NCJ Number
77751
Date Published
1980
Length
381 pages
Annotation
This U.S. Senate hearing transcript contains the text of the Parental Kidnapping Prevention Act of 1979, a bill to amend title 28 and title 18 of the U.S. Code. The testimony of government officials, child welfare specialists, and interested citizens is also included.
Abstract
The Parental Kidnapping Prevention Act is aimed at prohibiting the interstate restraint of children in violation of rights of custody and visitation. The hearing focused specifically on parental child-snatching. Other relevant materials examined include texts of articles, child advocacy information, and a report on a meeting on international child abduction. Additional submissions include a review of Federal child-snatching legislation prepared by Children's Rights, Inc. (CRI), an advocacy group, as well as affidavits of parents who have suffered from the loss of their children through abduction by another parent or relative. The transcript also contains papers on the characteristics of parental child stealing offenses and on the problems in the prosecution of these offenses. The Department of Justice's views on several child-snatching bills (H.R. 762, 9478, 9913, 11273, and 11722 and S. 1437) the text of the Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction Act (UCCJA), and a survey of State statutes on parental kidnapping are provided.