[Federal Register Volume 61, Number 138 (Wednesday, July 17, 1996)]
[Notices]
[Pages 37285-37290]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 96-18140]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
[[Page 37286]]
DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
Office of Justice Programs
Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention
[OJP No. 1092]
[ZRIN 1121-ZA42]
Title IV Missing and Exploited Children's Fiscal Year 1996
Program Announcement
AGENCY: Office of Justice Programs, Office of Juvenile Justice and
Delinquency Prevention.
ACTION: Notice of proposed program plan for public comment.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention is
publishing its Title IV Missing and Exploited Children's Fiscal Year
(FY) 1996 Proposed Program Plan and is soliciting public comment on the
proposed plan and priorities. Based on analysis of public comments,
OJJDP will issue its final FY 1996 Title IV Program Plan.
DATES: Comments must be submitted by September 16, 1996.
ADDRESSES: Public comments may be mailed to Shay Bilchik,
Administrator, Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention,
633 Indiana Avenue N.W., Room 742, Washington, D.C. 20531.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ronald C. Laney, Director, Missing and
Exploited Children's Program, 202-616-3637. [This is not a toll-free
number.]
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Missing and Exploited Children's Program
is a program of the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency
Prevention (OJJDP). Pursuant to the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency
Prevention Act (JJDPA) of 1974, as amended, provisions of section 406
(a)(2), codified at 42 U.S.C. 5776, the Administrator of OJJDP is
publishing for public comment a Program Plan for activities authorized
by Title IV, the Missing Children's Assistance Act, codified at 42
U.S.C. 5771 et seq., that OJJDP proposes to implement in FY 1996.
Taking into consideration comments received on this Proposed Program
Plan, the Administrator will develop and publish a Final Program Plan
that describes the program activities OJJDP plans to fund during FY
1996 using Title IV funds.
The actual solicitation of grant applications under the Final
Program Plan will be published at a later date in the Federal Register.
No proposals, concept papers, or other types of applications should be
submitted at this time.
Background: The Nature of the Problem of Missing and Exploited
Children
The issues involving missing and exploited children can be divided
into four categories: family abduction, nonfamily abduction, child
exploitation, and the impact these events have on children and
families. These issues are summarized below, using data drawn from the
1988 National Incidence Study of Missing, Abducted, Runaway, or
Thrownaway Children (NISMART).
Family Abduction
An estimated 354,100 family abductions occur each year. Forty-six
percent of these abductions (163,200) involve concealment of the child,
transportation of the child out of State, or intent by the abductor to
keep the child indefinitely or to permanently alter custody. Of this
more serious subcategory of family abductions, a little more than half
are perpetrated by men who are noncustodial fathers and father figures.
Most victims are children between the ages of 2 to 11. Half involve
unauthorized takings, and half involve failure to return the child
after an authorized visit or stay. Fifteen percent of these abductions
involve the use of force or violence. Between 75 to 85 percent involve
interstate transportation of the child. About half of family abductions
occur before the relationship ends. Half do not occur until 2 or more
years after a divorce or separation, usually after parents develop new
households, move away, develop new relationships, or become
disenchanted with the legal system. More than half occur in the context
of relationships with a history of domestic violence. An estimated 49
percent of abductors have criminal records, and a significant number
have a history of violent behavior, substance abuse, or emotional
disturbance. It is not uncommon for child victims of family abduction
to have their names and appearances altered; to experience medical or
physical neglect, unstable schooling, homelessness; or to endure
frequent moves. These children are often told lies about the abduction
and the left-behind parent, even that the left-behind parent is dead.
Nonfamily Abduction
An estimated 3,200 to 4,600 short-term nonfamily abductions are
known to law enforcement each year. Of these, an estimated 200 to 300
are stereotypical kidnapings where a child is gone overnight, is
killed, or is transported a distance of 50 miles or more or where the
perpetrator intends to keep the child permanently. Young teenagers and
girls are the most common victims. Two-thirds of short-term abductions
involve a sexual assault. A majority are abducted from the street. More
than 85 percent of nonfamily abductions involve force, and more than 75
percent involve a weapon. Most episodes last less than a day. Most
researchers and practitioners consider the number of short-term
abductions to be an underestimate because of police reporting methods
and lack of reporting on the part of victims. FBI data support
estimates of 43 to 147 stranger abduction homicides of children
annually between 1976 and 1987. An estimated 114,600 nonfamily
abductions are attempted each year, all involving strangers and usually
involving an attempt to lure a child into a car. In a majority of these
cases, the police were not contacted.
