997. Copies of the law are available from NCCUSL’s Chicago address and may be downloaded from the NCCUSL Web site (www.nccusl.org).
Office of Juvenile Justice and
Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP)
Child Protection Division (CPD)
810 Seventh Street NW.
Washington, DC 20531
202–616–3637
202–353–9093 (fax)
www.ojjdp.ncjrs.org
OJJDP’s Child Protection Division administers programs related to crimes against children and provides leadership and funding in the areas of enforcement, intervention, and prevention. CPD promotes effective policies and procedures to address the problems of abused, neglected, missing, and exploited children. Activities include conducting research, providing training and technical assistance, and supporting demonstration and service programs related to child victimization. CPD also supports the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, a clearinghouse and resource center that collects and distributes data regarding missing and exploited children and operates a national toll-free hotline (800–843–5678).
Publications
ABA Center on Children and the Law. The following documents are available from the Center (see Issues/Parental Kidnapping on its Web site).
Hague Child Abduction Convention Issue Briefs. This 1997 material consists of four issue briefs that can help attorneys handle cases that fall under the Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction.
The Hague Convention: A Curriculum for American Judges and Lawyers. This 1997 publication explains how the Hague Convention can be used effectively within the United States in international parental kidnapping cases.
Parental Kidnapping: Prevention and Remedies. This paper is designed to help attorneys better understand parental abduction cases and applicable laws. It includes practical tips on protections that can be placed in child custody orders that may help prevent an abduction, tips that lawyers can give their parent clients, a review of possible legal actions that can be taken on parents’ behalf, and governmental resources that can be used to help in these cases.
Parental Kidnapping Law Reform Package (consists of three proposed State laws: Parental Kidnapping Crime Act, Missing Children Record Flagging Act, and Tortious Interference With Child Custody and Visitation Act). This package, produced in 1996, contains three proposed State laws related to parental abduction that can be adopted by State legislatures.
ABA Section of Family Law. The following document is available from the Section (see Publications on its Web site).
International Child Abductions: A Guide to Applying the 1988 Hague Convention, With Forms, Second Edition. This guide provides all the basic information needed to invoke and apply the Hague Convention and the forms necessary for its use.
NCMEC. The following documents are available from NCMEC (call 800–843–5678).
Family Abduction. This handbook guides parents through the civil and criminal justice systems, explains the laws that will help them, outlines prevention methods, and provides suggestions for aftercare following the abduction. It thoroughly details search and recovery strategies and contains advice for attorneys, prosecutors, and family court judges handling these cases.
International Forum on Parental Child Abduction: Hague Convention Action Agenda. This report details the findings of a forum held in September 1998 to study the Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction. It offers 12 action/agenda items to help strengthen the implementation of the Hague Convention.
“The Kid Is With a Parent, How Bad Can It Be?”: The Crisis of Family Abductions. This issue brief discusses the seriousness of the problem of family abduction, considers whether the problem is growing, and examines the challenges and opportunities this crime poses to policymakers.
Missing and Abducted Children: A Law- Enforcement Guide to Case Investigation and Program Management. This guide, authored by a team of 38 professionals from local, State, and Federal agencies, outlines a standard of practice for law enforcement officers handling several types of missing child cases, including runaways, thrownaways, family/nonfamily abductions, and disappearances in which the circumstances are unknown.
When Your Child Is Missing: A Family Survival Guide. Also available from OJJDP; see description.
NCPCA. The following documents are available from NCPCA (see Publications on its Web site).
Charging the Parental Kidnapping Case. This monograph assists prosecutors in determining appropriate charges and sentencing recommendations. It notes that an aggressive investigative and prosecutorial approach sends the message that parental kidnapping is a serious crime with serious consequences for both victims and abductors and recommends that prosecution be seriously considered in every parental kidnapping case.
Investigation and Prosecution of Parental Abduction, 2000 (Training Conference Notebook). This notebook contains training materials compiled for the 2000 NCPCA Conference, Investigation and Prosecution of Parental Abduction.
Parental Kidnapping, Domestic Violence and Child Abuse: Changing Legal Responses to Related Violence. This monograph assists investigators and prosecutors in developing appropriate responses to the interrelated crimes of parental kidnapping, domestic violence, and child abuse.
NCCUSL. Copies of acts, drafts, and legislation are available from NCCUSL (see NCCUSL Acts, Drafts & Legislation on its Web site).
OJJDP. The following documents are available from OJJDP (see Publications on its Web site or call the Juvenile Justice Clearinghouse at 800–638–8736) or from the National Criminal Justice Reference Service (visit www.ncjrs.org or call 800–851–3420).
