Attorney General Bonta Issues Statement on New State Law Strengthening California’s Response to Missing Persons Cases, Delivering Justice for Families

OAKLAND - California Attorney General Rob Bonta issued the following statement in response to Governor Gavin Newsom signing into law Assembly Bill (AB) 2018. AB 2018 was authored by Assemblymember James C. Ramos (D-San Bernardino) to advance the California Department of Justice's (DOJ) capability to respond to missing persons cases.

"Any missing person case - adult, child, MMIP, or otherwise - is one too many. No family should know the prolonged uncertainty of waiting for answers, and together we're making it clear that California takes action," said Attorney General Rob Bonta. "AB 2018 is the right tool at the right time that will advance California's ability to resolve missing persons cases and rekindle hope. I thank Assemblymember Ramos for introducing this legislation and I look forward to continuing the vital work of delivering justice for missing persons and their loved ones."

"I thank the leadership of Attorney General Bonta for being a partner in this effort. AB 2018 will help all families with missing loved ones receive the answers they need," said Assemblymember James C. Ramos. "This modernization is especially urgent given the disproportionate number of Missing and Murdered Indigenous Persons plaguing our state. Ensuring our justice system personnel have the tools they need to perform effectively is critical to bringing resolution to cases involving the missing."

BACKGROUND

AB 2018 aims to elevate responses to missing persons cases through the DOJ Division of Law Enforcement's Bureau of Forensic Services Missing Persons DNA Program by requiring the DNA database be used for all cases involving the report of an unidentified person. It also deletes provisions relating to the reporting of high-risk missing persons and authorizes the retention of DNA if the identified remains are incomplete and there is a reasonable expectation that additional remains requiring identification may be found in the future.

The California Department of Justice Missing Persons DNA Program (MPDP), established in 2001, is responsible for providing DNA testing to address all cases of missing and unidentified persons throughout the state. To this end, the MPDP works with coroners, medical examiners, and law enforcement agencies from all of California's 58 counties to ensure that all cases have been submitted for DNA testing. The MPDP compares DNA from unidentified persons with DNA from personal articles belonging to missing persons and DNA from relatives of missing persons with the sole purpose of contributing to the effort of identifying missing persons and bringing closure to their families.

In addition, DOJ's Missing and Unidentified Persons Section (MUPS) has been supporting California's response to missing persons cases by assisting law enforcement agencies, publicly posting active cases, increasing public awareness, and managing comprehensive databases. Every day, MUPS supports high-volume operations by utilizing physical identification, dental identification, the DOJ Division of Law Enforcement's Bureau of Forensic Services Missing Persons DNA Program, and the California Missing Children Clearinghouse and toll-free telephone hotline (1-800-222-FIND).