INVESTIGATIVE CHECKLIST

The Patrol First Responder Checklist below provides information to enable accurate and appropriate 

scene. The preliminary decisions made and actions taken during the initial response have a profound 

themselves with this checklist prior to any reports of missing or abducted children. For disclaimer and 

additional details, please visit https://www.amber-ic.org/resources/checklists. 

1. If possible and circumstances/policy allow, activate body

camera or vehicle-mounted camera when approaching

the scene to record vehicles, people, and anything else of

note for later investigative review.

If no recording device is available, be prepared to take notes of surroundings and observations.

NOTES:

for Patrol First Responders

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This publication was prepared under Cooperative Agreement number 2017-MC-FX-K003 from the Office of Juvenile Justice and 

Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP), U.S. Department of Justice. Points of view or opinions expressed in this document are those of the 

authors and do not necessarily represent the official position or policies of OJJDP or the U.S. Department of Justice.

INVESTIGATIVE CHECKLIST

for Supervisory Officers

The Supervisory Officer Checklist below guides oversight and decision-making to promote adequate 

information collection and immediate implementation of investigative resources in response to reports 

of endangered missing or abducted children. Effective supervisory officer response is critical to the 

success of the investigation, as this officer is the catalyst to enable guidance and overall investigative 

coordination and oversight. Supervisory officers are encouraged to familiarize themselves with this 

checklist prior to any reports of endangered missing or abducted children.

This publication was prepared under Cooperative Agreement number 2017-MC-FX-K003 from the U.S. Department of Justice, 

Office of Justice Programs, (OJP). Points of view or opinions expressed in this document are those of the authors and do not 

necessarily represent the official position or policies of OJP or the U.S. Department of Justice.

Ensure the first responder(s) has taken the following actions. Note: Do not obtain the 

briefing in the presence of family, friends, and/or witnesses.

• Secured the scene

• Searched the home

• Gathered descriptive information and photos on the missing child and suspect(s) if 

known

• Worked with communications to enter all pertinent information into the National Crime 

Information Center (NCIC) within no more than two hours from the time of the initial 

call/report. Note: The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC), and/

or your state Missing Persons Clearinghouse can assist you with NCIC readiness and 

entry. Call NCMEC toll-free at 1-800-THE-LOST® (1-800-843-5678)

1. Obtain a briefing from the first responding officer(s) and any investigative 

personnel involved at this juncture. Verify the accuracy of all descriptive 

information and other details developed so far during the preliminary 

investigation.

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Supervisory Officer Checklist 2

The U.S. Department of Justice recommends the following criteria for AMBER Alert 

programs:

• There is reasonable belief by law enforcement that an abduction has occurred.

• The law enforcement agency believes that the child is in imminent danger of serious 

bodily injury or death.

• There is enough descriptive information about the victim and the abduction for law 

enforcement to issue an AMBER Alert to assist in the recovery of the child.

• The abduction is of a child aged 17 years or younger.

• The child’s name and other critical data elements, including the Child Abduction flag, 

have been entered into the NCIC system.

Activation of an AMBER Alert can be a critically important tool in engaging the public in 

efforts to locate an abducted child. Be aware of your state’s AMBER Alert plan’s criteria for 

issuing an alert.

If an AMBER Alert is issued, confirm that telecommunications personnel update the missing 

child record with the AA (AMBER Alert Flag). This will trigger automatic notifications to 

NCMEC and the FBI to support your agency with any assistance needed as the investigation 

progresses.

Find your state’s AMBER Alert Contact Information

2. If not already activated, decide if circumstances meet the protocol for 

activation of an AMBER Alert and/or other immediate public alerting systems.

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Supervisory Officer Checklist 3

If an AMBER Alert is activated or further investigation is needed, you will very likely need 

to recruit additional agency personnel to assist in information intake, management and 

coordination of investigative resources as the case unfolds.

Consider implementing perimeter patrol to intensify efforts aimed at locating a missing child 

or obtaining information about events surrounding the case. Perimeter patrol is the act of 

saturating the area where the child was last seen to ask residents, shopkeepers, workers, 

and passersby if they know, saw, or heard anything that might be associated with the 

incident. This technique works well when there is a known suspect vehicle.

3. Determine if additional agency personnel are needed to assist in the 

investigation.

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You should establish a command post if any of the following situations exist.

• The number of people at a scene exceeds the capability of the on-site supervisor to 

establish and maintain safety and control of the situation

• Multiple units are being directed by various supervisors

• Multiple activities are taking place at one time

• An extraordinary incident, such as a child abduction or child homicide, has occurred, 

creating anxiety/fear of endangerment and/or hazard to the community

Also consider the following actions.

• You will need to establish a dedicated hotline for the public to use for reporting 

information. The individual(s) handling hotline/tip line calls should be based at your 

command post.

• The command post should be established at a centralized location with respect to the 

areas of interest such as the child’s home, the location where the abduction occurred, 

etc.

• Ensure the command post is situated at a sustainable location for long term use 

during the investigation.

4. Establish a command post away from the missing child’s residence.

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Supervisory Officer Checklist 4

• Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) – If you believe the child is in fact missing/

abducted, especially if it warrants the activation of an AMBER Alert, the FBI should be 

contacted as they can provide significant investigative resources. Note: When the Child 

Abduction (CA) or AMBER Alert (AA) flags are applied to the missing child NCIC record, 

automatic notifications are made to the FBI and the National Center for Missing and 

Exploited Children (NCMEC).

