AMBER ALERT

Sunday

Published Online: November 23, 2011
Virtual Ed. Advocates Respond to Criticism
By Ian Quillen
Edited by I, Praetorian


It’s been a rough year for the public image of K-12 virtual education.
Studies in Colorado and Minnesota have suggested that full-time online students in those states were struggling to match the achievement levels of their peers in brick-and-mortar schools. Articles in The New York Times have questioned not only the academic results for students in virtual schools, but also the propriety of business practices surrounding the use of public dollars for such programs.
Meanwhile, two left-leaning magazines, The Nation and Mother Jones, contended this month that education policy reforms pushed by former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush in the name of digital opportunities for students have the ulterior motive of funneling money to big technology companies. And the move into education by the right-leaning media tycoon Rupert Murdoch, with his News Corp. conglomerate’s purchase of the educational technology company Wireless Generation, has drawn protests from some teacher advocates at public appearances by Mr. Murdoch.
Against this backdrop, educators who gathered at the Virtual School Symposium held early this month in Indianapolis appeared eager to strike a balance between working to address what they see as valid criticisms of their field and rebutting others they see as misconceptions. They also seemed largely to agree the burden is on them to tell their own story and prove their effectiveness.
“A lot of the publicity has been negative,” conceded Andy Scantland, the vice president of sales and marketing for Advanced Academics Inc., an Oklahoma City-based provider of public and private online learning programs. The company is a sponsor of the annual virtual learning report, which was released by the Evergreen Education Group, a Durango, Colo.-based research and consulting firm, just before the symposium.
“It’s really critical that we don’t allow others to tell the story for us,” Mr. Scantland added. “Accountability and measurability is good for all of us.”
He and others associated with this year’s “Keeping Pace” survey of the virtual learning landscape insisted that its most important element may be its 10-page section on “emerging quality and accountability issues,” as the report terms it.
Addressing Criticisms
Susan Patrick, the president and chief executive officer of the International Association for K-12 Online Learning, or iNACOL, the Vienna, Va.-based group that hosted the forum, said she sees a combination of factors contributing to recent criticisms of full-time virtual schools, with some issues having more merit than others.
For example, Ms. Patrick said the studies that raise questions about the achievement of fully online students may suffer in part because of the methods of measuring such achievement. Virtual school programs designed to help facilitate learning at a nonconventional pace and on a nonconventional schedule may struggle when molded to the confines of seat-time requirements virtual school advocates would like to see abandoned. But she accepted that getting some districts to view virtual education as a method that still needs quality instructors is a problem.
Ms. Patrick also acknowledges that some advocates of virtual schooling have politicized it, even at the symposium.
State Rep. Brian Bosma, the Indiana House speaker and a Republican from Marion County, in his remarks at the Nov. 9-11 gathering, painted support for virtual schools as a conservative issue aligned with debates over school choice. Ms. Patrick said the education reforms sought by former Gov. Bush and his Tallahassee, Fla.-based Foundation for Excellence in Education could be viewed as politically motivated, including ideas advanced through the Digital Learning Now initiative led by Mr. Bush, a Republican, and former West Virginia Gov. Bob Wise, a Democrat.
“People are people, and start to paint it one way or another, and that’s unfortunate,” said Ms. Patrick, who added that such Democrats as U.S. Sen. Patty Murray of Washington state and U.S. Reps. Erik Paulsen of Minnesota and Robert E. Andrews of New Jersey have been vocal supporters of online learning.
“We had 1,900 people [at the Virtual School Symposium], and 47 percent of them were first-timers there from districts wanting to launch programs,” she said in a telephone interview after the event. “That’s not political at all.”
Ms. Patrick says she’s unsure whether it’s possible to depoliticize virtual schooling, but says her bigger concern is the impression that it’s an effective method to cut manpower from a district’s teaching force. And she concedes some districts aren’t doing much to combat that impression.
“Teachers and people are the heart of online learning programs, and we need to, as a community, let the teacher voice be heard,” Ms. Patrick said.
“There are some valid criticisms, too, especially with districts facing budget crunches,” she said. “We want them to make a decision about good-quality programs. Sometimes they’re doing that, and sometimes they’re not.”
Examining Blended Learning
Some practices caught in the dispute may actually align more with blended learning, which retains in-person instructors but reshapes the teacher’s job description with technology integration.
For example, a report from the University of Colorado at Boulder that suggests K-12 virtual education is growing at a rate that is unsafe, considering the lack of knowledge about its effectiveness, also makes clear that the breadth of research on the benefits of blended learning is far greater.
Some businesses and philanthropies—such as the Microsoft Corp. and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, built upon the fortune of the company’s co-founder—that are taking heat from critics of online education are actually looking to channel dollars to blended-learning projects. The third wave of competitive grants—worth up to $12 million in total—in the Gates Foundation’s Next Generation Learning Challenges program will be awarded to applicants that design new blended-learning models, in part because of a belief that they are more reliable than purely online models for students who are at risk academically. (The Gates Foundation also provides grant support to Editorial Projects in Education, the nonprofit publisher of Education Week.)
Microsoft, meanwhile, announced this fall a new service to offer discounted hardware and software to teachers, as well as its participation in the Federal Communications Commission’s “Connect to Compete” broadband infrastructure project that would theoretically provide more blended-learning opportunities to students of diverse backgrounds.
RELATED BLOG


Visit this blog.
“The hypothesis is that population needs the brick-and-mortar setting and all-around wraparound support that comes with that setting to succeed,” said Elina Alayeva, a program officer for the Next Generation Learning Challenges with Educause, the Boulder, Colo.-based postsecondary-technology advocacy group that is managing the competition.
Meanwhile, even as critics of online learning have called for proof that fully virtual schools can be effective enough to justify public investment, they have shown awareness that quality in such programs can vary greatly.
For instance, at a Virtual School Symposium presentation from the National Collegiate Athletic Association, audience members disputed the notion that a student who failed a course should have to demonstrate a set amount of time needed to retake the course online instead of just demonstrating competency in the subject. But NCAA officials reasoned that their experience with athletes who may attach themselves to digital “diploma mills” is far different from the experience of other cyber educators.
“Some athletes are short of qualifying and need quick fixes,” Nick Sproull, the NCAA’s assistant director of high school review, said to his audience. “Our majority might be your minority, which is a difficult reality.”
‘Hollow Experience’?
That’s not to say all who know the breadth of online options available are convinced that any such offering can be equivalent to a live classroom.
Gene V. Glass, a senior researcher at the University of Colorado at Boulder’s National Education Policy Center and a co-author of its recent report calling for more state regulation for online learning, said he staunchly opposes the use of public funding for any virtual programs.
“This is a hollow experience for kids, and for many of the kids it’s hardly an experience at all,” Mr. Glass said in an interview. “I haven’t seen a good experience in this whole area. I haven’t seen anything but greedy companies paying off politicians.”
But the report’s other co-author, Kevin G. Welner, a professor of education at the university and the director of the education policy center, said the evidence on the effectiveness of fully online virtual schools shows only that more evidence is needed.
“It’s not that there aren’t good things to be had or good things going on,” Mr. Welner said. “It’s publicly funded education, but without the usual safeguards that we attach to public education.”




STEAL THIS BLOG PLEASE! I, Praetorian

Wednesday



Nov 16, 2011 8:45am
47% of Congress Members Millionaires — a Status Shared by Only 1% of Americans.

 It’s no secret that  many members of  the U.S. House and Senate are  millionaires — 47 percent of them — their salaries  paid for in part by the American taxpayer.
The Center for Responsive Politics has crunched the numbers and released the results on its Open Secrets blog:

About 47 percent of Congress, or 249 current members are millionaires. … In 2010, the estimated median net worth of a current U.S. senator stood at an average of $2.56 million,” according to the Center’s research.
Despite 


the global  economic meltdown  in 2008 and the sluggish recovery that followed, that’s up about 7.6 percent  from an estimated median net worth of $2.38 million  in 2009 … and up 13 percent from a median net worth of $2.27 million in 2008. … Fully 36 Senate Democrats, and 30 Senate Republicans reported an average net worth in excess of $1 million  in 2010.  The same was true for 110 House Republicans and 73 House Democrats.”

