§ 143B-1015.  Dissemination of missing persons data by law-enforcement agencies.

(a) A law-enforcement agency, upon receipt of a missing person report by a parent, spouse, guardian, legal custodian, or person responsible for the supervision of the missing individual shall immediately make arrangements for the entry of data about the missing person or missing child into the national missing persons file in accordance with criteria set forth by the FBI/NCIC, immediately inform all of its on-duty law-enforcement officers of the missing person report, initiate a statewide broadcast to all appropriate law-enforcement agencies to be on the lookout for the individual, and transmit a copy of the report to the Center. No law enforcement agency shall establish or maintain any policy which requires the observance of any waiting period before accepting a missing person report.

If the report involves a missing child and the report meets the criteria established in G.S. 143B-1021(b), as soon as practicable after receipt of the report, the law enforcement agency shall notify the Center and the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children of the relevant data about the missing child.

(b) A law-enforcement agency may enter information from a missing person report or about an unidentified person into NamUs at any time.

(c) A law-enforcement agency shall enter information from a missing person report or about an unidentified person into NamUs in any of the following circumstances:

(1) A missing person has been missing for more than 90 days.

(2) An unidentified person has not been identified for more than 90 days following the person's death.

(3) A missing child has been missing for more than 90 days.

(d) If a law-enforcement agency enters information into NamUs pursuant to subsection (b) or (c) of this section, the law-enforcement agency shall do all of the following:

(1) Include all information regarding the missing child or person, or unidentified person, including medical records, DNA records, and dental records.

(2) Enter into NamUs the fact that (i) a missing child or person has been found or (ii) an unidentified person has been identified, if either of these circumstances occurs following the original entry of the person's information into NamUs. (1985 (Reg. Sess., 1986), c. 1000, s. 1; 2002-126, s. 18.7(a); 2003-191, s. 1; 2007-469, s. 2; 2011-145, s. 19.1(w), (yy); 2019-90, s. 1; 2023-86, s. 3(a).)