• State/Local Police or Sheriff – To ensure you can respond fully to any activity 

occurring outside of (or has moved across) state and/or tribal boundaries, you need 

to include law enforcement from those jurisdictions and likely surrounding areas 

depending on suspected direction of travel, vehicle(s) and persons involved, etc.

• State Missing Children Clearinghouse – For assistance with case registration, 

records/intelligence analysis, photo dissemination, and logistical needs such as 

transportation of recovered children, etc.

• Specialized Units – Including the following

• Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Forces

• Federal Parent Locator Service (FPLS)

• National Center for the Analysis of Violent Crime (NCAVC) – requested through the 

FBI

• S. Marshalls Service

• Victim-Witness Services – Contact local crime victim services or tribal crisis support. 

If you need assistance in working with the family of the missing child, you can 

include NCMEC’s Family Advocacy Division and/or Exploited Children Division for first 

response social services support in providing updates and resources to the family as 

the investigation progresses. Call NCMEC toll-free at 1-800-THE-LOST® (1-800-843-

5678)

• NCMEC’s Project ALERT®/Team Adam – Investigative support for rapid response 

(Team Adam), and for longer-term and/or cold cases (Project ALERT®).

• Child Abduction Response Teams (CART) – A multi-disciplinary (and often multijurisdictional) team to provide a wide base of investigative, specialized and volunteer 

management support. CARTs are a major force multiplier in critical missing and child 

abduction cases. Work proactively to identify the CART(s) serving your area and build 

relationships and agreements to promote effective call out and communications when 

minutes matter when cases occur.

5. Determine if additional assistance is necessary from other agencies and 

organizations with specialized personnel, expertise and resources for critical 

incidents.

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Supervisory Officer Checklist 5

Proactively work to identify the location and control of resources (both personnel and 

equipment/technologies) which are likely to be needed; establish agreements and 

procedures which outline how to request, timelines for response, and other important 

elements of operations around these resources. This will promote swift and coordinated 

response, and avoid unnecessary delays, when minutes matter in a missing child incident. 

The following factors should be considered.

• Command post and necessary resources have been established (if this has not 

happened, see “Establish a command post away from the child’s residence” above).

• Assistance from other law enforcement agencies and organizations has already 

been requested (if this has not happened, see “Determine if additional assistance is 

necessary” above).

• Confirm the missing child has been entered into NCIC and the record is being updated 

with all descriptive, suspect, vehicle and persons with information data obtained as 

the investigation progresses.

• Confirm your telecommunications center is assisting you with the NCIC record entry 

and management.

• Confirm all investigative officers and first responders are taking the required steps to 

proceed with the investigation.

6. Confirm all required resources, equipment, and assistance to conduct an 

efficient investigation have been requested and take action to expedite their 

availability if needed.

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Supervisory Officer Checklist 6

Before and after the command post is established, ensure responsibilities are clearly 

outlined for all parties involved, including outside law enforcement and other organization 

personnel (i.e., who will conduct searches and where, who will monitor the hotline for 

tips, who will enter the data into the NCIC database, etc.). This includes ensuring reports 

are completed by all personnel involved, as well as maintaining a chronological log of all 

administrative and investigative efforts.

Each agency should have a specific protocol for missing child incidents that identifies those 

persons or other agencies to be notified and/or coordinated with throughout these critical 

incidents. If time allows, monitor operations to assess/verify whether all actions comply with 

agency policy and procedure (important for after-action/debrief learning). This includes your 

agency as well as any other agencies and organizations assisting in the investigation.

7. Take action to ensure coordination/cooperation among all law enforcement 

personnel involved in the investigation and search effort.

8. Ensure all actions, including notifications, are conducted in 

accordance with agency policy and procedures.

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Supervisory Officer Checklist 7

Have multiple forms of communication available (phone, 2-way radio, email, etc.) and 

establish a hierarchy for the use/triaging of communication methods (e.g., attempt the 

2-way radio first, then elevate to phone calls and/or directed messages, etc.).

If an AMBER Alert is issued, this step becomes extremely important. Media must be notified 

and updated regularly with tip line and web/social tips/leads information, updates in 

the case, and additional images of the child, and any suspects and/or vehicles involved. 

Remember from above, dedicated and trained tip line/call intake staff must be in place 

and ready to handle the influx of calls and tips that will come in once the media begins 

broadcasting/publishing on the case.

In rural areas, including Tribal communities, posting flyers in public places such as schools, 

shops, and Tribal government buildings may be more effective depending on TV and radio 

reception and internet/cellular service availability. The overarching goal is to use any and all 

credible media sources/tools can reach the largest number of people possible, and which 

can be effectively managed for timely updates, removal of erroneous information/posts, and 

in protecting the integrity of the case and safety of the missing child and his/her family.

9. Remain available to make any decisions or determinations as needs develop.

10.Use media including television and radio broadcasts, websites, social media, 

and print media to assist in the search throughout the case, no matter long it 

is open. These notifications/updates, public calls to action to help locate the 

child, and images of the child, suspect, and/or vehicles involved are absolutely 

essential in keeping the public engaged in efforts to spot/locate and report 

tips/leads.

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Supervisory Officer Checklist 8

If Victim-Witness Services or any other specialized units meant to work with the family 

have not already been deployed or connected with the missing child’s family, ensure this is 

accomplished swiftly and fully. NCMEC’s Family Advocacy Division is highly recommended 

for this step. Call NCMEC toll-free at 1-800-THE-LOST® (1-800-843-5678)

11.Ensure support services are provided to the family in a timely manner and 

maintained throughout (and following closure of) the investigation.

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