A person hereinafter referred to as an "absentee" is one missing from his usual place of residence and his address is unknown by his family or those who, in the ordinary course of events, would be expected to know his whereabouts and has been continuously absent and unheard of for a period of six (6) months or longer, and is presumed missing and incapable or unable to manage his affairs or property or by permission, assignment or direction of any department or official of the United States in connection with any activity pertaining to or connected with the prosecution of any war in which the United States is then engaged, who has been reported or listed for a period not less than three (3) months by the Department of Defense or other department of the United States as missing, or missing in action, or interned in a neutral country, or beleaguered, besieged, or captured by an enemy. The judge of the district court of the county of such absentee's last-known legal domicile upon petition alleging the foregoing facts and showing the necessity for providing care of the property of such absentee made, verified and filed by any person who would be entitled to administer upon the absentee's estate if he were dead, after causing notice to be given as hereinafter provided, may, upon good cause being shown, after finding the facts to be as aforesaid, appoint a conservator to take charge of the absentee's estate under the supervision and subject to the further orders of the court, provided, however, that before any such conservator may be appointed notice of the hearing upon the petition shall be given as is provided by law for hearings upon petition for appointment of administrators, and in addition thereto, notice thereof shall be given to said absentee by publication for two (2) consecutive weeks in a legal newspaper in the county where said proceedings are pending, the last publication of said notice to be at least fifteen (15) days before the hearing on said petition. Provided, further, when the status of absentee is given by the Department of Defense or other department of the United States a conservator may be appointed only if there is produced at the hearing an official statement signed by a proper official of the United States Government that there has been no change in the status of the absentee from the date of the first report, which statement shall be dated not more than fifteen (15) days before said hearing or any date to which the same may be continued by order of the court.

Laws 1945, p. 189, § 1; Laws 1945, p. 214, § 1; Laws 1971, c. 233, § 1, eff. Oct. 1, 1971.