For Release: IMMEDIATE Contact: Benjamin Feldman
Date: 12/15/2008 Phone: 201-394-7728
SHERIFF McGUIRE, PROSECUTOR MOLINELLI AND THE NATIONAL CENTER FOR MISSING AND EXPLOITED CHILDREN UNVEIL NEW BLUEPRINT TO KEEP BERGEN’S KIDS SAFE IN CASE OF ABDUCTION
MAWAH, NJ - The Bergen County Sheriff’s Office in conjunction with the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office and the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) today hosted the first of what will be 3 days of comprehensive training for Abducted Child Incidents for police officers, first responders and 911 dispatchers.
“As is the case in the lives of so many first responders, today we train for a moment we hope never comes,” said Sheriff Leo McGuire. “We stand here today with the firm desire that should that nightmare ever occur, we can deliver as close to a storybook ending as possible.”
This intense 8 hour block of training which is being offered for the following three days is designed for first responders, police officers, 911 dispatchers and first line supervisors. This training is being given as a result of a new Attorney General Directive formulating a Statewide ‘Child Abduction Response Team’ program, or CART.
“I would like to congratulate Sheriff McGuire and Prosecutor Molinelli for working so closely together to infuse this important initiative with such a deep-seated sense of cooperation,” said Attorney General Anne Milgram. “The training that takes place here today will play an integral part in saving a life tomorrow.”’
“This program again demonstrates the fact that Bergen County is at the forefront of innovation in law enforcement, setting the benchmark for a program that will be replicated around the state,” added Prosecutor Molinelli.
The Bergen County Sheriff’s Office was at the forefront of formulating a Child Abduction Response Plan for Bergen County and worked closely with the Attorney General’s Office, the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office, the New Jersey State Police and the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children in formulating the Statewide CART program.
Members of law enforcement were addressed by Rosemarie D’Alessandro, who’s 7 year-old daughter Joan was abducted and killed in 1973 in Hillsdale, New Jersey. Mrs. D’Alessandro briefly shared her experience. Prosecutor Molinelli and Sheriff McGuire dedicated Bergen’s CART training and program to the memory of Joan D’Alessandro.
· Statistics show that an estimated 1.3 million children go missing every year in the United States. Typically only 797,500 are reported to law enforcement agencies.
· Between 100-200 children are abducted by strangers annually. Out of those, approximately 60-150 are murdered.
· The formulation of a CART and the training of first responders such as initial responding police officers is important as time is critical the safe recovery of an abducted child.
o During a stranger child abduction that becomes a homicide
o 44 % die within the first hour
o 74% die within the first three hours.
The comprehensive training will be taught by Robert Hoever, the Associate Director of Training and Outreach for NCMEC. He is responsible for NCMEC’s role in the AMBER ALERT program and serves as a liaison to law enforcement and to the nations 52 missing children’s clearinghouses. Mr. Hoever is a retired Lieutenant and Assistant Bureau Chief of the Child Protection and Cyber-Crimes Bureau. He was responsible for the development of New Jersey’s AMBER program and was the first AMBER coordinator in New Jersey.
###
|