N.Y. EXC Law § 837-E — New York Code / Act EXC / Article 35 / Section 837-E
Statewide central register for missing children
Status: in_force

§ 837-e. Statewide central register for missing children. 1. There is\nhereby established through electronic data processing and related\nprocedures, a statewide central register for missing children which\nshall be compatible with the national crime information center register\nmaintained pursuant to the federal missing children act of nineteen\nhundred eighty-two. As used in this article, the term missing child\nshall mean any person under the age of eighteen years, or any youth,\nunder the age of twenty-one years, that the office of children and\nfamily services or a local department of social services has\nresponsibility for placement, care, or supervision, or who is the\nsubject child of a child protective investigation, or is receiving\npreventive services or services under section 477 of the Social Security\nAct, or has run away from foster care, where such office or department\nhas reasonable cause to believe that such youth is, or is at risk of\nbeing, a sex trafficking victim, who is missing from his or her normal\nand ordinary place of residence and whose whereabouts cannot be\ndetermined by a person responsible for the child's care and any child\nknown to have been taken, enticed or concealed from the custody of his\nor her lawful guardian by a person who has no legal right to do so.\n  1-a. (a) Upon the entry of a report of a missing child born in New\nYork into the register, the division shall notify the commissioner of\nthe state department of health or if the child was born in the city of\nNew York, the commissioner of the New York city department of health, of\nsuch entry and shall provide such commissioner with information\nconcerning the identity of the missing child and request that the birth\ncertificate record of such child be flagged in accordance with section\nfour thousand one hundred of the public health law.\n  (b) If the division has reason to believe that a missing child has at\nany time been enrolled in a New York school, it shall notify the last\nknown school at which time the school shall flag the missing child's\nschooling record in accordance with section three thousand two hundred\ntwenty-two of the education law. If the division has reason to believe\nthat a child who is listed as a missing child is currently enrolled in\nand attending a New York school, it shall notify the school and upon\nreceiving notification, such school shall immediately notify the\nstatewide central register for missing children within the division of\ncriminal justice services.\n  (c) Upon learning of the recovery of any missing child whose birth\ncertificate record or schooling record has been flagged as the result of\nnotification made pursuant to this subdivision, the division shall so\nnotify the state commissioner of health or if the child was born in the\ncity of New York, the commissioner of the New York city department of\nhealth, and the school as appropriate.\n  1-b. The division shall transmit the report of the missing child to\nthe National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs) no later\nthan thirty days after entry of a report of a missing child into the\nregister whenever circumstances indicate that the missing child may be\nat immediate risk of death or injury, or may be a match to a record\nmaintained in the NamUs unidentified person database and within one\nhundred eighty days in any other case.\n  2. The following may make inquiries to determine if any entries in the\nregister or in the national crime information center register could\nmatch the subject of the inquiry:\n  (a) a police or criminal justice agency investigating a report of a\nmissing or unidentified child, whether living or deceased; and\n  (b) the agency licensing, certifying or registering a family day care\nhome, day care center or head start program funded pursuant to Title V\nof the Federal Economic Opportunity Act of nineteen hundred sixty-four\nas amended, when an operator or director of such program has reasonable\ncause to believe that a child in attendance at the home, center or\nprogram may be a missing person provided, however, that upon\nnotification that such child appears to match a child registered herein\nsuch agency shall immediately notify such operator or director to\ncontact an appropriate local criminal justice agency; and\n  (c) a district attorney or a county medical examiner or coroner upon a\nshowing that information contained in the register may be necessary for\nthe determination of an issue regarding a missing or unidentified child;\nand\n  (d) an authorized agency or state official pursuant to subdivision\nseven of section three hundred seventy-two of the social services law;\nand\n  (e) a superintendent of schools or his authorized representative\npursuant to paragraph a of subdivision two of section three thousand two\nhundred twelve of the education law. No civil or criminal liability\nshall arise or attach to any school district or employee thereof for any\nact or omission to act as a result of, or in connection with, the duties\nor activities authorized or directed by this paragraph.\n  3. The central register shall contain all available identifying data\nof any child including, but not limited to, fingerprints, blood types,\ndental information, and photographs subject to the following conditions:\n  (a) Except as provided for in paragraph (c) of this subdivision and in\nsection eight hundred thirty-seven-f of this article, the data contained\nin the register shall be confidential.\n  (b) Any person who knowingly and intentionally permits the release of\nany data and information contained in the central register to persons or\nagencies not permitted by this title shall be guilty of a class A\nmisdemeanor.\n  (c) Such data may be made available only to:\n  (i) a police or criminal justice agency investigating a report of a\nmissing child or unidentified child, whether living or deceased;\n  (ii) the public at large, to expedite the finding of a missing child,\nwhen the parent or legal guardian of such a child provides written\nauthorization to the investigating police department for the release of\nsuch data except when, according to such department, the release of such\ndata would jeopardize the investigation or the safety of the child. When\nsuch department deems the release of such data to be appropriate, it\nshall transmit such written authorization to the division; and\n  (iii) any qualified person engaged in bona fide research when approved\nby the commissioner, provided that the researcher in no event disclose\ninformation tending to identify the child or his or her family or\ncaregiver.\n  4. The commissioner shall promulgate rules and regulations:\n  (a) insuring the timeliness, completeness and confidentiality of the\ndata contained in the register;\n  (b) prescribing the manner in which entries to the register shall be\nmade and updated as the investigation progresses;\n  (c) prescribing the form and manner in which entries and inquiries to\nthe register and notices to other agencies and entities shall be made\nand processed;\n  (d) insuring that criminal justice agencies and agencies defined by\nsubdivision seven of section three hundred seventy-two of the social\nservices law making inquiries to the register will be promptly informed\nif any entries in the statewide central register or in the national\ncrime information center register could match the subject of the\ninquiry;\n  (e) insuring the proper disposition of all obsolete register data,\nprovided however that such data for a person who has reached the age of\neighteen and remains missing shall be preserved;\n  (f) linking the register with the national crime information center\nregister; and\n  (g) establishing procedures for transmitting reports of missing\nchildren and adults to the National Missing and Unidentified Persons\nSystem (NamUs) pursuant to subdivision one-b of this section and section\neight hundred thirty-seven-f-two of this article.\n  5. The division shall not charge a fee for inquiries made pursuant to\nthis section.\n  6. When a person previously reported missing has been found alive and\nthere is no ground for criminal action, the superintendent of state\npolice, sheriff, chief of police, coroner or medical examiner, or other\ncriminal justice agency shall purge and destroy identifying material\ncontained in such records and documents with respect to such person\nwhich are made and maintained pursuant to this section and shall report\nto the division that the person has been found and that the identifying\nmaterials contained in such records and documents have been so purged or\ndestroyed. After receiving such a report, the division shall purge\nidentifying material contained in such records with respect to such\nperson and/or destroy any identifying material contained in documents\nwhich are maintained pursuant to this section.\n