[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 79 (Monday, June 7, 1999)]
[House]
[Pages H3737-H3739]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                             JENNIFER'S LAW

  Mr. LAZIO. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill 
(H.R. 1915) to provide grants to the States to improve the reporting of 
unidentified and missing persons.
  The Clerk read as follows:

                               H.R. 1915

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as ``Jennifer's Law''.

     SEC. 2. PROGRAM AUTHORIZED.

       The Attorney General is authorized to provide grant awards 
     to States to enable States to improve the reporting of 
     unidentified and missing persons.

     SEC. 3. ELIGIBILITY.

       (a) Application.--To be eligible to receive a grant award 
     under this Act, a State shall submit an application at such 
     time and in such form as the Attorney General may reasonably 
     require.
       (b) Contents.--Each such application shall include 
     assurances that the State shall, to the greatest extent 
     possible--
       (1) report to the National Crime Information Center and 
     when possible, to law enforcement authorities throughout the 
     State regarding every deceased unidentified person, 
     regardless of age, found in the State's jurisdiction;
       (2) enter a complete profile of such unidentified person in 
     compliance with the guidelines established by the Department 
     of Justice for the National Crime Information Center Missing 
     and Unidentified Persons File, including dental records, x-
     rays, and fingerprints, if available;
       (3) enter the National Crime Information Center number or 
     other appropriate number assigned to the unidentified person 
     on the death certificate of each such unidentified person; 
     and
       (4) retain all such records pertaining to unidentified 
     persons until a person is identified.

     SEC. 4. USES OF FUNDS.

       A State that receives a grant award under this Act may use 
     such funds received to establish or expand programs developed 
     to improve the reporting of unidentified persons in 
     accordance with the assurances provided in the application 
     submitted pursuant to section 3(b).

     SEC. 5. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

       There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this 
     Act $2,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2000, 2001, and 2002.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from New 
York (Mr. Lazio) and the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Lampson) each will 
control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from New York (Mr. Lazio).
  Mr. LAZIO. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, let me begin by thanking the Committee on the Judiciary 
for this bipartisan approach, for allowing us to bring this important 
legislation to the floor, and in particular, let me thank the chairman 
of the Committee on the Judiciary, the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. 
Henry Hyde) for his consideration in allowing this bill to go forward.
  Let me begin by saying that I am the proud father of two beautiful 
daughters, Molly and Kelsey. I cannot imagine not having them in my 
life. What would I do without their smiling faces to welcome me home, 
their gifts of crayon drawings to brighten my day, or their 
heartwarming goodnight kisses? Every time I look at them I know how 
blessed I am.
  But today, Mr. Speaker, we turn our focus to less fortunate families, 
families who have suffered the loss of a loved one. For these families 
we offer Jennifer's Law, legislation inspired by a tragic story of a 
still missing Long Islander whose mother and dad have been one of the 
motivating forces behind this legislation.
  In 1993, 21-year-old Jennifer Wilmer left her family's suburban New 
York home for California in pursuit of a dream. It was a dream to make 
it on her own. Nine months later Jennifer's mom sent her a plane ticket 
to return home for a visit because she missed her.
  All Jennifer had to do was to pick up the ticket from the office of 
the local travel agent. She left the house she shared with friends to 
pick up the ticket, but she never made it to that agency. She never 
came home. Mr. Speaker, Jennifer is still missing.
  Unfortunately, this story is all too common. People report thousands 
of missing persons each year. Sadly, many of these people will never be 
found. In many instances, at least we have the information necessary to 
bring closure to some of these cases. Unfortunately, most of this 
information remains hidden, like a needle in a haystack.
  In 1975, the FBI created the Missing Persons File within its National 
Crime Information Center to address the problems associated with 
collecting and organizing information on missing persons. This new file 
inspired the creation of the Unidentified Persons File 8 years later.