Child Exploitation
Children are also at risk of being victimized as a result of a
range of circumstances that fall into three categories: running away,
being thrownaway by parents or guardians, or being otherwise lost or
missing.
An estimated 446,700 children run away from households each year.
In addition, an estimated 12,800 children run from juvenile facilities
each year. Many children who run from households also run from
facilities. About one-third of these runaways left home or a juvenile
facility more than once. Of all runaways, 133,500 are without secure
and familiar places to stay during their episodes. More than a third of
runaways run away more than once during the year. One in ten travels a
distance of more than 100 miles. Of the runaways from juvenile
facilities, almost one-half leave the State. Runaways are mostly
teenagers, but almost 10 percent are 11 years old and younger. They
tend to come disproportionately from households with stepparents.
Family conflict seems to be at the heart of most runaway episodes.
Between 60 and 70 percent of runaways report being seriously abused
physically. Sexual abuse estimates range from 25 to 80 percent of the
total. Runaways, particularly chronic runaways, are at higher risk for
physical and sexual victimization, substance abuse, sexually
transmitted diseases, unintended pregnancies, violence, and suicide.
There are an estimated 127,100 thrownaway children who are directly
told to leave their households, who have been away from home and are
not allowed back by their caretakers, whose caretakers make no effort
to recover them when they have run away, or who
[[Page 37287]]
have been abandoned or deserted. By comparison, for every child who is
a thrownaway, there are four runaway children. An estimated 59,200
thrownaway children are without secure and familiar places to stay
during the episodes. Most thrownaways are older teenagers, but
abandoned children tend to be young (half under the age of 4).
Thrownaways are concentrated in low-income families and families
without both natural parents. Compared to runaways, thrownaways
experience more violence and conflict within their families and are
less likely to return home.
An estimated 438,200 children are lost, injured, or otherwise
missing each year. Of these, 139,100 cases are serious enough for the
police to be called. Almost half involve children under 4. Most of
these episodes last less than a day. A fifth of the children
experienced physical harm. Fourteen percent of the children were abused
or assaulted during the episodes.
Impact on Children and Families
The majority of families of missing children experience substantial
psychological consequences and emotional distress. The level of
emotional distress equals or exceeds the emotional distress for other
groups of individuals exposed to trauma, such as combat veterans and
victims of rape, assault, or other violent crime, with families where
the missing child is subsequently recovered deceased exhibiting the
highest level of emotional distress. Once home, a third of abducted
children live in constant fear of a reabduction. Many child victims of
family abduction experience substantial psychological consequences and
emotional distress. Trauma symptoms may be evident for up to 4 or 5
years after recovery. More than 80 percent of recoveries of missing
children are concluded in less than 15 minutes with no psychological or
social service support. Almost four-fifths of victims and families of
missing children do not receive mental health or counseling services.
The only nonfamily person present is most often a police officer.
Long Range Plan for Future Title IV Funding
In FY 1995 OJJDP published a Long Range Plan for Title IV, which
was based on the latest research in the field and on the input of
experts and individuals who had been involved in family abduction
cases. This Long Range Plan was designed to guide the expenditure of
funds appropriated under Title IV for programs and services to benefit
missing and exploited children and their families. OJJDP uses the Long
Range Plan to establish Missing Children's Assistance Act priorities,
develop programs, make grant awards, and deliver technical assistance
and training.
As part of the Long Range Plan, OJJDP's Title IV funds are
allocated to address three major goals. Each of these goals is aimed at
improving services to missing and exploited children and their families
by using existing community resources and multidisciplinary approaches.
The three goals established in the Long Range Plan and OJJDP's current
and proposed strategies to meet them are discussed below.
Goal 1: Increase Awareness of Problems Relating to Missing and
Exploited Children
OJJDP is developing a series of clearly stated messages about
missing and exploited children and vehicles to disseminate this
information to targeted audiences. In cooperation with the National
Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC), OJJDP is developing
public service announcements (PSA's) to communicate information about
the human, economic, and social costs of the victimization of missing
and exploited children and their families. PSA's aimed at parents,
professionals, and policymakers will be used to increase the visibility
of the problem of missing and exploited children (including those who
are abducted by their parents), raise public awareness about the needs
of these children, and bring greater attention to the resources and
services that are available to aid and support children who are
missing, abducted, or victimized.