Addressing Confidentiality of Records in Searches for Missing Children (NCJ 155183). This Report makes recommendations concerning law enforcement agencies’ access to records maintained by schools, hospitals, child welfare agencies, domestic violence shelters, and runaway shelters. The Report also covers information release procedures and includes a checklist for maximizing record access from service providers. The Report’s appendixes contain additional information and other relevant statistical data on the confidentiality of records in searches for missing children, jurisdictions that allow record access or impose reporting requirements in missing children cases, and State laws affecting record access.
The Criminal Justice System’s Response to Parental Abduction (NCJ 186160). This Bulletin summarizes primary findings from a study of the criminal justice system’s response to parental abduction. Funded by OJJDP and conducted jointly by the American Bar Association Center on Children and the Law and Westat, the study examined all aspects of the system’s response, including the reporting of the incident, investigation of the case, location and recovery of the child, and criminal prosecution of the abductor. The Bulletin reports results from the study’s national survey of law enforcement agencies and prosecutors, site visits, and case file reviews and presents implications for legal, programmatic, and policy reforms.
Early Identification of Risk Factors for Parental Abduction (NCJ 185026). This Bulletin presents the design and findings of four OJJDP-funded projects on preventing family abductions: a documentary study, a criminal sanctions study, an interview study, and an intervention study. The findings provide information regarding the risk factors associated with parental kidnapping and strategies that can be used to intervene with at-risk families.
Family Abductors: Descriptive Profiles and Preventive Interventions (NCJ 182788). This Bulletin describes preventive interventions, such as counseling, conflict resolution, and legal strategies, that seek to settle custody and access disputes for families identified as at risk for parental abduction.
A Family Resource Guide on International Parental Kidnapping (NCJ 190448). This guide presents practical and detailed advice about preventing international kidnapping and increasing the chance that children who are kidnapped or wrongfully retained will be returned. It provides descriptions and realistic assessments of the civil and criminal remedies available in international parental kidnapping cases, explains applicable laws and identifies both the public and private resources that may be called upon when an international abduction occurs or is threatened, and prepares parents for the legal and emotional difficulties they may experience.
International Parental Kidnapping: A Law Enforcement Guide (forthcoming). This guide provides practical information on the public and private resources and services that are available to assist law enforcement in international parental abduction cases. It explains applicable laws, defines agency roles and responsibilities, describes criminal and civil remedies, examines methods for prevention and interception, and discusses important issues and procedures to be addressed during an international parental abduction case.
Issues in Resolving Cases of International Child Abduction (NCJ 182790). This Report documents a lack of uniformity in the application of the Hague Convention across countries. It includes case histories, survey findings on left-behind parents, selected practices in international family abduction cases, and recommendations for the judicial and legal systems.
Issues in Resolving Cases of International Child Abduction by Parents (NCJ 190105). This Bulletin provides an overview of the major survey findings, selected good practices, and recommendations from the Report Issues in Resolving Cases of International Child Abduction (see previous entry).
Obstacles to the Recovery and Return of Parentally Abducted Children (Report: NCJ 144535; Research Summary: NCJ 143458). These publications present the results of a 2-year study of the legal, policy, procedural, and practical obstacles to the location, recovery, and return of parentally abducted children. They include recommendations to overcome each obstacle and extensive appendixes that describe the pros and cons of existing legal procedures for enforcing a custody order, sample forms to be used with existing legal procedures, and summaries of both civil and criminal appellate decisions.
Parental Abduction: A Review of the Literature (Available online only: ojjdp.ncjrs.org/pubs/missing.html#186160). This online resource summarizes current research and literature relating to the primary issues involved in parental abduction.
Prevention of Parent or Family Abduction Through Early Identification of Risk Factors (NCJ 182791). Based on analyses of data from several California studies related to child abductions by a noncustodial parent, this Report outlines a set of characteristics of parents who abduct their children and presents indepth sociodemographic and legal information about the families of abducted children.
Using Agency Records To Find Missing Children: A Guide for Law Enforcement (NCJ 154633). This Summary focuses on procedures for obtaining and using the records of certain types of human service providers to find missing children. It examines the use of, access to, barriers to securing, and limitations of records from schools, medical care providers, runaway shelters, and domestic violence shelters.
When Your Child Is Missing: A Family Survival Guide (NCJ 170022; Spanish version: NCJ 178902). This guide, written by parents and family members who have experienced the disappearance of a child, explains how parents can best participate in the search for a missing child. It discusses the parents’ relationship with law enforcement, examines issues related to the media, and presents practical information about distributing fliers and photos, organizing volunteers, and managing monetary donations.
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