Is the United States culture getting safer or more dangerous for kids?
I think the changes in the 25-year period have been dramatic. For example, more missing children come home safely today than ever before in the nation’s history. But at the same time, I think it’s a very dangerous time for kids. We’re seeing different kinds of risks than we saw 25 years ago. Q: What was one of the first big changes? A: The Adam Walsh case in 1981 was the primary catalyst that led to the recognition that this was a nation of 50 states that acted like 50 separate countries, and 18,000 police departments that basically didn’t talk to each other. One of the things the Walsh family discovered was that it was virtually impossible to have missing-child information entered into the FBI’s national crime computer. You could enter information about stolen cars, stolen guns, all kinds of stolen property, but not stolen children. And so one of the first steps that all of us took was to try to persuade Congress in 1982 to pass what was called the Missing Children’s Act, which made i