The vast majority of members of Congress are quite comfortable, financiallywhile many of their own constituents suffer from economic hardships,” said Sheila Krumholz at the Center For Responsive Politics.  “Few Americans enjoy the same financial cushions maintained by most members of Congress — or the same access to market-altering information that could yield personal, financial gains.”  uu ralley onLets face it if you only relate to pesons of that lifestyle, it takes a very insiteful person to realize  its unique cauterizing efect on the 99 percent of the strugles of ordinary persons.








American as Apple Pie

Colin Powell: Occupy movement ‘is as American as Apple Pie’

Tuesday

“This is much bigger than tarps, tents and protesters in the park—this is the beginning of a movement for economic equity…”


AFT President Randi Weingarten 
Responds to Court Decision
To Evict Occupy Wall Street Protesters from Zuccotti Park


WASHINGTON— The New York State Supreme Court’s decision to uphold the eviction of Occupy Wall Street protesters from Zuccotti Park will not deter a movement that has made economic fairness for all Americans a part of our national dialogue. We owe it to ourselves and our country to continue this conversation, and to fight for an agenda that will reduce income inequality and create greater economic opportunity for the 99 percent.


This is much bigger than tarps, tents and protesters in the park—this is the beginning of a movement for economic equity, and to hold the 1 percent accountable for the ever-growing chasm between this country’s haves and have-nots. The AFT and the labor community will continue to support the Occupy Wall Street message of economic fairness through events such as the rallies on Nov. 17 and other activities being held across the nation.



pageTracker.setAllowLinker(true)






STEAL THIS BLOG PLEASE! I, Praetorian


California: 
EDUCATION CODE 
TITLE 2. ELEMENTARY AND SECONDARY EDUCATION 
DIVISION 4. Instruction and Services 
PART 27. Pupils 
CHAPTER 6.5. Pupil Records 
ARTICLE 3. General Provisions 
§ 49068.5.  Missing children; Check of new and transferring students 

   Upon the initial enrollment of a pupil in a public or private elementary school; or whenever an
elementary school pupil (a) transfers from one school district to another,(b) transfers to an
elementary school within the same district, (c) transfers from one private elementary school to
another, (d) transfers from a private elementary school to a public elementary school, or (e)
transfers from a public elementary school to a private elementary school, the principal of the
school that the child enters or to which he or she transfers is urged to check to see if the child
resembles a child listed as missing by the bulletins provided by the Department of Justice
pursuant to Section 14201 of the Penal Code.
§ 49068.6.  Notification of missing child
   (a) Any law enforcement agency responsible for the investigation of a missing child shall
inform the school district, other local educational agency, or private school, in which the child is
enrolled, that the child is missing. The notice shall be in writing, shall include a photograph of
the child if a photograph is available, and shall be given within 10 days of the child's
disappearance.


   (b) Every school notified pursuant to this section shall place a notice that the child has been
reported missing on the front of each missing child's school record. For public schools this shall
be in addition to the posting requirements set forth in Section 38139.


   (c) Local law enforcement agencies may establish a process for informing local schools about
abducted children pursuant to this section.
   (d) If a school receives a record inquiry or request from any person or entity for a missing child
about whom the school has been notified pursuant to this section, the school shall immediately
notify the law enforcement authorities who informed the school of the missing child's status. EDUCATION CODE
TITLE 2. ELEMENTARY AND SECONDARY EDUCATION
DIVISION 3. Local Administration
PART 23. Supplemental Services
CHAPTER 4. Miscellaneous Provisions
ARTICLE 2. Use of School Property
§ 38139.  Posting of information regarding missing children
   (a) Public primary schools shall post at an appropriate area restricted to adults information
regarding missing children provided by the Department of Justice pursuant to Section 14208 of
the Penal Code.


   (b) Public secondary schools shall post at an appropriate area information regarding missing
children provided by the Department of Justice pursuant to Section 14208 of the Penal Code.
§ 49370.  Legislative intent to require school personnel to report missing children to law
enforcement agency
   The Legislature hereby declares its intent in enacting this article to require that specified
persons, including school teachers, school administrators, school aides, school playground
workers, and school bus drivers, report missing children to a law enforcement agency in a timely
manner, in order to provide those children a necessary level of protection when they are at
serious risk.
FAMILY CODE
DIVISION 8. Custody of Children
PART 2. Right to Custody of Minor Child
CHAPTER 2. Matters To Be Considered in Granting Custody
§ 3048.  Contents of child custody or visitation order; Determination of risk of abduction
   (a) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, in any proceeding to determine child custody
or visitation with a child, every custody or visitation order shall contain all of the following:


   (1) The basis for the court's exercise of jurisdiction.
   (2) The manner in which notice and opportunity to be heard were given.
   (3) A clear description of the custody and visitation rights of each party.
   (4) A provision stating that a violation of the order may subject the party in violation to civil or
criminal penalties, or both.


   (5) Identification of the country of habitual residence of the child or children.
     (b) (1) In cases in which the court becomes aware of facts which may indicate that there is a
risk of abduction of a child, the court shall, either on its own motion or at the request of a party,
determine whether measures are needed to prevent the abduction of the child by one parent. To
make that determination, the court shall consider the risk of abduction of the child, obstacles to
location, recovery, and return if the child is abducted, and potential harm to the child if he or she
is abducted. To determine whether there is a risk of abduction, the court shall consider the
following factors:


   (A) Whether a party has previously taken, enticed away, kept, withheld, or concealed a child in
violation of the right of custody or of visitation of a person.


   (B) Whether a party has previously threatened to take, entice away, keep, withhold, or conceal
a child in violation of the right of custody or of visitation of a person.


   (C) Whether a party lacks strong ties to this state.
   (D) Whether a party has strong familial, emotional, or cultural ties to another state or country,
including foreign citizenship. This factor shall be considered only if evidence exists in support of
another factor specified in this section.


   (E) Whether a party has no financial reason to stay in this state, including whether the party is
unemployed, is able to work anywhere, or is financially independent.


   (F) Whether a party has engaged in planning activities that would facilitate the removal of a
child from the state, including quitting a job, selling his or her primary residence, terminating a
lease, closing a bank account, liquidating other assets, hiding or destroying documents, applying
for a passport, applying to obtain a birth certificate or school or medical records, or purchasing
airplane or other travel tickets, with consideration given to whether a party is carrying out a
safety plan to flee from domestic violence.


   (G) Whether a party has a history of a lack of parental cooperation or child abuse, or there is
substantiated evidence that a party has perpetrated domestic violence.


   (H) Whether a party has a criminal record.
   (2) If the court makes a finding that there is a need for preventative measures after considering
the factors listed in paragraph (1), the court shall consider taking one or more of the following
measures to prevent the abduction of the child:


   (A) Ordering supervised visitation.
   (B) Requiring a parent to post a bond in an amount sufficient to serve as a financial deterrent to
abduction, the proceeds of which may be used to offset the cost of recovery of the child in the
event there is an abduction.


   (C) Restricting the right of the custodial or noncustodial parent to remove the child from the
county, the state, or the country.
     (D) Restricting the right of the custodial parent to relocate with the child, unless the custodial
parent provides advance notice to, and obtains the written agreement of, the noncustodial parent,
or obtains the approval of the court, before relocating with the child.


   (E) Requiring the surrender of passports and other travel documents.
   (F) Prohibiting a parent from applying for a new or replacement passport for the child.
   (G) Requiring a parent to notify a relevant foreign consulate or embassy of passport restrictions
and to provide the court with proof of that notification.


