Information and Statistics

 In 2022, 206,371 females under the age of 21 were reported missing in the United States. 64,956 females over the age of 21 were also reported missing. In 2022, 214,582 persons of color were reported missing. Of that group, 153,374 were under the age of 18. According to the National Missing and Unidentified Persons Database (NamUs), over 600,000 people go missing every year in the United States. The FBI estimates that between 85 and 90 percent of the approximately 840,000 children reported missing each year are children. 

California has the most missing persons, with 2,133 cases reported. However, California's rate of missing persons is roughly average, at 7.61 missing for every 100,000 people.  

 Statistics show us that approximately 1,500 American Indian and Alaska Native missing persons have been entered into the National Crime Information Center (NCIC) throughout the U.S. and approximately 2,700 cases of Murder and Nonnegligent Homicide Offenses have been reported to the Federal Government’s Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Program. In total, BIA estimates there are approximately 4,200 missing and murdered cases that have gone unsolved.

These investigations often remain unsolved due to a lack of investigative resources available to identify new information from witness testimony, re-examine new or retained material evidence, and review fresh activities of suspects.