[[Page H3738]]

  In theory, data on a missing person should be entered into the 
Missing Persons File at the time a missing persons report is filed with 
local law enforcement officials, and the same is true for John or Jane 
Does.
  Unfortunately, the coordination of these two files that would make it 
possible to close thousands of missing person cases is not taking 
place. Why? Certainly it is the fact that the success of one search 
depends upon its connection to the other, and although local law 
enforcement officials enter the proper information into the Missing 
Persons File, they often fail to enter this information about John Does 
into the unidentified persons file. What kind of information I am 
talking about is fingerprint information, DNA information, various 
samples. Without up-to-date information in both files, most cases 
cannot be closed.
  For example, last year New York reported more than 4,500 missing 
persons, but only 279 unidentified persons. Any one of these 
unidentified persons might also be a missing person, but without cross-
referencing, this fact will never surface.
  The ability to cross-reference within the NCIC has existed for 16 
years, and this technology is available to all law enforcement 
agencies. The problem is, the system remains underutilized, so even if 
you have a county local law enforcement agency that is doing its job in 
terms of entering missing persons information, if another agency in 
another county in another State is not doing the job, they will never 
link up between missing persons and unidentified persons.
  The issue is not negligence, but instead stems from inadequate 
funding. Jennifer's Law would authorize $2 million for States to apply 
for a competitive grant program to cover the costs associated with 
entering complete files of unidentified crime victims into the FBI's 
National Crime Information Center database. It is a true model of 
Federal, State, and local partnership.
  If passed today, Jennifer's Law will help ease the suffering of 
families coping with the anguish of unanswered questions. It will 
reassure families that everything possible is being done to reunite 
them with loved ones. The funding for this project is a small price to 
pay compared to the cost of not knowing that someone you love has been 
found. Without this funding, Mr. Speaker, thousands of families will be 
deprived of a chance for closure, a chance to at least move on.
  Mr. Speaker, crime is not just a statistic when it involves a family 
member. As a dad, I can only imagine the pain and torment experienced 
by families such as Jennifer's. I hope that Jennifer's Law will serve 
to somewhat lessen the incredible pain these families have in losing a 
child or a loved one.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. LAMPSON. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise this afternoon to talk about H.R. 1915, 
Jennifer's Law, which would help parents of missing children bring 
closure to their nightmare and begin the healing process.
  As my colleague, the gentleman from New York (Mr. Lazio) just said, 
the Committee on the Judiciary is to be commended and he, too, is to be 
commended for the work that he has done in bringing this bill to the 
floor of the House of Representatives, and to make sure that we can do 
everything that we can to correct the shortcomings that exist in 
present law.
  Under current law, States are required to report information on 
missing children to the FBI so that data can be entered into the 
National Crime Information Center, NCIC, their missing persons file.

                              {time}  1430

  However, States are not required to report the information to the 
NCIC's Unidentified Person File whenever they recover an unidentified 
body. Unfortunately, a logical and complete cross-referencing of the 
missing person file and the unidentified person file does not currently 
exist.
  Every week unidentified bodies of children are found, but the parents 
of missing children are not contacted to make positive identifications. 
Not knowing that the body of an unidentified child has been recovered, 
thousands of parents continue their heart-wrenching search for their 
missing loved one.
  Jessica Cane is a young girl who was abducted, we assume abducted, 
perhaps murdered, we do not know her whereabouts, 3 weeks before her 
