I
103D CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. R. 291
To amend title 10, United States Code, to establish procedures for determin-
ing whether members of the Armed Forces in a missing status or certain
civilian officers and employees are deceased, to require certain informa-
tion to be kept in the personnel files of such persons, and for other
purposes.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
JANUARY 5, 1993
Mr. MURPHY (for himself and Mr. SWIFT) introduced the following bill; which
was referred to the Committee on Armed Services
A BILL
To amend title 10, United States Code, to establish proce-
dures for determining whether members of the Armed
Forces in a missing status or certain civilian officers
and employees are deceased, to require certain informa-
tion to be kept in the personnel files of such persons,
and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Missing Service Per-
sonnel Act of 1993’’.
SEC. 2. PURPOSE.
The purpose of this Act is to ensure that any member
of the Armed Forces or any civilian officer or employee
serving with or accompanying an Armed Force in the field
under orders is fully accounted for by the Federal Govern-
ment and, as a general rule, may not be declared dead
solely because of the passage of time.
SEC. 3. REQUIREMENTS WITH RESPECT TO MISSING PER-
SONS.
Chapter 53 of title 10, United States Code, is amend-
ed by adding at the end the following new section:
‘‘§1058. Missing persons: informal investigations;
boards of inquiry; determinations of
death; personnel files
‘‘(a) INFORMAL INVESTIGATIONS.—After receiving
notice that a person under the command of an element
of the armed forces is missing, the responsible commander
shall conduct an informal investigation to determine that
person’s whereabouts and, if appropriate, shall place the
missing person in a missing status.
‘‘(b) BOARDS OF INITIAL INQUIRY; DUTIES.—(1) If
a missing person placed in a missing status under sub-
section (a) is a member of the armed forces on active duty,
the responsible commander who places that person in a
missing status shall, as soon as feasible after placing that
person in a missing status, notify the officer holding gen-
eral court-martial authority over that person that the per-
son has been placed in a missing status, and such officer
shall convene a board of initial inquiry not later than 45
days after receiving such notice.
‘‘(2) If a missing person placed in a missing status
under subsection (a) is a civilian, the responsible com-
mander who places that person in a missing status shall,
as soon as feasible after placing that person in a missing
status, notify the Secretary concerned that that person
has been placed in a missing status, and the Secretary
concerned shall convene a board of initial inquiry not later
than 45 days after receiving such notice.
‘‘(3) A board of initial inquiry convened under this
subsection shall—
‘‘(A) investigate and analyze evidence relating
to the disappearance of the missing person;
‘‘(B) based upon such evidence, recommend
whether to continue such person in a missing status
or make a finding that such person has deserted, is
absent without leave, or is dead; and
‘‘(C) issue a report describing its recommenda-
tions and findings.
‘‘(c) BOARDS OF FURTHER INQUIRY; DUTIES.—(1)
If a board of initial inquiry convened under subsection (b)
recommends that a missing person be continued in a miss-
ing status, the Secretary concerned shall convene a board
of further inquiry not later than one year after the date
on which the board of initial inquiry issues its rec-
ommendation. The board of further inquiry shall—
‘‘(A) analyze any information which has become
available since the board of initial inquiry issued its
report;
‘‘(B) based upon such information and a review
of evidence presented during the board of initial in-
quiry, determine whether such person should be con-
tinued in a missing status or should be declared
dead; and
‘‘(C) issue a report describing its recommenda-
tions and findings.
‘‘(2) Upon the written request of a member of the
immediate family of a missing person who, before the date
of the enactment of this section, was determined by the
Secretary concerned to be dead, the Secretary concerned
shall convene a board of further inquiry which shall—
‘‘(A) conduct an investigation to determine
whether such finding of death should be upheld or
such person should be placed in a missing status;
and
‘‘(B) issue a report describing its recommenda-
tions and findings.
‘‘(3) If a board of further inquiry convened under this
subsection recommends continuing the missing status of
a missing person or placing a missing person previously
found to be dead in a missing status, the Secretary con-
cerned shall reconvene such board to review the missing
status of such person not later than three years after such
recommendation is made.