   (H) Requiring a party to register a California order in another state as a prerequisite to allowing
a child to travel to that state for visits, or to obtain an order from another country containing
terms identical to the custody and visitation order issued in the United States (recognizing that
these orders may be modified or enforced pursuant to the laws of the other country), as a
prerequisite to allowing a child to travel to that county for visits.


   (I) Obtaining assurances that a party will return from foreign visits by requiring the traveling
parent to provide the court or the other parent or guardian with any of the following:
   (i) The travel itinerary of the child.
   (ii) Copies of round trip airline tickets.
   (iii) A list of addresses and telephone numbers where the child can be reached at all times.
   (iv) An open airline ticket for the left-behind parent in case the child is not returned.
   (J) Including provisions in the custody order to facilitate use of the Uniform Child Custody
Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act (Part 3 (commencing with Section 3400)) and the Hague
Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction (implemented pursuant to 42
U.S.C. Sec. 11601 et seq.), such as identifying California as the home state of the child or
otherwise defining the basis for the California court's exercise of jurisdiction under Part 3
(commencing with Section 3400), identifying the United States as the country of habitual
residence of the child pursuant to the Hague Convention, defining custody rights pursuant to the
Hague Convention, obtaining the express agreement of the parents that the United States is the
country of habitual residence of the child, or that California or the United States is the most
appropriate forum for addressing custody and visitation orders.


   (K) Authorizing the assistance of law enforcement.
   (3) If the court imposes any or all of the conditions listed in paragraph (2), those conditions
shall be specifically noted on the minute order of the court proceedings.


   (4) If the court determines there is a risk of abduction that is sufficient to warrant the
application of one or more of the prevention measures authorized by this section, the court shall
inform the parties of the telephone number and address of the Child Abduction Unit in the office
of the district attorney in the county where the custody or visitation order is being entered.
     (c) The Judicial Council shall make the changes to its child custody order forms that are
necessary for the implementation of subdivision (b). This subdivision shall become operative on
July 1, 2003.


   (d) Nothing in this section affects the applicability of Section 278.7 of the Penal Code.
§ 3140.  Submission of child's birth certificate to court if parent has not appeared in proceeding;
Check to determine if child is missing person
   (a) Subject to subdivisions (b) and (c), before granting or modifying a custody order in a case
in which one or both parents of the child have not appeared either personally or by counsel, the
court shall require the parent, petitioner, or other party appearing in the case to submit a certified
copy of the child's birth certificate to the court. The court or its designee shall forward the
certified copy of the birth certificate to the local police or sheriff's department which shall check
with the National Crime Information Center Missing Person System to ascertain whether the
child has been reported missing or is the victim of an abduction and shall report the results of the
check to the court.


   (b) If the custody matter before the court also involves a petition for the dissolution of marriage
or the adjudication of paternity rights or duties, this section applies only to a case in which there
is no proof of personal service of the petition on the absent parent.


   (c) For good cause shown, the court may waive the requirements of this section.
FAMILY CODE
DIVISION 10. Prevention of Domestic Violence
PART 3. Emergency Protective Orders
CHAPTER 2. Issuance and Effect of Emergency Protective Order
§ 6250.  Grounds for issuance
   A judicial officer may issue an ex parte emergency protective order where a law enforcement
officer asserts reasonable grounds to believe any of the following:


   (a) That a person is in immediate and present danger of domestic violence, based on the
person's allegation of a recent incident of abuse or threat of abuse by the person against whom
the order is sought.


   (b) That a child is in immediate and present danger of abuse by a family or household member,
based on an allegation of a recent incident of abuse or threat of abuse by the family or household
member.


   (c) That a child is in immediate and present danger of being abducted by a parent or relative,
based on a reasonable belief that a person has an intent to abduct the child or flee with the child
from the jurisdiction or based on an allegation of a recent threat to abduct the child or flee with
the child from the jurisdiction.
     (d) That an elder or dependent adult is in immediate and present danger of abuse as defined in
Section 15610.07 of the Welfare and Institutions Code, based on an allegation of a recent
incident of abuse or threat of abuse by the person against whom the order is sought, except that
no emergency protective order shall be issued based solely on an allegation of financial abuse .
§ 6250.5.  Issuance of ex parte emergency protective order for threat to campus safety
   A judicial officer may issue an ex parte emergency protective order to a peace officer defined
in subdivisions (a) and (b) of Section 830.32 if the issuance of that order is consistent with an
existing memorandum of understanding between the college or school police department where
the peace officer is employed and the sheriff or police chief of the city in whose jurisdiction the
peace officer's college or school is located and the peace officer asserts reasonable grounds to
believe that there is a demonstrated threat to campus safety.
§ 6251.  Required findings
   An emergency protective order may be issued only if the judicial officer finds both of the
following:


   (a) That reasonable grounds have been asserted to believe that an immediate and present
danger of domestic violence exists, that a child is in immediate and present danger of abuse or
abduction, or that an elder or dependent adult is in immediate and present danger of abuse as
defined in Section 15610.07 of the Welfare and Institutions Code.


   (b) That an emergency protective order is necessary to prevent the occurrence or recurrence of
domestic violence, child abuse, child abduction, or abuse of an elder or dependent adult.
FAMILY CODE
DIVISION 17. Support Services
CHAPTER 1. Department of Child Support Services
ARTICLE 2. Organization
§ 17212.  Legislative intent; Disclosure of information and files
   (a) It is the intent of the Legislature to protect individual rights of privacy, and to facilitate and
enhance the effectiveness of the child and spousal support enforcement program, by ensuring the
confidentiality of support enforcement and child abduction records, and to thereby encourage the
full and frank disclosure of information relevant to all of the following:


   (1) The establishment or maintenance of parent and child relationships and support obligations.
   (2) The enforcement of the child support liability of absent parents.
   (3) The enforcement of spousal support liability of the spouse or former spouse to the extent
required by the state plan under Section 17604 and Chapter 6 (commencing with Section 4900)
of Part 5 of Division 9.
   (4) The location of absent parents.
   (5) The location of parents and children abducted, concealed, or detained by them.
   (b)(1) Except as provided in subdivision (c), all files, applications, papers, documents, and
records established or maintained by any public entity pursuant to the administration and
implementation of the child and spousal support enforcement program established pursuant to
Part D (commencing with Section 651) of Subchapter IV of Chapter 7 of Title 42 of the United
States Code and this division, shall be confidential, and shall not be open to examination or
released for disclosure for any purpose not directly connected with the administration of the child
and spousal support enforcement program. No public entity shall disclose any file, application,
paper, document, or record, or the information contained therein, except as expressly authorized
by this section.


   (2) In no case shall information be released or the whereabouts of one party or the child
disclosed to another party, or to the attorney of any other party, if a protective order has been
issued by a court or administrative agency with respect to the party, a good cause claim under
Section 11477.04 of the Welfare and Institutions Code has been approved or is pending, or the
public agency responsible for establishing paternity or enforcing support has reason to believe
that the release of the information may result in physical or emotional harm to the party or the
child. When a local child support agency is prohibited from releasing information pursuant to
this subdivision, the information shall be omitted from any pleading or document to be submitted
to the court and this subdivision shall be cited in the pleading or other document as the authority
for the omission. The information shall be released only upon an order of the court pursuant to
paragraph (6) of subdivision (c).


   (3) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, a proof of service filed by the local child
support agency shall not disclose the address where service of process was accomplished.
Instead, the local child support agency shall keep the address in its own records. The proof of
service shall specify that the address is on record at the local child support agency and that the
address may be released only upon an order from the court pursuant to paragraph (6) of
subdivision (c). The local child support agency shall, upon request by a party served, release to
that person the address where service was effected.


