Dessimination of Information Is Critical

[Jim Harnage]

To say the least we know how frustrating it is to try to offer law enforcement information that might lead to the whereabouts of a missing person.
Successful dessimination of information is critical and key yo a successfu; search. Keeping the channels of communication open is a must.

It isn't easy to approach law enforcement with information.

The channels are often cold and the response is shallow.

Many receptionists should have a job wrapping mullet not answering a phone for the county where the PR starts-at the receptionist.

The information officer should quit hating everyone who calls and accept every tip as if it were the last for life.

I was approached recently for information by an agent. The meet did not go well. He acted as if I could not offer him a body that my info was not key. Hey guys, missing person do not normally jump up and shout, hey, I'm over here. It is not that easy.

Remember the newspaper stories of missing person alerts? And the posters we place out on light poles, in stores, on trees along sidewalks, and other key areas?
The posters usually contain a photo of the missing individual, a description, when missing, and then there is that little note at the bottom of the poster that says...
Anyone with information is asked to contact such and such sheriff department or the FBI crime line at the following numbers. Then it gives the numbers.

That is all well and good. Well. pick up the phone like I have recently and here's what you often get...
Oh, I'm sorry, but the courthouse is closed for lunch and the calls are forwarded here to the jail and we do not have any information here.
No, there is no one whom you may speak with as they are all gone to lunch.

I call back at 3:30 and a different voice answers and tells me the people on the poster who said call have gone for the day or are out and they don't know when they will return.
No, I cannot give you their cellphone number.

Ok...once I do get someone on the line it is this gruffy voice...I tell them that I am calling about so-and-so and have informatin from an informant.
I am asked what relatinoship I am to the missing. Well, I am one who read the poster and I now him or her and I have informatino for you.
Then I am asked what involvement do I have with the case? I repeat none and that I am giving important information that might be key to the case.

I called one recently and was asked had a crime been committed? I told them I didn't know but they would not know if they did not go out and talk to this person.

Back to the informant. The sergeant tells me that he does not want to waste time talkiong to me but wants to talk to my informant.No way in heck ar eyou going to talk to my informant whose confidence is vital to other operations.

The agent refuses to accept my info becuase he is pouting now unless he can save himself some time and tlak to my informant.
There isn't enough money for me to sell out an important informant, fahter, dad, mother, sister, friend, or anyone else who trusts me with thier lives.

To make it short...Posters shoud begin to read "anyone with information should contact the Sheriff office at...or you may contact The Missing Person Project at 229-559-4996.
A reward is being offered for any information leading to the arrest and conviction of person(s) responsible or information leading to the location of the missing person dead or alive.

There are other avenues to get your tips out there. We shoud all organize something in our neighborhood with local private investigators and advocacy groups who will be key yo our getting information out there.
There are plenty of ways and one does need a badge to be a competent citizen.

Since we have orgnaized the Missing PersonProject in our area through Silent Ministries, Inc our phones have begun to ring with citizens with info on local missing person and tey are not afraid of us and will talto a comfortable person.
After a few meetings with other private investigators and citizens we have bult slowly a avenue and method for making a difference and respectfully, wihtout the help of those cold, cold, hearts in blue.

Love

Jim
Silent Ministries Recovery Outreach, Inc
Missing Person Project

[Jim Harnage]

John, Angelbound, and Maureen;;;Thank you for the inspiratiion and objectivity. To address John, thank you for the vote of confidence. In the case we are working now through The Missing PErson Project Reward....it was thirty days after her husband went missing and not the first, local, county, or state had vissited the home of the ex-spouse and sons to investigate or even talk to them...
Family finally reaches me and I, private investigator and minister, and civilian, was the first to even set foot in their home and spent 2 and a half hours recieving important and by then cold info...
I have perhaps the key to the case in two men and lots of money and an accidental killing and the state is pouting with me making it difficult to get them to follow the evidence becuase of blue pride. (Police blue).

Last week I felt led to place a small piece in the paper which the local paper printed uncovering the LE's failure to do their job and an apparent show of prejudice and discrimination ( because the family is poor and without means). The next day the state took the case, and I got a phone calls from local and state wanting to hear the evidecne...once I began to give them the evidence and places , people, the who, what, when, where, and why that is taken into consideration in an investigation, as well as method and motive, they began to shut down toward me se eing a civilian was about to crack the case...I can only pray that they are working the evidence.

