Resources

The Missing and Exploited Children’s Program (MECP) aims to address unmet needs within the missing and exploited children sector through the development and dissemination of a wide variety of resources. Learn about juvenile justice-focused publications and other resources available from OJJDP and other agencies within the Office of Justice Programs, other government departments, and agencies and organizations around the country and all over the world. This list is not exhaustive, and we plan to regularly update and expand it moving forward. If you have any suggestions for items to include, please contact us and let us know.

Missing Children/Abduction:

• El delito del secuestro familiar: La perspectiva de hijos y padres: El delito del secuestro familiar: La perspectiva de hijos y padres is the Spanish-language translation of The Crime of Family Abduction: A Child’s and Parent’s Perspective. Authored by survivors of family abduction, this publication provides the searching family, law enforcement, and mental health professionals with strategies to build a comprehensive, child-centered approach to recovery and healing.
• Cuando su niño está desaparecido: Una guía de supervivencia familiar: Cuando su niño está desaparecido: Una guía de supervivencia familiar is the Spanish-language translation of When Your Child Is Missing: A Family Survival Guide. Written by parents who have experienced the trauma of a missing child and who want to help other parents facing the same overpowering loss, the guide provides firsthand knowledge and sound advice about what to do when your child is missing, whom to contact, and how to best help law enforcement.
• ¿Y yo? Cómo sobrellevar el secuestro de un hermano o una hermana is the Spanish-language translation of What about Me? Coping With the Abduction of A Brother or Sister. Written by siblings of children who have been abducted, provides information to help and support children of all ages when their brother or sister is kidnapped.
• No Estas Solo ´El Caminodel Secuestro Al Empoderamiento is the Spanish-language translation of You’re Not Alone: The Journey From Abduction to Empowerment. This publication  presents the stories of several child abduction survivors and how they have grown and developed since their traumatic experiences. Written by the survivors themselves, the publication provides information to help other child abduction survivors cope with their own experiences and begin their journeys towards a better future.
• A Family Resource Guide on International Parental Kidnapping: The guide provides practical, detailed advice for the searching family. It offers descriptions and  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.
• Federal Resources on Missing and Exploited Children: A Directory for Law Enforcement and Other Public and Private Agencies, Sixth Edition: The directory is a compilation of services, programs, publications, and training offered by these agencies to address the issues of child sexual exploitation, child pornography, child abduction, and missing children cases. The new edition of the directory has been redesigned to provide comprehensive, accessible agency information in a concise, user-friendly format.

• Portable Guide Series: This series contains practical information for the professionals who work on the frontlines -law enforcement, social workers, physicians, nurses, emergency medical technicians, firefighters, psychologists, attorneys, judges. Each guide offers best practices for investigating  abuse, neglect, and violent crime cases against children.
• Development of a Surrogate Bruising Detection System to Describe Bruising Patterns Associated with Common Childhood Falls: This project was supported by Grant No. 2008-DD-BX-K311 awarded by the National Institute of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, US Department of Justice. The report describes the outcome  of the design and develop a prototype surrogate bruising detection device having the capability to predict potential bruising patterns in children when adapted to a test dummy used to simulate common household fall events often stated as false scenarios in child abuse.

To order printed copies of the publications listed above or other resources, visit the NCJRS website.