   (c) Disclosure of the information described in subdivision (b) is authorized as follows:
   (1) All files, applications, papers, documents, and records as described in subdivision (b) shall
be available and may be used by a public entity for all administrative, civil, or criminal
investigations, actions, proceedings, or prosecutions conducted in connection with the
administration of the child and spousal support enforcement program approved under Part D
(commencing with Section 651) of Subchapter IV of Chapter 7 of Title 42 of the United States
Code and to the county welfare department responsible for administering a program operated
under a state plan pursuant to Part A, Subpart 1 or 2 of Part B, or Part E of Subchapter IV of
Chapter 7 of Title 42 of the United States Code.


   (2) A document requested by a person who wrote, prepared, or furnished the document may be
examined by or disclosed to that person or his or her designee.
     (3) The payment history of an obligor pursuant to a support order may be examined by or
released to the court, the obligor, or the person on whose behalf enforcement actions are being
taken or that person's designee.


   (4) Income and expense information of either parent may be released to the other parent for the
purpose of establishing or modifying a support order.
   (5) Public records subject to disclosure under the Public Records Act (Chapter 3.5
(commencing with Section 6250) of Division 7 of the Government Code) may be released.


   (6) After a noticed motion and a finding by the court, in a case in which establishment or
enforcement actions are being taken, that release or disclosure to the obligor or obligee is
required by due process of law, the court may order a public entity that possesses an application,
paper, document, or record as described in subdivision (b) to make that item available to the
obligor or obligee for examination or copying, or to disclose to the obligor or obligee the
contents of that item. Article 9 (commencing with Section 1040) of Chapter 4 of Division 3 of
the Evidence Code shall not be applicable to proceedings under this part. At any hearing of a
motion filed pursuant to this section, the court shall inquire of the local child support agency and
the parties appearing at the hearing if there is reason to believe that release of the requested
information may result in physical or emotional harm to a party. If the court determines that
harm may occur, the court shall issue any protective orders or injunctive orders restricting the
use and disclosure of the information as are necessary to protect the individuals.


   (7) To the extent not prohibited by federal law or regulation, information indicating the
existence or imminent threat of a crime against a child, or location of a concealed, detained, or
abducted child or the location of the concealing, detaining, or abducting person, may be
disclosed to any district attorney, any appropriate law enforcement agency, or to any state or
county child protective agency, or may be used in any judicial proceedings to prosecute that
crime or to protect the child.


   (8) The social security number, most recent address, and the place of employment of the absent
parent may be released to an authorized person as defined in Section 653(c) of Title 42 of the
United States Code, only if the authorized person has filed a request for the information, and
only if the information has been provided to the California Parent Locator Service by the federal
Parent Locator Service pursuant to Section 653 of Title 42 of the United States Code.


   (d)(1) "Administration and implementation of the child and spousal support enforcement
program," as used in this division, means the carrying out of the state and local plans for
establishing, modifying, and enforcing child support obligations, enforcing spousal support
orders, and determining paternity pursuant to Part D (commencing with Section 651) of
Subchapter IV of Chapter 7 of Title 42 of the United States Code and this article.


   (2) For purposes of this division, "obligor" means any person owing a duty of support.
   (3) As used in this division, "putative parent" shall refer to any person reasonably believed to
be the parent of a child for whom the local child support agency is attempting to establish
paternity or establish, modify, or enforce support pursuant to Section 17400.
     (e) Any person who willfully, knowingly, and intentionally violates this section is guilty of a
misdemeanor.


   (f) Nothing in this section shall be construed to compel the disclosure of information relating to
a deserting parent who is a recipient of aid under a public assistance program for which federal
aid is paid to this state, if that information is required to be kept confidential by the federal law or
regulations relating to the program.
§ 17514.  Confidentiality of child abduction records; Release of information
   (a) It is the intent of the Legislature to protect individual rights of privacy, and to facilitate and
enhance the effectiveness of the child abduction and recovery programs, by ensuring the
confidentiality of child abduction records, and to thereby encourage the full and frank disclosure
of information relevant to all of the following:


   (1) The establishment or maintenance of parent and child relationships and support obligations.
   (2) The enforcement of the child support liability of absent parents.
   (3) The enforcement of spousal support liability of the spouse or former spouse to the extent
required by the state plan under Section 17400, and Chapter 6 (commencing with Section 4800)
of Part 5 of Division 9.


   (4) The location of absent parents.
   (5) The location of parents and children abducted, concealed, or detained by them.
   (b)(1) Except as provided in this subdivision, all files, applications, papers, documents, and
records, established or maintained by any public entity for the purpose of locating an abducted
child, locating a person who has abducted a child, or prosecution of a person who has abducted a
child shall be confidential, and shall not be open to examination or released for disclosure for
any purpose not directly connected with locating or recovering the abducted child or abducting
person or prosecution of the abducting person.


   (2) Except as provided in subdivision (c), no public entity shall disclose any file, application,
paper document, or record described in this section, or the information contained therein.


   (c)(1) All files, applications, papers, documents, and records as described in subdivision (b)
shall be available and may be used by a public entity for all administrative, civil, or criminal
investigations, actions, proceedings, or prosecution conducted in connection with the child
abduction or prosecution of the abducting person.


   (2) A document requested by a person who wrote, prepared, or furnished the document may be
examined by or disclosed to that person or his or her designee.
   (3) Public records subject to disclosure under Chapter 3.5 (commencing with Section 6250) of
Division 7 of Title 1 of the Government Code may be released.
     (4) After a noticed motion and a finding by the court, in a case in which child recovery or
abduction prosecution actions are being taken, that release or disclosure is required by due
process of law, the court may order a public entity that possesses an application, paper,
document, or record described in this subdivision to make that item available to the defendant or
other party for examination or copying, or to disclose to an appropriate person the contents of
that item. Article 9 (commencing with Section 1040) of Chapter 4 of Division 8 of the Evidence
Code shall not be applicable to proceedings under this part.


   (5) To the extent not prohibited by federal law or regulation, information indicating the
existence or imminent threat of a crime against a minor child, or location of a concealed or
abducted child or the location of the concealing or abducting person, may be disclosed to any
appropriate law enforcement agency, or to any state or county child protective agency, or may be
used in any judicial proceedings to prosecute that crime or to protect the child.


   (6) Information may be released to any state or local agency for the purposes connected with
establishing, modifying, and enforcing child support obligations, enforcing spousal support
orders, and determining paternity as required by Part D (commencing with Section 651) of
Subchapter IV of Chapter 7 of Title 42 of the United States Code and this article.
GOVERNMENT CODE
TITLE 2. Government of the State of California
DIVISION 1. General
CHAPTER 7. California Emergency Services Act
ARTICLE 6.5. Accessibility to Emergency Services Information
§ 8594.  Activation of the Emergency Alert System
   (a) If an abduction has been reported to a law enforcement agency and the agency determines
that a child 17 years of age or younger, or an individual with a proven mental or physical
disability, has been abducted and is in imminent danger of serious bodily injury or death, and
there is information available that, if disseminated to the general public, could assist in the safe
recovery of the victim, the agency, through a person authorized to activate the Emergency Alert
System, shall, absent extenuating investigative needs, request activation of the Emergency Alert
System within the appropriate local area. Law enforcement agencies shall only request activation
of the Emergency Alert System for an abduction if these requirements are met. The Emergency
Alert System is not intended to be used for abductions resulting from custody disputes that are
not reasonably believed to endanger the life or physical health of a child.