18th birthday. Today her parents continue to search for her, believe 
that she is alive, hope that she is alive, and expect that she will 
return home one day. So with that hope, they travel from city to city, 
they spend their money, they spend their time, their waking hours 
hoping that Jessica will return to them.
  As the chairman and founder of the Congressional Missing and 
Exploited Children's Caucus, I see the pain families of missing or 
abducted children endure firsthand. I can only imagine the agony of 
GiGi Arnett Harris' family and the agony that they suffered when this 
Houston, Texas family discovered that GiGi's body had remained 
unidentified in a morgue for 2 years while they unknowingly continued 
their search.
  Well, stories like these would not occur if Jennifer's Law were 
enacted. This law would correct identification problems by encouraging 
States to report unidentified people to the NCIC in their jurisdiction 
in return for Federal grant funds.
  It is time to bring comfort to families of missing children. It is 
the very least Congress can do to alleviate their suffering. I urge all 
of our colleagues to join me in voting in favor of H.R. 1915, the 
Jennifer's Law.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. LAZIO. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I might consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Lampson) not just 
for his support for this particular piece of legislation, but for his 
work on behalf of missing and exploited children.
  What he has done is a valuable public service in heading up the 
caucus, and obviously his work in the Committee on the Judiciary was 
very helpful in ensuring that this bill got to the floor. This is a 
bipartisan approach, Mr. Speaker.
  I say as a dad and former prosecutor that this is a modest but very 
important way in which we could forge a stronger partnership with 
families, with advocates, with the law enforcement community, to do the 
right things for those who have an unimaginable tragedy in their life, 
losing a child or loved one and not knowing their whereabouts.
  This effort is supported by the National Center for Missing and 
Exploited Children, and I have a letter in support, as well as the 
Jacob Wetterling Foundation in Minnesota, both important institutions 
in furthering the cause and building public awareness.
  That being said, once again I want to thank the gentleman from Texas 
(Mr. Lampson), thank the Committee on the Judiciary, and ask for 
support for the bill.
  Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to acknowledge the courageous 
struggle and profound hope of my constituents JoAnn and Carl Rock in 
the search for their missing son, Robert, and to offer support for 
Jennifer's Law, H.R. 1915, introduced by my distinguished colleague 
Congressman Rick Lazio. I thank Congressman Lazio for introducing this 
bipartisan bill.
  In 1995, 26-year-old Robert Rock, son of JoAnn and Carl Rock, 
disappeared, and he has not yet been found. Because he is a missing 
person over the age of 18, Missing Persons Agencies have given Robert's 
case a low priority. Robert's parents believe that their son may be an 
unidentified body in New York. JoAnn and Carl Rock's hope of 
discovering the fate of their son relies upon this Congress passing a 
bill encouraging all law enforcement agencies to report every 
unidentified body to a federal computer database.
  Jennifer's Law consists of establishing a grant award in order to 
encourage that a State, to the greatest extent possible, will be 
involved in reporting to the National Crime Information Center 
throughout the State and other authorities regarding every deceased 
unidentified person, creating a complete profile of such unidentified 
person, and inputting a National Crime Information Center number on the 
death certificate of such an unidentified missing person. Furthermore, 
all such records must be retained until a person is identified as part 
of the application process for the grant.
  I urge my colleagues to offer aid to all parents who may be on a 
search to locate a missing daughter or son by supporting H.R. 1915. 
Jennifer's Law is essential in bringing relief to families such as the 
Rock family, that face the pain inflicted by a life full of unanswered 
questions about the whereabouts of

