[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 31 (Thursday, March 11, 2004)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2722-S2723]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mrs. FEINSTEIN (for herself, Mrs. Hutchison, Ms. Snowe, Mr. 
        Feingold, and Mrs. Lincoln):
  S. 2199. A bill to authorize the Attorney General to make grants to 
improve the ability of State and local governments to prevent the 
abduction of children by family members, and for other purposes; to the 
Committee on the Judiciary.
   Mrs. FEINSTEIN. Mr. President, I rise today along with Senator 
Hutchison, Senator Snowe, Senator Feingold and Senator Lincoln to 
introduce the ``Family Abduction Prevention Act of 2004,'' a bill to 
help the thousands of children who are abducted by a family member each 
year.
  Family abductions are the most common form of abduction yet they 
receive little attention and law enforcement often doesn't treat them 
as the serious crimes that they are.
  The Family Abduction prevention Act of 2004 would provide grants to 
states for costs associated with family abduction prevention. 
Specifically, it would assist States with: costs associated with the 
extradition of individuals suspected of committing the crime of family 
abduction; costs borne by State and local law enforcement agencies to 
investigate cases of missing children; training for local and State law 
enforcement agencies in responding to family abductions; outreach and 
media campaigns to educate parents on the dangers of family abductions; 
and assistance to public schools to help with costs associated with 
flagging school records.
  Each year, over 200,000 children--78 percent of all abductions in the 
United States--are kidnapped by a family member, usually a non-
custodial parent.
  More than half of abducting parents have a history of domestic 
violence, substance abuse, or a criminal record.
  Most State and local law enforcement agencies do not treat these 
abductions as serious crimes. Approximately 70 percent of law 
enforcement agencies do not have written guidelines on responding to 
family abduction and many are not informed about the Federal laws 
available to help in the search and recovery.

  Many people believe that a child is not in grave danger if the 
abductor is a family member. Unfortunately, this is not true, and the 
assumptions can endanger a child's life. Research shows that the most 
common motive in family abduction cases is revenge against the other 
parent--not out of love for the child.
  The effects of family abduction on children are very traumatic. 
Abducted children suffer from severe separation anxiety. To break 
emotional ties with the left-behind parent, some family abductors will 
coach a child into falsely ``disclosing'' abuse by the other parent to 
perpetuate their control during or after abduction. The child is often 
told that the other parent is dead or did not really love them.
  As the child adapts to a fugitive's lifestyle, deception becomes a 
part of life. The child is taught to fear those that one would normally 
trust, such as police, doctors, teachers and counselors. Even after 
recovery, the child often has a difficult time into adulthood.
  On Takeroot.org, a website devoted to victims of family abductions, 
Rebekah told the story of when her mother kidnapped her.
  Her mother was diagnosed as manic and was verbally abusive to her 
children and husband. Rebekah's father was awarded full custody of her 
and her brothers. However, one weekend, when Rebekah was 4-years-old, 
her mother took her to Texas.
  Her mother had all her moles and distinguishing marks removed from 
her body and she had fake birth certificates made for Rebekah and 
herself. As Rebekah grew up, she was told that her father didn't love 
her and that her siblings didn't want to see her. When the FBI finally 
found Rebekah, she didn't remember her father and felt very alone.
  In addition, in many family abduction cases, children are given new 
identities at an age when they are still developing a sense of who they 
are. In extreme cases, the child's sexual identity is covered up to 
avoid detection.
  Abducting parents often deprive their children of education and much-
needed medical attention to avoid the risk of being tracked via school 
or medical records.

  In extreme cases, the abducting parent leaves the child with 
strangers at an underground ``safe house'' where health, safety, and 
other basic needs are extremely compromised.
  For example, in Lafayette, CA, two girls were abducted by their 
mother and moved from house to house under the control of a convicted 
child molester. Kelli Nunez absconded with her daughters, 6-year-old 
Anna and 4-year-old Emily in violation of court custody orders. Nunez 
drove her daughters cross-country, and then returned by plane to San 
Francisco, where she handed the children to someone holding a coded 
sign at the airport.
  The person holding the sign belonged to an underground vigilante 
group called the California Family Law Center led by Florencio Maning, 
a convicted child molester. For six months, Maning orchestrated the 
concealment of the Nunez girls with help from other people. Luckily, 
police were able to track down the girls and they were successfully 
reunited with their father.
  California has been the Nation's leader in fighting family abduction. 
In my State, we have a system that places the responsibility for the 
investigation and resolution of family abduction cases with the County 
District Attorney's Office. Each California County District Attorney's 
Office has an investigative unit that is focused on family abduction 
cases. Therefore, investigators only handle family abduction cases and 
become experts in the process.
  However, most States lack the training and resources to effectively 
recover children who are kidnapped by a family