   The California Highway Patrol, if requested by a law enforcement agency, shall activate the
system.
   (b) The California Highway Patrol, in consultation with the Department of Justice, as well as a
representative from the California State Sheriffs' Association, the California Police Chiefs'
Association, and the California Peace Officers' Association, shall develop policies and
procedures providing instruction specifying how law enforcement agencies, broadcasters
participating in the Emergency Alert System, and any other intermediate emergency agencies
that may institute activation of the Emergency Alert System, and, where appropriate, other supplemental warning systems, shall proceed after a qualifying abduction has been reported to a
law enforcement agency. Those policies and procedures shall include, but not be limited to:


   (1) Procedures for transfer of information regarding the abducted victim and abduction from
the law enforcement agency to the broadcasters;
   (2) Specification of the event code or codes that should be used if the Emergency Alert System
is activated to report a qualifying child abduction;


   (3) Recommended language for an abduction alert;
   (4) Specification of information that must be included by the reporting law enforcement
agency, including which agency a person with information relating to the abduction should
contact and how the person should contact the agency; and


   (5) Recommendations on the extent of the geographical area to which a child abduction
emergency alert should be broadcast.
   (c) The California Highway Patrol, in consultation with the Department of Justice, shall review
the Amber Plan as adopted by other states and Orange County's Child Abduction Regional
Emergency Alert Program for guidance in developing appropriate policies and procedures for
use of the Emergency Alert System and, where appropriate, other supplemental warning systems
to report qualifying abductions.


   (d) The California Highway Patrol, in conjunction with the Department of Justice, shall
develop a comprehensive child abduction education system to educate children in the state on the
appropriate behavior to deter abduction. The California Highway Patrol shall convene a group
consisting of a representative from the California State Sheriffs' Association, the California
Police Chiefs' Association, and the California Peace Officers' Association, representatives of
advocacy groups, and the Department of Education to assist in the development of a plan.
GOVERNMENT CODE
TITLE 2. Government of the State of California
DIVISION 3. Executive Department
PART 5.5. Department of General Services
CHAPTER 2. Powers and Duties, Generally
ARTICLE 3. Buildings and Grounds
§ 14685.  Maintenance employees; Misdemeanor violations of regulations; Posting of
information about missing children; Highway Patrol regulations
   (a) The director shall appoint assistants, clerks, and employees as may be necessary to maintain
the state buildings and grounds. The employees shall not have or perform the duties or functions
of peace officers.


   The department may establish rules and regulations for the government and maintenance of the
state buildings and grounds. Every person who violates or attempts to violate the rules and
regulations is guilty of a misdemeanor.
   (b) Information regarding missing children provided by the Department of Justice pursuant to
Section 11114.1 of the Penal Code shall be posted in public areas of all state-owned or leased
buildings that have at least 20,000 square feet of office space, or that are staffed by at least 50
employees, or where service is provided to the general public and in other public areas of stateowned or leased buildings as determined by the department to be reasonable.


   (c) (1) The Department of the California Highway Patrol may establish rules and regulations
pertaining to the protection of state employees, properties, buildings and grounds, and occupants
of state properties, including, but not limited to, the issuance of permits concerning the use of
state buildings, properties, and grounds.


   (2) A violation of any rule or regulation adopted pursuant to paragraph (1) is a misdemeanor.
   (3) This subdivision does not apply to state buildings or grounds owned, leased, rented,
controlled, used, or occupied by the University of California, the California State University,
Hastings College of the Law, the California Exposition and State Fair, the state hospitals of the
State Department of Mental Health or the State Department of Developmental Services, the
institutions and camps of the Department of Corrections or the Department of the Youth
Authority, and the parks and beaches of the Department of Parks and Recreation.
PENAL CODE
PART 1. Crimes and Punishments
TITLE 9. Of Crimes Against the Person Involving Sexual Assault, and Crimes Against Public
Decency and Good Morals
CHAPTER 4. Child Abduction
§ 277.  Definitions
   The following definitions apply for the purposes of this chapter:


   (a) "Child" means a person under the age of 18 years.
   (b) "Court order" or "custody order" means a custody determination decree, judgment, or order
issued by a court of competent jurisdiction, whether permanent or temporary, initial or modified,
that affects the custody or visitation of a child, issued in the context of a custody proceeding. An
order, once made, shall continue in effect until it expires, is modified, is rescinded, or terminates
by operation of law.


   (c) "Custody proceeding" means a proceeding in which a custody determination is an issue,
including, but not limited to, an action for dissolution or separation, dependency, guardianship,
termination of parental rights, adoption, paternity, except actions under Section 11350 or
11350.1 of the Welfare and Institutions Code, or protection from domestic violence proceedings,
including an emergency protective order pursuant to Part 3 (commencing with Section 6240) of
Division 10 of the Family Code.


   (d) "Lawful custodian" means a person, guardian, or public agency having a right to custody of
a child.
   (e) A "right to custody" means the right to the physical care, custody, and control of a child
pursuant to a custody order as defined in subdivision (b) or, in the absence of a court order, by
operation of law, or pursuant to the Uniform Parentage Act contained in Part 3 (commencing
with Section 7600) of Division 12 of the Family Code. Whenever a public agency takes
protective custody or jurisdiction of the care, custody, control, or conduct of a child by statutory
authority or court order, that agency is a lawful custodian of the child and has a right to physical
custody of the child. In any subsequent placement of the child, the public agency continues to be
a lawful custodian with a right to physical custody of the child until the public agency's right of
custody is terminated by an order of a court of competent jurisdiction or by operation of law.


   (f) In the absence of a court order to the contrary, a parent loses his or her right to custody of
the child to the other parent if the parent having the right to custody is dead, is unable or refuses
to take the custody, or has abandoned his or her family. A natural parent whose parental rights
have been terminated by court order is no longer a lawful custodian and no longer has a right to
physical custody.


   (g) "Keeps" or "withholds" means retains physical possession of a child whether or not the
child resists or objects.


   (h) "Visitation" means the time for access to the child allotted to any person by court order.
   (i) "Person" includes, but is not limited to, a parent or an agent of a parent.
   (j) "Domestic violence" means domestic violence as defined in Section 6211 of the Family
Code.
   (k) "Abduct" means take, entice away, keep, withhold, or conceal.
§ 278.  Punishment
   Every person, not having a right to custody, who maliciously takes, entices away, keeps,
withholds, or conceals any child with the intent to detain or conceal that child from a lawful
custodian shall be punished by imprisonment in a county jail not exceeding one year, a fine not
exceeding one thousand dollars ($ 1,000), or both that fine and imprisonment, or by
imprisonment in the state prison for two, three, or four years, a fine not exceeding ten thousand
dollars ($ 10,000), or both that fine and imprisonment.
§ 279.6.  Law enforcement officer
   (a) A law enforcement officer may take a child into protective custody under any of the
following circumstances:


   (1) It reasonably appears to the officer that a person is likely to conceal the child, flee the
jurisdiction with the child, or, by flight or concealment, evade the authority of the court.


   (2) There is no lawful custodian available to take custody of the child.
   (3) There are conflicting custody orders or conflicting claims to custody and the parties cannot
agree which party should take custody of the child.


   (4) The child is an abducted child.
   (b) When a law enforcement officer takes a child into protective custody pursuant to this
section, the officer shall do one of the following:
   (1) Release the child to the lawful custodian of the child, unless it reasonably appears that the
release would cause the child to be endangered, abducted, or removed from the jurisdiction.


   (2) Obtain an emergency protective order pursuant to Part 3 (commencing with Section 6240)
of Division 10 of the Family Code ordering placement of the child with an interim custodian who
agrees in writing to accept interim custody.


   (3) Release the child to the social services agency responsible for arranging shelter or foster
care.


   (4) Return the child as ordered by a court of competent jurisdiction.
   (c) Upon the arrest of a person for a violation of Section 278 or 278.5, a law enforcement
officer shall take possession of an abducted child who is found in the company of, or under the
control of, the arrested person and deliver the child as directed in subdivision (b).