In FY 1996 OJJDP plans to use new technologies, such as
teleconferencing and video training materials, to increase awareness
and understanding of issues associated with missing and exploited
children. OJJDP also will allocate funds to State clearinghouses
through NCMEC to upgrade their online communications networks and
enhance their ability to disseminate information about missing and
exploited children. Supplemental funds will be awarded to NCMEC's
Resource Center to provide these upgrades.
OJJDP plans to conduct training workshops in FY 1996 for State
clearinghouses and missing children's organizations on
multijurisdictional collaboration to offer communities creative
solutions to common problems and challenges.
Another important step is development of strategies to determine if
PSA's and messages regarding missing and exploited children are
reaching their intended audience and improving understanding about the
problems and needs associated with these children. Survey information
or focus groups can be used to evaluate and assess how well public
education materials impart key facts about prevention, intervention
services, and the need to prosecute crimes against children committed
by adults.
Goal 2: Develop Community Approaches for Addressing Problems
Relating to Missing and Exploited Children
OJJDP will use the Title IV program to identify, design, and make
available effective community approaches for addressing the problems of
missing and exploited children and their families. These approaches
will deal with specific aspects of family abduction, nonfamily
abduction, and otherwise missing children.
Two Title IV projects will identify gaps and overlaps, increase
knowledge and information about missing and exploited children, and
improve the system's response to these children. OJJDP's Prevention of
Parent or Family Abduction of Children Through Early Intervention Risk
Factors is designed to reduce the number of parental abductions by
identifying the factors and circumstances that are most likely to lead
to the abduction of a child by a parent or a family member. Through
increased awareness and understanding of risk factors, prevention and
intervention tactics can be more sharply focused. NISMART II (National
Incidence Studies of Missing, Abducted, Runaway, and Thrownaway
Children II), which was awarded in FY 1995 and is scheduled for
completion in FY 1998, will improve understanding of the needs and
problems associated with missing and exploited children. This study
will expand the information and data generated by the original NISMART
study and will generate more information about relatively new
categories of missing children such as thrownaways and otherwise lost
children.
In addition to these studies, Title IV has funded a number of
initiatives that are responding to needs and gaps already identified in
the field. The American Bar Association (ABA) is establishing a network
of attorneys to represent families in legal actions under the Hague
Convention. The ABA is recruiting and providing legal support to these
attorneys, who will work with families referred from the NCMEC and the
U.S. Department of State.
[[Page 37288]]
Through a cooperative agreement with the Association of Missing and
Exploited Children Organizations (AMECO), a consortium of nonprofit
organizations, standardized intake forms and procedures are being
developed for nonprofit missing children's organizations (NPO's).
Training and technical assistance needs of NPO's are being identified
through focus groups, surveys of State missing children clearinghouses
and nonprofit organizations, and consultation with AMECO
representatives. After the identification of training needs, OJJDP's
Title IV Training and Technical Assistance Project will develop a
curriculum for training.
Title IV programs emphasize the use of existing resources and the
development of multiagency approaches for dealing with missing and
exploited children issues. This includes programs to help communities
develop comprehensive case management methods and approaches, programs
focusing on addressing confidentiality and information sharing issues
and concerns, and programs that promote interagency collaboration.
Effective Community-Based Approaches for Dealing with Missing and
Exploited Children, awarded in FY 1995, is a study that will help
communities establish methods and procedures for multiagency planning
and resource sharing. Conducted by the ABA, this study will identify
effective community-based approaches for dealing with missing and
exploited children. Study results will be used to design a training
curriculum to help communities plan, implement, and evaluate a
multiagency response to missing and exploited children and their
families.
OJJDP's Missing and Exploited Children's Comprehensive Action
Program (M/CAP), originally funded in FY 1988, has provided training
and technical assistance to help local communities identify and address
problems relating to missing and exploited children. Through a self-
assessment process, community agencies are encouraged to work together
to identify issues and needs; examine, plan, and allocate resources
more effectively; and establish a comprehensive case-management system
for serving missing and exploited children. M/CAP emphasizes
multiagency cooperation and collaboration, information and resource
sharing, and community planning and action. In FY 1996 M/CAP will be
integrated into OJJDP's Title IV Training and Technical Assistance
Program.
To encourage both justice system and human service agencies to
participate actively in addressing issues associated with missing and
exploited children, Title IV training programs and activities promote
the use of community-based, multiagency teams to address issues
relating to missing and exploited children. Attendance at many of
OJJDP's training programs (such as M/CAP, cited above, and the Child
Abuse and Exploitation Team Investigative Program) requires
participation by both justice and human service agencies.
