CMA 2024-150
To a Surveillance Technology Impact Report (STIR)
Voted yes (8), unanimous
Burhan Azeem
Marc McGovern
Patty Nolan
Sumbul Siddiqui
Jivan Sobrinho-Wheeler
Paul F. Toner
Ayesha M. Wilson
E. Denise Simmons
Absent (1)
Joan Pickett
The National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (“NamUs”) is used by investigators to help resolve missing, unidentified, and unclaimed missing persons cases by uploading case details, the missing persons fingerprints, dental records, and familial DNA into a national database. The Police Department will use the database as a tool to aid in resolving missing, unidentified, and unclaimed missing persons cases.
Investigators will enter case details including the missing individual’s last known location as well as demographic and physical descriptions of the individual. This information will be housed in the national database until the case is cleared. Data will be searchable through the publicly accessible NamUs webpage by police investigators, medical examiners, and missing or unidentified persons family members.
2. What is the purpose of the Surveillance Technology?
NamUs is the national information clearinghouse and resource center for missing unidentified, and unclaimed person cases throughout the United States. The NamUs program brings people, information, forensic science, and technology together to help resolve missing and unidentified person cases across the country. Providing this information will help the Police Department and outside Police Agencies across the country solve missing and unidentified person cases, as well as hopefully bring some measure of closure and comfort to family members of missing and unidentified persons.
3. Where will the Surveillance Technology be deployed? When?
This technology will be used by the Criminal Investigations Section as soon as approved.
4. What privacy impact will the Surveillance Technology have?
A typical entry onto the database will include the Missing Person’s name, age (not date of birth), last known location and date last observed.
5. What are the fiscal costs of the Surveillance Technology, including initial costs, ongoing maintenance and personnel costs, and source of funds?
No cost. All NamUs resources are provided at no cost through funding from National Institute of Justice (“NIJ”).