   (d) Notwithstanding any other law, when a person is arrested for an alleged violation of
Section 278 or 278.5, the court shall, at the time of the arraignment or thereafter, order that the
child shall be returned to the lawful custodian by or on a specific date, or that the person show
cause on that date why the child has not been returned as ordered. If conflicting custodial orders
exist within this state, or between this state and a foreign state, the court shall set a hearing
within five court days to determine which court has jurisdiction under the laws of this state and
determine which state has subject matter jurisdiction to issue a custodial order under the laws of
this state, the Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction Act (Part 3 (commencing with Section 3400)
of Division 8 of the Family Code), or federal law, if applicable. At the conclusion of the hearing,
or if the child has not been returned as ordered by the court at the time of arraignment, the court
shall enter an order as to which custody order is valid and is to be enforced. If the child has not
been returned at the conclusion of the hearing, the court shall set a date within a reasonable time
by which the child shall be returned to the lawful custodian, and order the defendant to comply
by this date, or to show cause on that date why he or she has not returned the child as directed.
The court shall only enforce its order, or any subsequent orders for the return of the child, under
subdivision (a) of Section 1219 of the Code of Civil Procedure, to ensure that the child is
promptly placed with the lawful custodian. An order adverse to either the prosecution or defense
is reviewable by a writ of mandate or prohibition addressed to the appropriate court.
§ 784.5.  Jurisdiction over child abduction offenses
   The jurisdiction of a criminal action for a violation of Section 277, 278, or 278.5 shall be in
any one of the following jurisdictional territories:
   (a) Any jurisdictional territory in which the victimized person resides, or where the agency
deprived of custody is located, at the time of the taking or deprivation.


   (b) The jurisdictional territory in which the minor child was taken, detained, or concealed.
   (c) The jurisdictional territory in which the minor child is found.
   When the jurisdiction lies in more than one jurisdictional territory, the district attorneys
concerned may agree which of them will prosecute the case.
§ 13844.  Activities for which funds may be used; Utilization of volunteers and senior citizens;
Local commitment
   (a) Use of funds granted under the California Community Crime Resistance Program are
restricted to the following activities:


   (1) Further the goal of a statewide crime prevention network by supporting the initiation or
expansion of local crime prevention efforts.


   (2) Provide information and encourage the use of new and innovative refinements to the
traditional crime prevention model in localities that currently maintain a well-established crime
prevention program.


   (3) Support the development of a coordinated service network, including information exchange
and case referral between such programs as local victim-witness assistance programs, sexual
assault programs, gang violence reduction programs, drug suppression programs, elderly care
custodians, state and local elderly service programs, or any other established and recognizable
local programs devoted to the lessening of crime and the promotion of the community's wellbeing.


   (b) With respect to the initiation or expansion of local crime prevention efforts, projects
supported under the California Community Crime Resistance Program shall do either of the
following:


   (1) Carry out as many of the following activities as deemed, in the judgment of the agency or
agencies designated by the Director of Finance pursuant to Section 13820, to be consistent with
available resources:


   (A) Crime prevention programs using tailored outreach techniques in order to provide effective
and consistent services for the elderly in the following areas:


   (i) Crime prevention information to elderly citizens regarding personal safety, fraud, theft,
grand theft, burglary, and elderly abuse.


   (ii) Services designed to respond to the specific and diverse crime prevention needs of elderly
residential communities.
     (iii) Specific services coordinated to assist in the installation of security devices or provision of
escort services and victim assistance.


   (B) Programs to provide training, information, and prevention literature to peace officers,
elderly care custodians, health practitioners, and social service providers regarding physical
abuse and neglect within residential health care facilities for the elderly.


   (C) Programs to promote neighborhood involvement such as, but not limited to, block clubs
and other community or resident-sponsored anticrime programs.


   (D) Personal safety programs.
   (E) Domestic violence prevention programs.
   (F) Crime prevention programs specifically geared to youth in schools and school district
personnel.


   (G) Programs which make available to residents and businesses information on locking
devices, building security and related crime resistance approaches.
   (H) In cooperation with the Commission on Peace Officer Standards and Training, support for
the training of peace officers in crime prevention and its effects on the relationship between
citizens and law enforcement.


   (I) Efforts to address the crime prevention needs of communities with high proportions of
teenagers and young adults, low-income families, and non-English-speaking residents, including
juvenile delinquency diversion, social service referrals, and making available crime resistance
literature in appropriate languages other than English.


   (2) Implement a community policing program in targeted neighborhoods that are drug infested.
The goal of this program shall be to empower the people against illegal drug activity. A program
funded pursuant to this chapter shall be able to target one or more neighborhoods within the
grant period. In order to be eligible for funding, the program shall have the commitment of the
community, local law enforcement, school districts, and community service groups; and shall be
supported by either the city council or the board of supervisors, whichever is applicable.


   (c) With respect to the support of new and innovative techniques, communities taking part in
the California Crime Resistance Program shall carry out those activities as determined by the
agency or agencies designated by the Director of Finance pursuant to Section 13820, that
conform to local needs and are consistent with available expertise and resources. These
techniques may include, but are not limited to, community policing programs or activities
involving the following:


   (1) Programs to reinforce the security of "latchkey" children, including neighborhood
monitoring, special contact telephone numbers, emergency procedure training for the children,
daily telephone checks for the children's well-being, and assistance in developing safe
alternatives to unsupervised conditions for children.


   (2) Programs dedicated to educating parents in procedures designed to do all of the following:
   (A) Minimize or prevent the abduction of children.
   (B) Assist children in understanding the risk of child abduction.
   (C) Maximize the recovery of abducted children.
   (3) Programs devoted to developing automated systems for monitoring and tracking crimes
within organized neighborhoods.
   (4) Programs devoted to developing timely "feedback mechanisms" whose goals would be to
alert residents to new crime problems and to reinforce household participation in neighborhood
security organizations.


   (5) Programs devoted to creating and packaging special crime prevention approaches tailored
to the special needs and characteristics of California's cultural and ethnic minorities.
   (6) Research into the effectiveness of local crime prevention efforts including the relationships
between crime prevention activities, participants' economic and demographic characteristics,
project costs, local or regional crime rate, and law enforcement planning and staff deployment.


   (7) Programs devoted to crime and delinquency prevention through the establishment of
partnership initiatives utilizing elderly and juvenile volunteers.


   (d) All approved programs shall utilize volunteers to assist in implementing and conducting
community crime resistance programs. Programs providing elderly crime prevention programs
shall recruit senior citizens to assist in providing services.


   (e) Programs funded pursuant to this chapter shall demonstrate a commitment to support
citizen involvement with local funds after the program has been developed and implemented
with state moneys.
PENAL CODE
PART 4. Prevention of Crimes and Apprehension of Criminals
TITLE 12. Violent Crime Information Center
§ 14200.  Establishment and maintenance of center; Programs
   The Attorney General shall establish and maintain the Violent Crime Information Center to
assist in the identification and the apprehension of persons responsible for specific violent crimes
and for the disappearance and exploitation of persons, particularly children and dependent adults.
The center shall establish and maintain programs which include, but are not limited to, all of the
following: developing violent offender profiles; assisting local law enforcement agencies and
county district attorneys by providing investigative information on persons responsible for
specific violent crimes and missing person cases; providing physical description information and
photographs, if available, of missing persons to county district attorneys, nonprofit missing
persons organizations, and schools; and providing statistics on missing dependent adults and on missing children, including, as may be applicable, family abductions, nonfamily abductions,
voluntary missing, and lost children or lost dependent adults.
§ 14201.  Online, automated computer system; System of cataloguing missing person reports;
Information available to law enforcement agencies; Bulletin
   (a) The Attorney General shall establish within the center and shall maintain an online,
automated computer system designed to effect an immediate law enforcement response to reports
of missing persons. The Attorney General shall design the computer system, using any existing
system, including the California Law Enforcement Telecommunications System, to include an
active file of information concerning persons reported to it as missing and who have not been
reported as found. The computer system shall also include a confidential historic data base. The
Attorney General shall develop a system of cataloging missing person reports according to a
variety of characteristics in order to facilitate locating particular categories of reports as needed.


   (b) The Attorney General's active files described in subdivision (a) shall be made available to
law enforcement agencies. The Attorney General shall provide to these agencies the name and
personal description data of the missing person including, but not limited to, the person's date of
birth, color of eyes and hair, sex, height, weight, and race, the time and date he or she was
reported missing, the reporting agency, and any other data pertinent to the purpose of locating
missing persons. However, the Attorney General shall not release the information if the reporting
agency requests the Attorney General in writing not to release the information because it would
impair a criminal investigation.