To ensure that OJJDP is abreast of emerging training needs and that
Title IV training programs meet the needs of professionals in the
field, OJJDP and its training and technical assistance providers are
establishing a comprehensive training and technical assistance plan
that is coordinated with other Federal agency training programs.
Current and planned training and technical assistance activities are
based on a thorough needs assessment of various constituent groups,
including nonprofit organizations, law enforcement personnel, and
attorneys. OJJDP integrates the latest research and evaluation results
into its missing and exploited children training and technical
assistance programs.
A calendar with a schedule of Title IV training and technical
assistance activities is produced and updated on a regular basis. This
schedule is used to plan Title IV training programs and activities;
track resources, course availability, and demand; and coordinate Title
IV activities with training and technical assistance activities
sponsored by other Federal, State, local, private, or public agencies
and other organizations.
OJJDP is also developing new training programs in direct response
to needs identified from the field and reflected in the Title IV Long
Range Plan. One example is the training that is being developed for
chief executive officers (CEO's). CEO's have not been adequately
targeted to receive information and training related to Title IV. As a
result missing and exploited children's issues have not been given the
level of priority necessary to effect change. Through OJJDP's Title IV
Training and Technical Assistance Program, conducted by Fox Valley
Technical College, a 1-day CEO program is being designed to highlight
the most current research and practice relating to missing and
exploited children. This program will enhance CEO knowledge and
awareness about missing and exploited children needs and issues,
improve community response to these children, and help community
leaders integrate the needs and concerns of missing and exploited
children into their overall community plans and strategies.
A 40-hour Child Sexual Exploitation Investigation Training
curriculum for law enforcement investigators also was developed and
tested this past year. This course will be offered regionally and will
become part of the comprehensive training and technical assistance
program offered through Title IV.
Through the Title IV Training and Technical Assistance Program,
OJJDP will conduct a State clearinghouse needs assessment to identify
problems and concerns and training and technical assistance needs. This
information will be used to develop strategies and resources to respond
to these concerns.
In FY 1996 OJJDP will identify information gaps and needs and
address them through research, training, technical assistance, and
other support. Through an interagency agreement, OJJDP will support an
FBI research manager position and pay for investigating agents' travel
expenses to interview convicted pedophiles. The purpose of these
interviews is to increase law enforcement's understanding of homicidal
pedophiles' methods in target selection, body disposal, advance
planning, and luring strategies.
Goal 3: Provide Assistance to Communities to Help Them Implement
Effective Approaches for Serving This Population
OJJDP assists communities committed to implementing effective
approaches for dealing with the problems of missing and exploited
children and their families. This assistance includes site visits,
training, assessment reports, publications, teleconferences, and
delivery of technical assistance and services.
OJJDP is developing a marketing plan to identify communities,
constituent groups, or practitioners that might be interested in making
further use of services supported by Title IV. The needs assessments of
various constituent groups will contribute to this marketing plan and
strategy. The marketing plan will be based on an analysis of the
location of various types of child victimization related to Title IV
and past community interest in Title IV issues. Materials and methods
for marketing technical assistance and training to these communities
will be developed.
To complement OJJDP's planning for future training and assessment
of technical assistance needs, OJJDP is
[[Page 37289]]
expanding its evaluation of technical assistance and training
activities funded through Title IV. Grantees who deliver these services
will provide the names and addresses of all individuals who requested
and received services through Title IV. This information will be used
to distribute evaluation surveys to assess the quality and
effectiveness of services delivered.
Fiscal Year 1996 Programs
The Title IV continuation programs and proposed new programs for FY
1996 are summarized below. The available funds, listing of
implementation sites, and other descriptive information are subject to
change based on the plan review process, grantee performance,
application quality, fund availability, and other factors. OJJDP has a
limited amount of funds for new programs in FY 1996. Proposed new
program funding levels are based on the availability of appropriations.
Additional programs may be added to the plan based on the review and
comment process.
Continuation Programs
National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. ($3,195,000)
This 3-year cooperative agreement funds the operation of a national
resource center and clearinghouse as mandated in section 404 (b), 42
U.S.C. 5773, of the JJDPA. The Clearinghouse operates a 24-hour toll-
free telephone line through which individuals may report information
regarding the location of a child who is missing or who is age 13 or
younger and whose whereabouts are unknown to the child's legal
custodian or request information pertaining to procedures necessary to
reunite the child with the legal guardian. The Clearinghouse is
responsible for providing a wide range of assistance to State and local
governments, public and private nonprofit agencies, and individuals.
