“[The Americans with Disabilities Act and Section 504] prohibit discriminatory treatment, including misconduct, on the basis of disability in virtually all law enforcement services and activities.”
Our goal is to ensure that missing individuals with disabilities reunite with their loved ones quickly and safely. In the following sections, we define Mattie's Call, detail the criteria for activation, and provide a four-phase checklist to prepare families in case of an emergency.
What is Mattie's Call?
Mattie’s Call Act, enacted April 28, 2006, is located in Article 7, Section 1 of Georgia House Bill 728. Mattie’s Call is a state-wide emergency alert for missing adults with disabilities, broadly defined as "individuals who are developmentally impaired or who suffer from dementia or some other cognitive impairment" by Georgia legislature. The system is activated by local law enforcement agencies, who notify the Georgia Bureau of Investigation (G.B.I) in the event of a missing person. Although families are not required to provide specific documentation to initiate Mattie's Call, preparing the necessary information in advance may quicken the investigative and recovery process.
What is required to activate Mattie's Call?
Although families are not required to provide specific documentation to initiate Mattie's Call, assembling records about the missing person's appearance, diagnosis and behaviors in advance may accelerate the investigative and recovery process. In this section, we explain Mattie's Call activation criteria and discuss how to prepare the essential information that law enforcement agencies need to initiate the statewide alert and locate your loved one.
Criteria 1: A local law enforcement agency believes a disabled person is missing and is in immediate danger of serious bodily injury or death.
Proof of disability may be a letter, report or statement from the missing person's primary care physician or relevant medical professional on official letterhead stationery. The statement should report the overall health of the individual, including all chronic conditions, and clarify the potential health consequences if the individual is not promptly and safely recovered. Records from a federal agency that issues disability benefits, such as the Social Security Administration, may also be sufficient.
Criteria 2: Through its own investigation, the law enforcement agency verifies the disappearance and eliminates alternative explanations for the disabled person's disappearance.
Families should be able to explain the missing person's typical schedule and the circumstances leading up to his or her disappearance, including the time and location of where the individual was last seen, the name and contact information of the last person who saw the individual, and the direction the individual was traveling. Be sure to mention if the individual exhibited any self-injurious behaviors or an unstable emotional state in conversations prior to his or her disappearance.
Criteria 3: Sufficient information is available to disseminate to the public that could assist in locating the disabled person.
The local law enforcement agency will need descriptive information about the missing person to activate Mattie's Call. Necessary information includes the individual's full name, date of birth, birthplace, nickname(s), and current and former addresses and employers. Families should also have access to a recent photograph and be able to provide the missing person's race, sex, age, height, weight, hair color and length, eye color, facial hair, and visible distinguishing marks (birthmarks, moles, scars, tattoos). Remember to provide the missing person's preferred modes of communication, and explain any social, language, and emotional difficulties.
Law enforcement will also need specific information about the missing person's appearance the last time he or she was seen, including the style and color of the individual's clothing and footwear, glasses (if applicable), jewelry (if applicable), and headwear (if applicable).
Criteria 4: The missing disabled person is entered into the National Crime Information Center (N.C.I.C.) database.
National Crime Information Center’s (N.C.I.C.) Missing Person File, managed by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, contains records for missing adults with disabilities until "the individual is located or the record is canceled by the entering agency." For missing adults with disabilities, law enforcement agencies must file a missing persons report using the E.M.D. category (verifies that the individual has a "proven physical or mental disability") and provide signed documentation from a parent, legal guardian, next of kin, or another reliable source to verify contents of the report.
Additional Resources: Georgia Crime Information Center, National Crime Information Center
Criteria 5: The law enforcement agency must issue a statewide broadcast to law enforcement/911 centers and contact local media regarding the missing person.
The law enforcement agency will notify other agencies, centers, and offices in the state. A non-profit organization, A Child is Missing, and the Georgia Lottery Corporation will also be informed. A Child is Missing uses recorded telephone messages to alert residents and retailers in the area the missing individual was last seen. The Georgia Lottery Corporation leverages businesses in the target area to disseminate information about the missing person to its customers.
The profile of the missing person will be posted on Georgia Association of Broadcaster's AlertNet.
Additional Resources: A Child is Missing, G.A.B. AlertNet