   (c) The Attorney General shall distribute a missing children and dependent adults bulletin on a
quarterly basis to local law enforcement agencies, district attorneys, and public schools. The
Attorney General shall also make this information accessible to other parties involved in efforts
to locate missing children and dependent adults and to those other persons as the Attorney
General deems appropriate.


   This section shall become operative on July 1, 1989.
§ 14201.1.  Establishment and maintenance of Violent Crime Information Network
   The Attorney General shall establish and maintain, upon appropriation of funds by the
Legislature, the Violent Crime Information Network within the center to enable the Department
of Justice crime analysts with expertise in child abuse, missing persons, child abductions, and
sexual assaults to electronically share their data, analysis, and findings on violent crime cases
with each other, and to electronically provide law enforcement agencies with information to
assist in the identification, tracking, and apprehension of violent offenders. The Violent Crime
Information Network shall serve to integrate existing state, federal, and civilian data bases into a
single comprehensive network.
§ 14201.5.  Missing and Exploited Children's Recovery Network    (a) The Attorney General shall establish within the Department of Justice the Missing and
Exploited Children's Recovery Network by July 31, 1995.


   (b) This network shall consist of an automated computerized system that shall have the
capability to electronically transmit to all state and local law enforcement agencies, and all
cooperating news media services, either by facsimile or computer modem, a missing child poster
that includes the name, personal description data, and picture of the missing child. The
information contained in this poster shall include, but not be limited to, the child's date of birth,
color of eyes and hair, sex, height, weight, race, the time and date he or she was reported
missing, the reporting agency, including contact person at reporting agency if known, and any
other data pertinent to the purpose of locating missing persons.


   (c) The Department of Justice shall work in cooperation with the National Center for Missing
and Exploited Children to develop and implement a network that can electronically interface
with the National Missing and Exploited Children's Network.


   (d) The Attorney General shall implement this network within existing Department of Justice
resources.
§ 14201.6.  Internet information
   (a) The Department of Justice shall establish and maintain a publicly accessible computer
internet directory of information relating to the following:


   (1) Persons for whom an arrest warrant has been issued pursuant to an alleged violation of any
offense defined as a violent felony in subdivision (c) of Section 667.5.


   (2) Critical missing children.
   (3) Unsolved homicides.
   (b) The Attorney General may determine the extent of information and the priority of cases to
be included in the directory.
   (c) The department shall keep confidential, and not enter into the directory, either of the
following:
   (1) Information regarding any case for which the Attorney General has determined that
disclosure pursuant to this section would endanger the safety of a person involved in an
investigation or the successful completion of the investigation or a related investigation.


   (2) Information regarding an arrest warrant for which the issuing magistrate has determined
that disclosure pursuant to this section would endanger the safety of a person involved in an
investigation or the successful completion of the investigation or a related investigation.


   (d) For purposes of this section, "critical missing child" includes, but is not limited to, any case
of a missing child for which there is evidence or indications that the child is at risk, as specified
in subdivision (b) of Section 14213. § 14202.  Investigative support unit and automated violent crime method of operation system
   (a) The Attorney General shall establish and maintain within the center an investigative support
unit and an automated violent crime method of operation system to facilitate the identification
and apprehension of persons responsible for murder, kidnap, including parental abduction, false
imprisonment, or sexual assault. This unit shall be responsible for identifying perpetrators of
violent felonies collected from the center and analyzing and comparing data on missing persons
in order to determine possible leads which could assist local law enforcement agencies. This unit
shall only release information about active investigations by police and sheriffs' departments to
local law enforcement agencies.


   (b) The Attorney General shall make available to the investigative support unit files organized
by category of offender or victim and shall seek information from other files as needed by the
unit. This set of files may include, among others, the following:


   (1) Missing or unidentified, deceased persons' dental files filed pursuant to this title, Section
27521 of the Government Code, or Section 102870 of the Health and Safety Code.


   (2) Child abuse reports filed pursuant to Section 11169.
   (3) Sex offender registration files maintained pursuant to Section 290.
   (4) State summary criminal history information maintained pursuant to Section 11105.
   (5) Information obtained pursuant to the parent locator service maintained pursuant to Section
11478.5 of the Welfare and Institutions Code.


   (6) Information furnished to the Department of Justice pursuant to Section 11107.
   (7) Other Attorney General's office files as requested by the investigative support unit.
§ 14203.  Acceptance and generation of information by online missing persons registry;
Establishment and use of confidential historic database on missing children and dependent adults
   (a) The online missing persons registry shall accept and generate complete information on a
missing person.


   (b) The information on a missing person shall be retrievable by any of the following:
   (1) The person's name.
   (2) The person's date of birth.
   (3) The person's social security number.
   (4) Whether a dental chart has been received, coded, and entered into the National Crime
Information Center Missing Person System by the Attorney General.
   (5) The person's physical description, including hair and eye color and body marks.
   (6) The person's known associates.
   (7) The person's last known location.
   (8) The name or assumed name of the abductor, if applicable, other pertinent information
relating to the abductor or the assumed abductor, or both.


   (9) Any other information, as deemed appropriate by the Attorney General.
   (c) The Attorney General, in consultation with local law enforcement agencies and other user
groups, shall develop the form in which information shall be entered into the system.


   (d) The Attorney General shall establish and maintain within the center a separate, confidential
historic database relating to missing children and dependent adults. The historic database may be
used only by the center for statistical and research purposes. The historic database shall be set up
to categorize cases relating to missing children and dependent adults by type. These types shall
include the following: runaways, voluntary missing, lost, abduction involving movement of the
victim in the commission of the crime or sexual exploitation of the victim, nonfamily abduction,
family abduction, and any other categories as determined by the Attorney General. In addition,
the data shall include the number of missing children and missing dependent adults in this state
and the category of each case.


   (e) The center may supply information about specific cases from the historic database to a local
police department, sheriff's department, or district attorney, only in connection with an
investigation by the police department, sheriff's department, or district attorney of a missing
person case or a violation or attempted violation of Section 220, 261.5, 262, 273a, 273d, or
273.5, or any sex offense listed in Section 290, except for the offense specified in subdivision (d)
of Section 243.4.
§ 14208.  Telephone hotline for receipt of information regarding missing children and dependent
adults; Posters of missing children
   (a) The Department of Justice shall operate a statewide, toll-free telephone hotline 24 hours per
day, seven days per week to receive information regarding missing children and dependent adults
and relay this information to the appropriate law enforcement authorities.


   (b) The Department of Justice shall select up to six children per month from the missing
children registry maintained pursuant to former Section 11114 or pursuant to the system
maintained pursuant to Sections 14201 and 14202 and shall produce posters with photographs
and information regarding these children, including the missing children hotline telephone
number and reward information. The department shall make these posters available to parties as
prescribed and as the department deems appropriate. § 14209.  Photographs of missing children; Information from organizations with ongoing
missing children programs
   (a) The Department of Justice shall provide appropriate local reporting agencies with a list of
persons still listed as missing who are under 18 years of age, with an appropriate waiver form in
order to assist the reporting agency in obtaining a photograph of each of the missing children.


   (b) Local reporting agencies shall attempt to obtain the most recent photograph available for
persons still listed as missing and forward those photographs to the Department of Justice.


   (c) The department shall include these photographs, as they become available, in the quarterly
bulletins pursuant to subdivision (c) of Section 14201.


