Does anyone have reliable data that has not been inflated regarding the number of child molestations/abductions over the years? Is it a growing problem in reality or hyped like gun statistics?
Only about 100 missing-child reports each year fit the profile of a stereotypical abduction by a stranger or vague acquaintance.
About a decade ago, I had this conversation with an attorney that was familiar with this field of study. I had told her that I had thought that the incidence per capita had dropped over the years, but that media coverage of these events had gone way up. "Exactly" was her response.
It's not the strangers you need to worry about, it's the people you "know".
Check out the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. Relatives and friends as child molesters is common but many other threats exist.
mike r
Any organization that leads off with the "424,066 children reported missing to law enforcement" in a large animated .gif on their home page is worthy of immense skepticism. And the hard to miss donation buttons, well they're an added bonus.
What they are not telling you is that the vast, vast majority of those 424K reports are due to:
1) Family abductions 2) Children lost, injured, stranded - aka missing involuntarily 3) Runaways or throwaways. 4) Missing with a benign explanation. Nowadays, that pretty much means dead battery in the cell phone, or junior just turned it off.
But please, DO NOT take my word on it. Please read the results of the NISMART surveys for the actual breakdowns.
Not to be contentious but the number quoted on the NCMEC website clearly states that it is the amount "reported missing to law enforcement", no attempt to dissemble or mislead. The NISMART survey is an estimate by a govt. agency w/ the most recent data collected in 2011. I am not an advocate for and have no ties to NCMEC but they do far more to raise awareness of threats to children than any govt. agency.
Scepticism is a healthy attitude to any quoted statistic.
mike r
Don't wish it were easier Wish you were better
Stab them in the taint, you can't put a tourniquet on that. Craig Douglas ECQC