[[Page H3739]]

their child. H.R. 1915 provides invaluable hope to families whose sons 
and daughters have vanished and remain missing. I therefore ask that 
all my colleagues vote today in support of Jennifer's Law.
  Mr. Speaker, Jennifer's Law is an example of exceptional legislation 
resulting in better government. The tragic story of Carl and JoAnn Rock 
demonstrates the need for comprehensive action on the behalf of the 
thousands of families searching for missing loved ones. H.R. 1915, 
Jennifer's Law, costs little, but it gives in return the priceless gift 
of human compassion.
  Mr. PACKARD. Mr. Speaker, today I would like to express my strong 
support for H.R. 1915, otherwise known as Jennifer's Law. This 
legislation will grant states the necessary funds to assist them in 
entering files of unidentified victims into both the national Missing 
Persons File and the Unidentified Persons File.
  ``Jennifer's Law'' is named after Jennifer Wilmer, who has been 
missing since September 13, 1993. When a person is missing, it touches 
the entire community. In the case of Jennifer, her mother Susan has 
become an aggressive advocate for consolidating federal databases on 
missing and unidentified persons. The fact is, involvement and 
cooperation at the local level is of the utmost importance in saving 
the lives of those classified as missing.
  NCIC created the Missing Persons File in 1975, and eight years later 
the Unidentified Persons File was created as a database of NCIC. 
Currently, local law enforcement agencies under information into the 
Missing Persons File, but do not report cases to the Unidentified 
Persons File. This means the data is not being cross-referenced.
  In an effort to promote cooperation at all levels, H.R. 1915 will 
require states to meet certain criteria before they receive these 
federal funds. States must report missing cases to the National Crime 
Information Center (NCIC) and law enforcement authorities throughout 
the state regarding every deceased unidentified person found. States 
will also be required to enter a profile of the unidentified person, 
the number assigned to the unidentified person on his or her death 
certificate and retain all of the records until the person is 
identified.
  Mr. Speaker, the time has come for us to work together to find 
America's missing persons. Let's protect our loved ones and pass H.R. 
1915.
  Mr. KING. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in recognition of my 
constituents, Fred and Susan Wilmer of Baldwin, NY, whose daughter 
Jennifer Wilmer has been missing since September 13, 1993, to express 
my strong support for the Jennifer's Law Act.
  I am pleased that Congress has made it a priority to support efforts 
to locate and identify all missing persons. This critical legislation 
will require all law enforcement agencies to cross reference missing 
person files with unidentified person files, which believe it or not is 
rarely done. It will also authorize $2 million in competitive grants so 
that states can cover the costs of providing this well needed service.
  Thousands of Americans go through the daily anguish the Wilmer family 
experiences, wondering if they will ever see their loved ones again. I 
believe the Jennifer's Law Act will provide the opportunity for many of 
these families to find peace of mind and closure to their unfortunate 
tragedies.
  Mr. Speaker, I would also like to express my gratitude to the Wilmers 
who have tirelessly transformed their personal grief into political 
action by committing themselves to helping other families with missing 
loved ones. They established ``Finding Our Children Under Stress'' 
FOCUS, an organization dedicated to supporting other parents in 
distress and promoting state and federal legislation to improve methods 
of locating missing persons.
  Mr. Speaker, as an original cosponsor of this important legislation, 
I wholeheartedly urge my colleagues to support this crucial legislation 
today. The Jennifer's Law Act is a step in the right direction that 
will help more and more American families locate their loved ones and I 
strongly urge its adoption.
  Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I rise to strongly support the 
H.R. 1915 that would Improve Reporting of Unidentified & Missing 
Persons.
  Aptly nicknamed ``Jennifer's Law,'' this bill will provide much 
needed assistance to the National Crime Information Center (NCIC) and 
will help ease the pain of families who admirably continue to search 
for lost loved ones. I empathize with the families such as the family 
of the young woman this bill was named after. As a mother, I can 
understand the anguish of having a child move across the country, only 
to have that child disappear without a trace.
  This measure helps to solve such disappearances by urging States to 
improve their reporting on unidentified persons, people found who have 
memory loss, or unidentified deceased persons.
  By establishing a grant program under this measure, States would have 
the incentive to provide far more comprehensive information concerning 
unidentified deceased persons. States will receive these funds only if 
they report to NCIC and State law enforcement authorities every 
deceased unidentified person found in their jurisdiction, provide a 
complete profile of unidentified persons--including dental records, X-
rays, and finger prints, enter the NCIC number assigned to deceased 
unidentified persons on their death certificates, and keep all records 
of about unidentified persons until they are identified.
  This legislation is necessary to bolster the NCIC's current files for 
unidentified persons. Prior to H.R. 1915, unidentified records were 
woefully underreported. The proposed grant program would end this 
dearth of information and would allow the NCIC to provide better, and 
far more comprehensive, information to the American public.
  This legislation provides a great service to the NCIC and the 
American public, and by passing this bill, perhaps we will stem future 
suffering amongst our families. It is my hope that legislation such as 
this will help reunite these families with their lost loved ones.
  Mr. FARR of California. Mr. Speaker, on June 12, residents of the 
Central Coast of California were devastated to learn that Christina 
Williams hadn't returned to her family's home after walking the dog. 
Seven long months later her body was found less than three miles from 
her home.
  I was pleased to become an original cosponsor of H.R. 1915, a bill 
that to provide $2 million in competitive grants to the States to 
improve the reporting of unidentified and missing children. In order to 
receive a grant, a state would report to the National Crime Information 
Center and (when possible to law enforcement authorities within the 
state) information on every deceased unidentified person, including 
dental records, x-rays and fingerprints. The states would then enter 
the National Crime Information Center registration number or other 
identifying number, on the unidentified person's death certificate.
  This simple cross-referencing of missing persons files against 
unidentified persons files will bring closure to thousands of families 
who anxiously await information on their loved ones. In California 
alone, there are over 25,000 missing person files, and only some 1,800 
unidentified persons files. While Christina was found close to home 
which made identification easier, there are thousands of families in 
California who teeter on the edge of the chasm of hope and despair who 
will benefit from passage of H.R. 1915.
  I urge my colleagues to pass H.R. 1915 in memory of Christina 
Williams.
  Mr. LAZIO. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. LAMPSON. Mr. Speaker, again I congratulate the gentleman from New 
York (Mr. Lazio) on the good work that he has done on this bill because 
it will make a difference for people like Susan Wilmer, the mother of 
Jennifer.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time
  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Petri). The question is on the motion 
offered by the gentleman from New York (Mr. Lazio) that the House 
suspend the rules and pass the bill, H.R. 1915.
  The question was taken.
  Mr. LAZIO. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.
  The yeas and nays were ordered.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX and the 
Chair's prior announcement, further proceeding on this motion will be 
postponed.

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