   (d) State and local elected officials, agencies, departments, boards, and commissions may
enclose in their mailings information regarding missing children or dependent adults obtainable
from the Department of Justice or any organization that is recognized as a nonprofit, tax-exempt
organization under state or federal law and that has an ongoing missing children program.
Elected officials, agency secretaries, and directors of departments, boards, and commissions are
urged to develop policies to enclose missing children or dependent adults information in
mailings when it will not increase postage costs, and is otherwise deemed appropriate.
PENAL CODE
PART 4. Prevention of Crimes and Apprehension of Criminals
TITLE 12. Violent Crime Information Center
§ 14213.  Definitions
   (a) As used in this title, "missing person" includes, but is not limited to, a child who has been
taken, detained, concealed, enticed away, or retained by a parent in violation of Chapter 4
(commencing with Section 277) of Title 9 of Part 1. It also includes any child who is missing
voluntarily or involuntarily, or under circumstances not conforming to his or her ordinary habits
or behavior and who may be in need of assistance.


   (b) As used in this title, "evidence that the person is at risk" includes, but is not limited to,
evidence or indications of any of the following:


   (1) The person missing is the victim of a crime or foul play.
   (2) The person missing is in need of medical attention.
   (3) The person missing has no pattern of running away or disappearing.
   (4) The person missing may be the victim of parental abduction.
   (5) The person missing is mentally impaired.
   (c) As used in this title, "child" is any person under the age of 18.
     (d) As used in this title, "center" means the Violent Crime Information Center.


   (e) As used in this title, "dependent adult" is any person described in subdivision (e) of Section
368.


   (f) As used in this title, "dental or medical records or X-rays," include all those records or Xrays which are in the possession of a dentist, physician and surgeon, or medical facility.
STREETS AND HIGHWAYS CODE
DIVISION 1. State Highways
CHAPTER 1. Administration
ARTICLE 7. Safety Roadside Rests
§ 221.  Posting of information regarding missing children at roadside rests
   The department shall, to the extent feasible, post at appropriate safety roadside rests
information regarding missing children provided by the Department of Justice pursuant to
Section 11114.1 of the Penal Code.
WELFARE AND INSTITUTIONS CODE
DIVISION 9. Public Social Services
PART 3. Aid and Medical Assistance
CHAPTER 2. California Work Opportunity and Responsibility to Kids Act
ARTICLE 7. Enforcement
§ 11478.1.  Confidentiality of child recovery and support enforcement records; Disclosure;
"Putative parent"
   (a) It is the intent of the Legislature to protect individual rights of privacy, and to facilitate and
enhance the effectiveness of the child and spousal support enforcement program, by ensuring the
confidentiality of support enforcement and child abduction records, and to thereby encourage the
full and frank disclosure of information relevant to all of the following:


   (1) The establishment or maintenance of parent and child relationships and support obligations.
   (2) The enforcement of the child support liability of absent parents.
   (3) The enforcement of spousal support liability of the spouse or former spouse to the extent
required by the state plan under Section 11475.2 of this code and Chapter 6 (commencing with
Section 4900) of Part 5 of Division 9 of the Family Code.


   (4) The location of absent parents.
   (5) The location of parents and children abducted, concealed, or detained by them.
   (b) (1) Except as provided in subdivision (c), all files, applications, papers, documents, and
records established or maintained by any public entity pursuant to the administration and implementation of the child and spousal support enforcement program established pursuant to
Part D (commencing with Section 651) of Subchapter IV of Chapter 7 of Title 42 of the United
States Code and this article, shall be confidential, and shall not be open to examination or
released for disclosure for any purpose not directly connected with the administration of the child
and spousal support enforcement program. No public entity shall disclose any file, application,
paper, document, or record, or the information contained therein, except as expressly authorized
by this section.


   (2) In no case shall information be released or the whereabouts of one party or the child
disclosed to another party, or to the attorney of any other party, if a protective order has been
issued by a court or administrative agency with respect to the former party, a good cause claim
under Section 11477.04 has been approved or is pending, or the public agency responsible for
establishing paternity or enforcing support has reason to believe that the release of the
information may result in physical or emotional harm to the former party or the child.


   (3) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, a proof of service filed by the district attorney
shall not disclose the address where service of process was accomplished. Instead, the district
attorney shall keep the address in his or her own records. The proof of service shall specify that
the address is on record at the district attorney's office and that the address may be released only
upon an order from the court pursuant to paragraph (6) of subdivision (c).


   (c) Disclosure of the information described in subdivision (b) is authorized as follows:
   (1) All files, applications, papers, documents and records as described in subdivision (b) shall
be available and may be used by a public entity for all administrative, civil, or criminal
investigations, actions, proceedings, or prosecutions conducted in connection with the
administration of the child and spousal support enforcement program approved under Part D
(commencing with Section 651) of Subchapter IV of Chapter 7 of Title 42 of the United States
Code, and any other plan or program described in Section 303.21 of Title 45 of the Code of
Federal Regulations and to the county welfare department responsible for administering a
program operated under a state plan pursuant to Subpart 1 or 2 or Part B or Part E of Subchapter
IV of Chapter 7 of Title 42 of the United States Code.


   (2) A document requested by a person who wrote, prepared, or furnished the document may be
examined by or disclosed to that person or his or her designee.
   (3) The payment history of an obligor pursuant to a support order may be examined by or
released to the court, the obligor, or the person on whose behalf enforcement actions are being
taken or that person's designee.


   (4) Income and expense information of either parent may be released to the other parent for the
purpose of establishing or modifying a support order.
   (5) Public records subject to disclosure under the Public Records Act (Chapter 3.5
(commencing with Section 6250) of Division 7 of the Government Code) may be released.


   (6) After a noticed motion and a finding by the court, in a case in which establishment or
enforcement actions are being taken, that release or disclosure to the obligor or obligee is
required by due process of law, the court may order a public entity that possesses an application, paper, document, or record as described in subdivision (b) to make that item available to the
obligor or obligee for examination or copying, or to disclose to the obligor or obligee the
contents of that item. Article 9 (commencing with Section 1040) of Chapter 4 of Division 3 of
the Evidence Code shall not be applicable to proceedings under this part. At any hearing of a
motion filed pursuant to this section, the court shall inquire of the district attorney and the parties
appearing at the hearing if there is reason to believe that release of the requested information
may result in physical or emotional harm to a party. If the court determines that harm may occur,
the court shall issue any protective orders or injunctive orders restricting the use and disclosure
of the information as are necessary to protect the individuals.


   (7) To the extent not prohibited by federal law or regulation, information indicating the
existence or imminent threat of a crime against a child, or location of a concealed, detained, or
abducted child or the location of the concealing, detaining, or abducting person, may be
disclosed to any district attorney, any appropriate law enforcement agency, or to any state or
county child protective agency, or may be used in any judicial proceedings to prosecute that
crime or to protect the child.


   (8) The social security number, most recent address, and the place of employment of the absent
parent may be released to an authorized person as defined in Section 653(c) of Title 42 of the
United States Code, only if the authorized person has filed a request for the information, and
only if the information has been provided to the California Parent Locator Service by the federal
Parent Locator Service pursuant to Section 653 of Title 42 of the United States Code.


   (d) (1) "Administration and implementation of the child and spousal support enforcement
program," as used in this section, means the carrying out of the state and local plans for
establishing, modifying, and enforcing child support obligations, enforcing spousal support
orders, and determining paternity pursuant to Part D (commencing with Section 651) of
Subchapter IV of Chapter 7 of Title 42 of the United States Code and this article.


   (2) For purposes of this section, "obligor" means any person owing a duty of support.
   (3) As used in this chapter, "putative parent" shall refer to any person reasonably believed to be
the parent of a child for whom the district attorney is attempting to establish paternity or
establish, modify, or enforce support pursuant to Section 11475.1.


   (e) Any person who willfully, knowingly, and intentionally violates this section is guilty of a
misdemeanor.
   (f) Nothing in this section shall be construed to compel the disclosure of information relating to
a deserting parent who is a recipient of aid under a public assistance program for which federal
aid is paid to this state, if that information is required to be kept confidential by the federal law or
regulations relating to the program.
Return to AMBER Alert Legal Database




STEAL THIS BLOG PLEASE! I, Praetorian