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The problem of missing children is complex and multifaceted.  Children may become missing due to abduction by nonfamily members or abduction by family members.  Children may be missing as a result of running away from home.  Children may also be missing involuntarily for reasons other than abduction, due to becoming lost, injured or otherwise missing to their parents or guardians.  The best national estimates for the number of missing children are found in the National Incidence Studies of Missing, Abducted, Runaway, and Thrownaway Children (NISMART-2), released in October 2002. According to NISMART-2, an estimated

• 800,000 children younger than 18 are missing each year, or an average of 2,000 children reported missing each day.
• 200,000 children were were abducted by family members.
• 58,000 children were abducted by nonfamily members, and
• 115 children were the victims of “stereotypical” kidnapping. These crimes involve someone the child does not know, or knows only slightly, who holds the child overnight, transports the child 50 miles or more, kills the child, demands ransom, or intends to keep the child permanently.

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Andrea J. Sedlak, David Finkelhor, Heather Hammer, and Dana J. Schultz. U.S. Department of Justice. "National Estimates of Missing Children: An Overview" in National Incidence Studies of Missing, Abducted, Runaway, and Thrownaway Children. Washington, DC: Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, Office of Justice Programs, U.S. Department of Justice, October 2002, page 5.

Tags: Andrea J. Sedlak, Dana J. Schultz, David Finkelhor, Heather Hammer, National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, National Estimates of Missing Children: An Overview, National Incidence Studies of Missing Abducted Runaway and Thrownaway Children, NCMEC, NISMART-2, Office of Justice Programs, Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, U.S. Department of Justice, Washington D.C.