This assistance includes coordinating public and private programs that
locate, recover, or reunite missing children with their legal
guardians; providing training and technical assistance; disseminating
information about innovative and model missing children's programs; and
facilitating the lawful use of school records to identify and locate
missing children.
In FY 1996 an additional $100,000 over the amount of FY 1995
funding will be provided to the Clearinghouse grantee, NCMEC, to
upgrade the State clearinghouse online communications network.
Enhancements will include updated personal computers and software
components, high speed modems, advanced software, and imaging
capability.
National Alzheimer Patient Alert Program. ($900,000)
OJJDP has responsibility for this program because NCMEC serves as
the clearinghouse and operates the hotline for the Alzheimer program.
The purpose of this program is to continue to expand the national
registry of memory-impaired persons, support the toll-free telephone
service, provide a Fax Alert System, conduct a ``train the trainers''
program for law enforcement and emergency personnel, develop
information and educational materials, launch a national public
awareness campaign, and transition current ``wandering persons''
programs into the national safe return program.
Title IV Training and Technical Assistance. ($1,250,000)
The Title IV Training and Technical Assistance Program assists
OJJDP and missing children grantees in raising the awareness of missing
children services and improving system capabilities to meet the needs
of missing and exploited children. This is accomplished by developing
and implementing quality training and technical assistance for Federal,
State, and local governments; nonprofit organizations; and Title IV
grantees. The grantee, Fox Valley Technical College, uses an advisory
board composed of law enforcement, nonfamily and family abduction
victim parents, and family services, mental health, prosecution,
school, and medical professionals to provide input and direction.
In FY 1996 the Title IV Training and Technical Assistance Program
also will assume responsibility for providing training and technical
assistance related to the Missing and Exploited Children's
Comprehensive Action Program (M/CAP). M/CAP is a national demonstration
project to promote the implementation of multiagency community
approaches to respond to missing and exploited children cases. Through
a broad program of technical assistance and training, M/CAP has helped
agencies develop an effective multiagency team to deal with missing and
exploited children cases and provided training and technical assistance
to build specialized skills to handle these cases.
In FY 1996 assistance will be offered to project sites that are in
the process of developing a long-range implementation plan. Training
and technical assistance will also be provided to sites that have
already adopted long-range implementation plans. Training and technical
assistance materials will be incorporated into the Title IV Training
and Technical Assistance Program. Existing M/CAP sites will be
encouraged to serve as regional technical assistance sites to provide
OJJDP with a mechanism to support the delivery of services through the
Title IV Training and Technical Assistance Program.
Association of Missing and Exploited Children's Organizations (AMECO).
($28,430)
An award will be made to AMECO, a consortium of nonprofit
organizations (NPO's), to further enhance and support the capabilities
of nonprofit organizations serving missing and exploited children.
Specifically, AMECO will be developing standardized intake forms for
NPO's, developing communications systems (online networks) to link
NPO's, developing and distributing an NPO newsletter to discuss
emerging themes and legislative issues, enhancing information sharing,
facilitating discussions regarding fundraising among NPO's, and working
with OJJDP to identify and assess the training and technical assistance
needs of NPO's.
National Missing Children Data Archive. ($25,000)
This agreement continues funding for the Missing Children Data
Archive. Through a cooperative agreement with the University of
Michigan Consortium for Political and Social Research, staff process
and archive OJJDP missing children data into a readily understandable,
standard format (this includes data sets produced through OJJDP missing
children projects).
National Crime Information Center (NCIC). ($100,000)
FY 1996 funds will be awarded to continue NCMEC's online access to
the FBI National Crime Information Center's Wanted and Missing Persons
files.
NISMART II. ($1,494,782)
Temple University Institute for Survey Research was awarded a grant
in FY 1995 to conduct the second National Incidence Studies of Missing,
Exploited, Abducted, Runaway, and Thrownaway Children (NISMART II).