‘‘(d) COMPOSITION AND MEETINGS OF BOARDS.—(1)
Each board convened under subsection (b) or (c) shall be
composed of members of the armed forces on active duty
(except as provided in subparagraph (C)) and shall in-
clude—
‘‘(A) one attorney;
‘‘(B) one person who is a member of the armed
forces whose primary military occupational specialty
is the same occupational specialty as that of the
missing person at the time of such missing person’s
disappearance;
‘‘(C) if the missing person being investigated is
a civilian, one person whose occupational specialty is
similar to the occupational specialty of such missing
person at the time of such missing person’s dis-
appearance; and
‘‘(D) if the missing person being investigated
disappeared while in transit, one person who is a
member of the armed forces whose military occupa-
tional specialty pertains to the piloting, navigating,
or operating of the mode of transportation used by
such missing person at the time of his disappear-
ance.
‘‘(2) The Secretary concerned shall invite each mem-
ber of the immediate family of the missing person being
investigated to attend any meeting of a board of initial
inquiry convened under subsection (b) unless he deter-
mines, in consultation with the commander of the military
installation at which such meeting is convened, that at-
tendance at such a meeting would place such family mem-
bers in physical danger. In the case of the meetings of
a board of further inquiry convened or reconvened under
subsection (c), the Secretary concerned shall—
‘‘(A) invite each member of the immediate fam-
ily of such missing person to attend such meetings;
‘‘(B) attempt to schedule such meetings at loca-
tions and times convenient for the members of the
immediate family of such missing person;
‘‘(C) provide members of the immediate family
of such missing person with reasonable notice of the
time and location of such meetings; and
‘‘(D) open such meetings to the general public.
‘‘(3) Each board convened under subsection (b) or (c)
may hold such meetings, take such testimony, and receive
such evidence as it considers appropriate, and may secure
directly from any department or agency of the United
States any information necessary to carry out its duties
under this section.
‘‘(e) APPOINTMENT OF COUNSEL.—The officer or
Secretary concerned who convenes a board under sub-
section (b) or (c) shall appoint counsel to represent the
missing person. Counsel appointed under this subsection
shall have the qualifications prescribed under section
827(b) of this title (article 27(b) of the Uniform Code of
Military Justice).
‘‘(f) DETERMINATIONS OF DEATH.—If a board con-
vened under subsection (b) or (c) determines that a miss-
ing person is dead, it shall include in its report a detailed
description of the location where the death occurred, the
date on which the death occurred, whether the body has
been recovered, and, if the body has been recovered,
whether a licensed practitioner of forensic medicine deter-
mined that the body recovered is that of the missing per-
son. No missing person may be declared dead by a board
convened under subsection (a) unless—
‘‘(1) evidence other than the passage of a pe-
riod of time of less than 50 years exists which sug-
gests that the person is dead;
‘‘(2) no evidence which reasonably suggests that
such person is alive is in the possession of the Fed-
eral Government;
‘‘(3) representatives of the Federal Government
have made a complete search of the area where such
person was last seen (unless, after making every
good faith effort to obtain access to such area, the
United States is not granted such access); and
‘‘(4) representatives of the Federal Government
have examined the records of the government or en-
tity having control over the area where such person
was last seen (unless, after making every good faith
effort to obtain access to such records, the United
States is not granted such access).
‘‘(g) JUDICIAL REVIEW.—(1) Any member of the im-
mediate family of a missing person who was found by a
board convened under subsection (b) or (c)(1) to be dead,
or the finding of whose death was upheld by a board con-
vened under subsection (c)(2), may obtain a review of such
finding in the court of appeals of the United States within
the circuit where such member resides or where the find-
ing of death was made or upheld. Such family member
may obtain such review if, at any time after receiving no-
tice of such finding, the family member files in the court
a written petition requesting that the finding be set aside.
‘‘(2) The decision of the court of appeals shall be
final, except that it shall be subject to review by the Su-
preme Court upon certiorari, as provided in section 1254
of title 28.
