52:17B-194 Findings, determinations relative to child abduction.

1. a. The Legislature finds and determines that:

Child abduction is an unconscionable and horrendous crime;

Parents, and all concerned adults, must be ever alert and vigilant to protect children, who by nature are unsuspecting and trusting, from those who would prey on them;

Despite all the attention and care, reports of child abductions and missing children seem to be on the rise;

Experts and law enforcement officials agree that the most critical moments in the search for an abducted child are the hours immediately after the disappearance, so critical, in fact, that one FBI official has asserted that if an abducted child is not found within two to four hours the chance of recovering that child alive is not good;

The ability to instantly create high quality photos and posters of a missing child and to disseminate them quickly throughout the community, the region, the State and even the nation is one of the most effective tools available to law enforcement agencies engaged in child recovery operations; and

Technology is now available which enables law enforcement agencies to mount fast, effective and coordinated responses to reports of missing or abducted children.

b. The Legislature declares that:

One of society's greatest responsibilities is to protect children;

With an estimated 2,300 child abductions occurring every day in the United States, this crime constitutes one of the primary threats to child safety and to the sense of security and well-being every family deserves and should rightfully expect; and

It is, therefore, altogether fitting and proper, and within the public interest, to establish a State aid program to assist law enforcement agencies in New Jersey in acquiring the technological tools necessary to combat child abductions and to mount fast, effective and coordinated responses to reports of missing or abducted children.

L.1999,c.329,s.1.