Governor Signs Sanders' Missing Adults Bill Into Law

Senator James Sanders Jr. (D-Rochdale Village, Far Rockaway) is proud to announce that late Friday, Governor Cuomo signed into New York State law his bill S6437A, requiring police to file reports of missing adults.

"This is a tremendous victory for families across the state," Sanders said. "Now when one of our loved ones goes missing, we will have the peace of mind that police will investigate."

The new law, Chapter 316 of 2016, will require police to submit reports of missing adults to the National Crime Information Center (NCIC) database when the adult has a proven disability, may be in physical danger, is missing after a catastrophe, may have disappeared involuntarily or is missing under circumstances where there is a reasonable concern for his or her safety.

Previously, state law only mandated reports of missing children and vulnerable adults.

The act, known as LaMont Dottin's Law, is named after a 19-year old who disappeared from St. Albans, Queens on October 19, 1995. His mother, Dr. Arnita Fowler, searched for her son for five years, only to discover that he had been found dead six days after she had reported him missing and that he had been buried in an unmarked grave in a potter’s field.

A former version of the bill passed both houses of the legislature in 2015, but was vetoed by the Governor over concerns that it was framed too broadly to comply with the NCIC database. It was rewritten with language mirroring the parameters of the database this year, when it passed the Senate 61-0 and the Assembly 130-12.

Assembly Member Charles Barron (D-Brooklyn) sponsored the companion bill, A9957.

The law will take effect on November 8, when it will become Section 837-F-2 of the Executive Law.