‘‘(3) If the court of appeals sets aside the finding of
death and if—
‘‘(A) the time allowed for filing a petition for
certiorari has expired and no such petition has been
duly filed;
‘‘(B) the petition for certiorari has been denied;
or
‘‘(C) the decision of the court of appeals has
been affirmed by the Supreme Court;
the Secretary concerned shall convene a board of further
inquiry under subsection (c)(2) to review the missing per-
son’s status not later than three years after the date on
which the finding is set aside, the petition for certiorari
is denied, or the Supreme Court affirms the decision of
the court of appeals.
‘‘(h) PERSONNEL FILES.—(1) Except as provided in
paragraph (2), the Secretary concerned shall ensure that
a missing person’s personnel file contains all information
in the possession of Federal departments and agencies
pertaining to the disappearance or whereabouts of such
person.
‘‘(2) If classified information is withheld from the
personnel file of a missing person, the Secretary concerned
shall ensure that the file—
‘‘(A) contains a notice that the information ex-
ists; and
‘‘(B) contains a notice of the date of the most
recent review of the classification status of the infor-
mation.
‘‘(3) Any person who knowingly and willfully with-
holds information pertaining to the disappearance or
whereabouts of a missing person from that person’s per-
sonnel file shall be fined as provided in title 18 or impris-
oned not more than one year, or both.
‘‘(4) The Secretary concerned shall make the con-
tents of the personnel file of a missing person available
to a member of the immediate family of such person upon
the written request of such family member.
‘‘(i) EFFECT ON STATE LAW.—Nothing in this sec-
tion shall be construed to invalidate or limit the power
of any State court or administrative entity, or the power
of any court or administrative entity of any political sub-
‘‘(E) detained in a foreign country against
his will.
‘‘(5) The term ‘State’ means any State, the
District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto
Rico, and any territory or possession of the United
States.’’.
SEC. 4. CONFORMING AND CLERICAL AMENDMENTS.
(a) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—(1) Section 555 of
title 37, United States Code, is repealed.
(2) Chapter 10 of title 37, United States Code, is
amended—
(A) in the last sentence of section 552(a), by
striking the second comma and all that follows and
inserting a period;
(B) in the second sentence of section 552(b)(2),
by striking the hyphen and all that follows and in-
serting ‘‘that his death is determined under section
1057 of title 10’’;
(C) in section 552(e), by striking ‘‘section 555
of this title’’ and inserting ‘‘section 1057 of title
10’’;
(D) in section 553(f)—
(i) by striking ‘‘When the Secretary con-
cerned’’ and inserting ‘‘When a board convened
under section 1057 of title 10’’; and
(ii) by striking ‘‘the Secretary concerned
receives evidence’’ and inserting ‘‘a board con-
vened under section 1057 of title 10 reports’’;
(E) in section 553(g) by striking ‘‘section 555
of this title’’ and inserting ‘‘section 1057 of title
10’’;
(F) in section 556(a)—
(i) by inserting ‘‘and’’ at the end of para-
graph (3);
(ii) by striking the semicolon at the end of
paragraph (4) and inserting a period; and
(iii) by striking paragraphs (1), (5), (6),
and (7) and redesignating paragraphs (2), (3),
and (4) as paragraphs (1), (2), and (3), respec-
tively;
(G) in section 556(h)—
(i) by striking ‘‘status’’ and inserting
‘‘pay’’; and
(ii) by striking the second sentence;
(H) in section 556, by striking subsection (b)
and redesignating subsections (c), (d), (e), (f), (g),
and (h) as subsections (b), (c), (d), (e), (f), and (g),
respectively;
(I) in paragraph (1) of section 557(a), by strik-
ing ‘‘, 553, and 555’’ and inserting ‘‘and 553’’; and
(J) in paragraph (4)(B) of section 559(a), by
striking ‘‘556(f)’’ and inserting ‘‘556(e)’’.
(b) CLERICAL AMENDMENTS.—(1) The table of sec-
tions at the beginning of chapter 53 of title 10, United
States Code, is amended by adding at the end the follow-
ing new item:
‘‘1058. Missing persons: informal investigations; boards of inquiry; determina-
tions of death; personnel files.’’.
(2) The table of sections at the beginning of chapter
10 of title 37, United States Code, is amended by striking
the item relating to section 555.
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