Results tagged “DNA Child Safety Forensic” from DNA Lady

Are Middlesex County's Streets really Safe Anymore?

Another local Metuchen, NJ 08840 newspaper reported an attempted kidnapping of a 45 year woman at an office building on Durham Avenue in Metuchen, NJ.  The headline of this local newspaper read "Metuchen police charge man with attempted kidnapping"  If you've been following my blog, you'll remember that since last October , I blogged about two other incidents one in Metuchen where teenagers and young men from Brooklyn were involved and one in nearby Edison where a young child walking ahead of her parent was approached by a man in a van.  I remember those "man in vans" on the streets of Brooklyn and running passed them as fast as possible to catch up to a crowd of kids walking together.  Even t hen we knew there was safety in numbers.  But that was in the 1960s, and while the exposure was psychological harmful - today's "man in van" seem to have less fear and more bravado as they approach and snatch young children on the streets.   We do not live in Oz anymore, the once bucolic town of Metuchen is now exposed to the charms of the outside world.  Whether it is the economy, changing culture or what - times are dangerous and it is important for children to know Stranger Danger rules, how to protect themselves, who they should trust (police officer, school principals, firemen) so that in the frightful event of a stranger abduction - rather than panic, the children feel they have some control over the situation.  Make noise, remember 911, leave your clothes (jacket shoes T shirt somewhere) but most importantly have a plan.  Who will they call, what is the code word for family members and who maintains the child's DNA Genetic Profile.  A one time Child Safety Identification Safety Kit contains all the identifying information an authority will collect from you in the event of an emergency.  It's fun to collect (Have a CSI Party) , non-invasive and the 21st century method of safeguarding your children.    The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children says only parents or legal guardians should have access to their child's DNA Profile.  

Repubishing previous entry:
Does anyone read the fine print these days - I don't mean the small print at the bottom of your small appliance contract - I mean the fine print still found in black and white ink newspapers that concern your neighborhood events.

In local 08817,08818,08820,08837,08899 and 08840, there are still freely distributed newspapers that have quietly reported on two worrisome events in the last 5 months, not usually associated with these zipcodes.

The first headline read "Two men charged with Luring in Metuchen" and the second read "Edison Police search for man who may have approached girl".  These reports are frightening to any parent with young children.  There's no follow up or closing copy to these cases, so we can only assume that either the events are isolated or that these individuals are out on our streets just looking for an opportunity.

The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children reports that every 26 seconds another child becomes lost or missing.  Nearly 2,000,000 American children per year are lost, kidnapped, missing or runaway.  While DNA or dentition cannot locate a missing person, DNA is the gold standard of human identification and can assist authorities in the time of emergency. 

For parents who have already gone through the Paternity Testing process, the upside benefit is that you have a DNA Profile of your child to offer to local authorities, in the event a child becomes lost, missing, or kidnapped.   For the modern, 21st Century parent, the best method to safeguard your school aged child - is to have a DNA Profile taken by a private facility and kept with your child's other identifying documents.  A  genetic profile is also recommended for Alzheimer's patients and civilians working in foreign countries considered at risk, or civilians working in high risk occupations, such as police, and firemen.

Check with your local dentist or childcare facility to determine if they participate in the Child Safety Identification programs being offered by local DNA collection sites.  Set up a Child Safety Day and have a DNA collector come to your site.  Today's DNA collection is non-invasive and within 3-5 business days, parents can add another tool in the Safeguarding of their children.