House Judiciary Committee advances bill requiring prompt reporting of missing persons to NCIC and NamUs

The House Judiciary Committee on Valentine’s Day considered Senate File 114, a bill that would require Wyoming law enforcement agencies to accept credible reports of missing persons without delay and to enter required information into federal and national clearinghouses such as the National Crime Information Center (NCIC) and the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs). The committee adopted an amendment adding the words “without delay” to a clause about which agency will accept a report and voted to advance the bill out of committee 9-0.

Senator Landon, the bill’s sponsor, told the committee the measure grew from work by sheriffs, chiefs of police and the Attorney General’s Office to address inconsistent handling of missing-adult reports. "This bill describes a process that prioritizes which agency is responsible for accepting the report and thus, diminishing that duplication," he said, describing the proposal as a way to reduce delays and confusion among agencies and nonprofit search groups.

The bill is intended to fill gaps for missing adults that advocates and law enforcement say exist in Wyoming. Kara Chambers of the Wyoming Attorney General’s Office told the committee the language is…