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HOUSE  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  No. 3978

By Ms. Coakley-Rivera of Springfield, a petition (subject to Joint Rule 12) of Marc Lombardo and others for legislation to establish a penalty for failure to report a missing child.  The Judiciary. 


The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
 

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In the Year Two Thousand Eleven

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An act establishing a penalty for failure to report a missing child.
 

              Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:
 

              Section 7 of chapter 22A of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2008 Official Edition, is hereby amended by adding the following paragraph:-

              Any parent, legal guardian or caretaker of a child 12 years of age or younger who is missing shall be required to report the child missing to the appropriate law enforcement authorities within 8 hours, and shall provide said authorities with identifying data related to said missing child.  Whoever violates any provision of this paragraph shall be punished by a fine of not more than $1,000 or by imprisonment in a state prison for not more than 3 years or imprisonment in a jail or house of correction for not more than 2 ½ years, or by such fine and imprisonment.
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