Many parents have sought the help of the U.S. State Department after their child was illegally held in a foreign country due to international parental abduction. These left-behind parents were told the State Department's Office of Children's Issues could help bring the children back.
Of course, this is not true.
In the past, U.S. Senate and House committees have heard left-behind parents’ testimonies about the unprofessional, inadequate, and sluggish effort by the Office of Children's Issues. Reports by the U.S. Justice Department and U.S. Government Accountability Office note changes are needed to improve this dysfunctional office.
I have created proposed legislation that would call for the transfer of responsibilities and funding regarding international child abduction from the Office of Children's Issues to a new division in the U.S. Justice Department. This proposed division would focus only on interstate and international child abduction cases. To ensure the U.S. Justice Department would investigate, recover, and prosecute, the bill calls for direct attention to new policies of action rather than giving federal authorities discretionary powers to act on an abduction case. All too often, U.S. Attorney offices turn their backs on international child abduction although it is a felony under 18 USC section 1204 (International Parental Kidnapping Crime Act). The National Center for Missing and Exploited Services, currently assigned to handle incoming parental abduction cases, would be assigned to handle case work prior to submitting it to the proposed DOJ division..
The PARENT Act also calls for a better distribution of international parental abduction prevention courses to legal, judicial, and law enforcement officials through the use of professional organizations connected to missing/exploited children prevention awareness across the country. The PARENT Act also eliminates the statute of limitations on international parental abduction and calls for greater jail sentences for abducting parents.
Several offices within Congress, including U.S. Senator Dianne Feinstein, U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley, and Representative Howard Berman, are looking at this proposed legislation that could help improve the chances of abducted children coming home. However, these offices need to see support of the proposed bill before action to sponsor the bill is taken. Join the many missing children organizations and parents who lost their kids to parental abduction by writing or faxing a letter supporting the PARENT Act.
If we can't beat the system, we can change the rules. Let's stop the Office of Children's Issues from placing their priorities to protect diplomatic relations over the abduction of our children. |
