Police Officer Preparation & Law Enforcement Resource - Archive

If a missing person doesn't turn up and no ransom demand was made, what more can be done? Especially say roughly a month after the initial event. I have my investigators starting over and asking the principals questions, but I find that I don't really know what kinds of questions might be asked. I hope you can help me out here.

Not much really. Friends and relatives are the only ones that can really give you leads. After the initial questions, about all we can ask is they've heard from them. Bear in mind that in real life unless there is some indication of foul play, missing person cases aren't worked that hard. In the cases involving adults, a lot of people take off and just don't want to be found for whatever reason.

Not much really. Friends and relatives are the only ones that can really give you leads. After the initial questions, about all we can ask is they've heard from them. Bear in mind that in real life unless there is some indication of foul play, missing person cases aren't worked that hard. In the cases involving adults, a lot of people take off and just don't want to be found for whatever reason.

I basically just want to reiterate what RDS said here. As long as the person missing is an adult and is not endangered somehow (i.e. dementia, on some type of meds that he/she didn't bring, etc.) usually it's just a wait and watch operation. An adult in America has the right to go missing whenever he/she wants.

Thanks guy for the info. I really didn't know how much work was done on missing persons investigations. All I really have to go on is assorted TV shows or movies and I know how far off they can be (or at least I suspect as much)

Marinepilot - some smaller details I didn't include above. At the initial 'crime' blood was found at the scene - enough to be alarming - maybe enough to be life threatening in the long run - not enough to be fatal in the short run. The blood trail stops at the back door though. Also the one missing is 15, not quite an adult yet.

Again - thanks, thanks, thanks for your answers.

TAt the initial 'crime' blood was found at the scene - enough to be alarming - maybe enough to be life threatening in the long run - not enough to be fatal in the short run. The blood trail stops at the back door though. Also the one missing is 15, not quite an adult yet.

Again - thanks, thanks, thanks for your answers.

That could launch a full investigation, depending on other circumstances. Teenagers also run away from home all the time too. How much goes into finding them again depends on the situation. If the kid has a history of discipline problems and made threats to run, it probably won't get as much attention. If the kid disappears out of the blue and seems to be pretty stable, then we work harder. I've had a couple of homicides that started out as missing teenagers, but I've seen 1000+X more where the kid just ran away from home.

The blood could be a factor, maybe not. Was there signs of a struggle? Had the kid been preparing food and possibly cut themselves? We look at the totality of every scene and situation before we decide how to proceed.

Signs of a struggle - yes. It happened late at night, around 2 in the morning. He was sitting at the table doing his homework and waiting for his father and uncle to pass out (drunk) in front of the TV so he could go to bed himself. When police arrive the school books are violently scattered off the table. A glass of water that had been there was spilled and broken on the floor too. Sweatpants, torn and bloodied were found here too. In the bathroom a bloodied sweatshirt was found on the floor along with a damp towel. (the kid, Derrick took a shower) Wet drops of blood let to the bedroom. (Derrick got dressed) The reader knows that Derrick left the house under his own power.

Derrick, was rather down trodden, mostly mental abuse, some physical abuse, nothing really huge, just a sad family situation. Derrick never threatened to run away. He always sought to minimize such abuse. He himself didn't see it as abuse, but ultimately it translated into a feeling of being trapped.

The book is about Derrick and where he goes and what he does. I was wanting to add some chapters about what happened with these other characters. To help show a timeline.

Thanks so much for your help. It really means a lot to me. When this book gets published, I'll send a signed copy to anyone who wants it. Just so you know, it's strongly based on the D&D game.