This project builds on the strengths and creatively addressees some of
the weaknesses of NISMART I. Temple has assembled a team of experts in
the field of child victimization and survey research capabilities,
particularly surveys involving children and families
[[Page 37290]]
concerning sensitive topics. Temple is contracting with the University
of New Hampshire Survey Research Lab and Westat, Inc., to carry out
specific components of the study and providing extensive background
knowledge about the particulars of NISMART I. Specifically, the project
will (1) Revise NISMART definitions, (2) conduct a household survey
that interviews both caretaker and child, (3) conduct a police records
study, (4) conduct a juvenile facilities study, (5) analyze National
Incidence Study--3 Community Professionals Study, (6) develop a single
estimate of missing children, and (7) conduct analyses and prepare
reports. No additional funds will be awarded to this project in FY
1996. The project is scheduled for completion in FY 1998.
Missing Children Program To Increase Understanding of Child Sexual
Exploitation. ($98,000)
This project is a joint effort between OJJDP and the Office for
Victims of Crimes. The goal of the project is to learn more about the
missing children problem as it relates to children who become the
victims of sexual exploitation, including pornography and prostitution;
the precipitating circumstances surrounding children's path to
involvement in pornography and prostitution; and the response of law
enforcement, social welfare, and judicial systems to this serious and
growing problem. The Educational Development Center is completing Phase
II of this project, which involves youth interviews and the completion
of reports.
Awarded with FY 1994 funding, the project is scheduled for
completion in June 1997.
Effective Community-Based Approaches for Dealing With Missing and
Exploited Children. ($249,234)
In FY 1995 the ABA was awarded an 18-month grant to study effective
community-based approaches for dealing with missing and exploited
children. The objectives of Phase I of this study are to (1) Conduct a
national search for communities that have implemented a multiagency
response to missing and exploited children and their families, (2)
select five communities with a viable working multiagency response that
holds promise for replication, (3) evaluate these five communities, and
(4) prepare a final report. In Phase II the ABA will design and develop
a modular training curriculum to help communities plan, implement, and
evaluate a multiagency response to missing and exploited children and
their families. No funds will be awarded in FY 1996.
Obstacles to the Recovery and Return of Parentally Abducted Children:
International Child Abduction Attorney Network. ($170,299)
The goal of this project is to establish the International Child
Abduction Network, composed of attorneys who are willing to represent
parents on a pro bono basis in legal actions under the Hague Convention
on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction and who are
knowledgeable of the Hague and its implementing status in the United
States. The key objectives of this project are to recruit 300 attorneys
within 10 months; update, produce, and disseminate relevant legal
materials for these attorneys, including special issue briefs; and
establish a mechanism for upkeep and continuation of the referral
network over time. This referral network will be used by NCMEC to
resolve incoming Hague Convention cases. Funding for this 1-year
project was awarded to the ABA in FY 1995. The project will be
completed in FY 1996.
New Programs
Parent Resource Support Network. ($125,000)
OJJDP proposes to solicit competitive proposals for an assistance
award to a nonprofit organization to develop and maintain a parent
support network. The need for victim parents to speak with other victim
parents has emerged as a constant theme in several OJJDP focus groups.
The goal of this project would be to stimulate development of a network
of screened and trained parent volunteers who will provide assistance
and advice to other victim parents.
Product Development and Technical Assistance on Computer Crimes.
($150,000)
OJJDP plans to solicit competitive proposals for assistance in
developing materials on child sexual exploitation to aid State
legislatures that are considering new laws on computer-related crime
against children (e.g., the use of the Internet for enticement of
children). A complete analysis of Federal and State laws relating to
computers and crimes against children is needed, leading to specific
recommendations in policy, practice, and law. Areas to cover include,
but are not limited to, constitutional issues, privacy issues,
liability of law enforcement officers and network providers, legal
responsibility of parents, and legal issues relating to providers'
screening communications and participants on the Internet. Products
include a survey of laws and trends; an annotated bibliography of
current literature; legal issue briefs on specific key issues; model
statutes; training curriculums for law enforcement officers,
prosecutors, and law schools; and a comprehensive dissemination plan.
Judicial Teleconference on Interstate and Intrastate Child Abduction.
($50,000)
State court judges do not have sufficient information or knowledge
regarding the laws pertaining to interstate and international parental
abduction. This lack of information impedes effective resolution of
jurisdictional conflicts between States and implementation of the Hague
Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction. A
teleconference on interstate and international child custody
jurisdiction and parental abduction would provide an opportunity for
judges around the country to access information in an affordable,
convenient forum. Conference proceedings can be used to develop a
guidebook for judges. OJJDP proposes to fund this teleconference
through an existing Part C discretionary grant with Eastern Kentucky
University.
Dated: July 14, 1996.
Shay Bilchik,
Administrator, Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention.
[FR Doc. 96-18140 Filed 7-16-96; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4410-19-P