[[Page S2723]]

member. According to a study conducted by Plass, Finkelhor and 
Hotaling, 62 percent of parents surveyed said they were ``somewhat'' or 
``very'' dissatisfied with police handling of their family abduction 
cases.
  The ``Family Abduction Prevention Act of 2004'' would be an important 
first step in addressing this serious issue.
  I urge my colleagues to quickly act on this important legislation.
  I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the 
Record.
  There being no objection, the bill was ordered to be printed in the 
Record, as follows:

                                S. 2199

       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 the ``Family Abduction Prevention 
     Act of 2004''.

     SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

       Congress findings that--
       (1) each year more than 203,000 children in the United 
     States (approximately 78 percent of all abducted children) 
     are abducted by a family member, usually a parent;
       (2) more than half of the parents who abduct their children 
     have a history of alcohol or substance abuse, a criminal 
     record, or a history of violence;
       (3) the most common motive for family abduction is revenge 
     against the other parent, not protecting the child's safety;
       (4) children who are abducted by family members suffer 
     emotional, psychological, and often physical abuse at the 
     hands of their abductors;
       (5) children who are victims of family abductions are 
     forced to leave behind family, friends, their homes, their 
     neighborhoods, their schools, and all that is familiar to 
     them;
       (6) children who are victims of family abductions are often 
     told that the parent who did not abduct the child has died, 
     does not love them, or will harm them;
       (7) children who are abducted by their parents or other 
     family members are sometimes forced to live in fear of 
     discovery and may be compelled to conceal their true 
     identity, including their real names, family histories, and 
     even their gender;
       (8) children who are victims of family abductions are often 
     denied the opportunity to attend school or to receive health 
     and dental care;
       (9) child psychologists and law enforcement authorities now 
     classify family abduction as a form of child abuse;
       (10) approximately 70 percent of local law enforcement 
     agencies do not have written guidelines for what to do in the 
     event of a family abduction or how to facilitate the recovery 
     of an abducted child;
       (11) the first few hours of a family abduction are crucial 
     to recovering an abducted child, and valuable hours are lost 
     when law enforcement is not prepared to employ the most 
     effective techniques to locate and recover abducted children;
       (12) when parents who may be inclined to abduct their own 
     children receive counseling and education on the harm 
     suffered by children under these circumstances, the incidence 
     of family abductions is greatly reduced; and
       (13) where practiced, the flagging of school records has 
     proven to be an effective tool in assisting law enforcement 
     authorities find abducted children.

     SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.

     In this Act:
       (1) Family abduction.--The term ``family abduction'' means 
     the taking, keeping, or concealing of a child or children by 
     a parent, other family member, or person acting on behalf of 
     the parent or family member, that prevents another individual 
     from exercising lawful custody or visitation rights.
       (2) Flagging.--The term ``flagging'' means the process of 
     notifying law enforcement authorities of the name and address 
     of any person requesting the school records of an abducted 
     child.
       (3) Indian tribe.--The term ``Indian tribe'' means any 
     Indian tribe, band, nation, or other organized group or 
     community, including any Alaska Native village or regional or 
     village corporation as defined in or established pursuant to 
     the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (43 U.S.C. 1601 et 
     seq.), which is recognized as eligible for the special 
     programs and services provided by the United States to 
     Indians because of their status as Indians.
       (4) State.--The term ``State'' means each of the several 
     States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto 
     Rico, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, 
     American Samoa, Guam, the Virgin Islands, any territory or 
     possession of the United States, and any Indian tribe.

     SEC. 4. GRANTS TO STATES.

       (a) Matching Grants.--The Attorney General shall make 
     grants to States for projects involving--
       (1) the extradition of individuals suspected of committing 
     a family abduction back to the State from which the child was 
     taken;
       (2) the investigation by State and local law enforcement 
     agencies of family abduction cases;
       (3) the training of State and local law enforcement 
     agencies in responding to family abductions and recovering 
     abducted children, including the development of written 
     guidelines and technical assistance;
       (4) outreach and media campaigns to educate parents on the 
     dangers of family abductions; and
       (5) the flagging of school records.
       (b) Matching Requirement.--Not less than 50 percent of the 
     cost of a project for which a grant is made under this 
     section shall be provided by non-Federal sources.

     SEC. 5. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

       For the purpose of carrying out this Act, there are 
     authorized to be appropriated to the Attorney General 
     $500,000 for fiscal year 2004 and such sums as may be 
     necessary for each of fiscal years 2005 and 2006.
                                 ______