In the evolving landscape of missing persons investigations, both the FBI's NCIC and the Department of Justice's NamUs play pivotal roles. NCIC serves as a secure law enforcement database, while NamUs offers a publicly accessible platform, fostering collaboration between agencies and families. Together, they enhance the effectiveness of locating and identifying missing individuals.

According to the FBI, there are approximately 96,955 Active Missing Person Records as of December 31, 2023 reported in the National Crime Information Center (NCIC).

That number of missing persons in the NCIC database does not include the estimated 1.5 + million youth and adults who may be lost on our streets among the homeless and/or who are missing and otherwise unaccounted for.

While NCIC remains a critical tool for law enforcement, NamUs has become increasingly significant due to its public accessibility and comprehensive support services. Some states have enacted legislation mandating the entry of missing person cases into NamUs, enhancing nationwide collaboration.

 

  • Unlike NCIC, NamUs allows public access to its database, enabling families and the general public to search and contribute information.

  • As of December 31, 2024, NamUs reported 25,553 active missing person cases and 15,168 active unidentified person cases.

 

This approximate number is based on several factors including the many years of research that includes the disparity between NCIC 'reported' and 'unreported' John and Jane Doe unidentified deceased person cases, homeless populations across the country, and the numbers of estimated unreported runaway children vs. reported as missing children who are listed as missing in the National Crime Information Center database.   These are but a few of the factors we've considered in coming up with what we believe to be a conservative base line approximation. Not 'every' homeless person is lost but there are many who do fall into the cracks of the system.   How many youth are actually considered to be homeless?  

 

  • Covenant House reports that over 4.2 million young people experience a form of homelessness each year in the U.S.

  • The National Alliance to End Homelessness estimates that approximately 550,000 unaccompanied youth and young adults up to age 24 experience a homelessness episode of longer than one week annually