[Maureen Reintjes-Peace4 Admin]

Just in case anyone is taking my words wrong this is an attempt to clarify: I totally agree with both Jim and Angelbound and applaud them for their efforts, I simply don't want the families of the missing left out of anything.....I would like to see families of the missing attached to Missing Person units across the nation.

[John Quinn]

Jim..A man like you should be able to take LE by the collar and tell him just what needs to be done!! I KNOW I'd listen to you ..LOL Really Jim..There must be a way to get LE and your comunity together on this.Even if you have to shame them to co-operate.Know you are always in my prayers and pray you will find a way. Always...john

[Maureen Reintjes-Peace4 Admin]

Angelbound,

I don't think most families will ever backdown even under the threat of being arrested. If LE wants a clean, sanitized crime scene then they need to start listening to the families. You and Jim are heavily involved in this and have been for years. I, however, see it from the side of normal people going about their normal lives who as close as their lives have ever gotten to the police is maybe a traffic ticket when they were a teenager. They may or may not have ever payed much attention to news stories of missing people and crime shows were just that crime shows for entertainment. But sadly when a loved one goes missing they find out real quick the disinterest LE have for searching for teens or adults. They meet with lack of cooperation immediately even though they go to the police with intelligence, open arms and minds, good citizens never expecting to get treated that way. They are fighting for their loved one's lives, for their loved ones to be returned safely. It is our tax dollars that pay LE's wages, they should answer to us, they should cooperate with us. To contact LE and hear nothing but stats and that your loved one has a right to go missing if they want are exactly the wrong words to say to distraught family members. To treat cases like a stack of resumes is insane. Most of us are full aware we should not conduct our own searches but if you go to a doctor with the worse cold in the world and the doctor decides she doesn't want to treat you, she has too many other cases, don't you still go to the drug store and pick up medication to self medicate? Well when LE denies a family a search, denies even taking their report seriously because they have too many other cases what do you expect the families to do? Say "yes officer," and go home and wait for years for the phone to ring? That's not the human nature of a loving, caring, concerned family. In good families family members fight for each other. How could LE ignore that most basic aspect of a family? Anything that pertains to the missing to help all sides to learn to work together I'm for, but not if they leave out the families. That's like telling a doctor who has never studied cancer to go treat a cancer patient. LE will never be able to take a holistic approach to finding the missing if they continue to ignore the families. As we need to learn from LE they need to learn from us too.

Maureen

[Jim Harnage]

Angelbound;
I feel that I am talking to someone with a vision much like mine. I am grateful for individuals like yourself, Maureen, others who are taking the time to offer advice.
I have been invited to participate as a minister and advocate and chaplain in another jirisdiction after inviting this jurosdoction's Victim Advocate pro to attend one of our meetings and give a talk from her standpoint.
I want the public to see what the officers and other professionals go through. A search occurred here last week by the family members of the missing becuase the LE was really not doing enything at all. There as has been a tirade of newspaper clips about that jirisdiction's lack of interest and finally the GBI was called in thank God.
Believe it or not the family found two of his shoes and money scattered in areas on public poerty right where the LE wowuld have searched had they went out and conducted one. Then the LE contacted the family and began talking arrest and trespassing if the family did a search again. That prompted public outcry and then the GBI took over.
But arising out of the search were concerns about safety, snakebites, public safety, property rights,
and other issues that aggreeably were most important as well.
I am wishing to call LE and key individuals together to form a community forum wherein we can hear what LE has to suggest as to how they wish to be treated and how the public wishes to be treated,
Then we will go into search techniques, law, ordinances, statutes, public relations.I hope to establish such a decorum that when and if a search were to be necessary law enforcement won't feel threatened bebcuase they will know is out there is trained and will be assured that laws and lwe perons will be respected as well.
I feel it could lead to a very good thing.

[Maureen Reintjes-Peace4 Admin]

Jim,

Whatever you do make sure you include the families of the missing every step of the way, their input is invaluable. Did you watch the trailer for the documentary? http://peace4missing.ning.com/profiles/blogs/trailer-for-project-ja... It captures some of what the families face when dealing with LE. There is a powerful piece on the trailer when the sister of a missing teen relates hows she dug up her own brother's rib because LE did not do their job when they 1/2 heartedly searched the same area.

As far as getting the trucking companies involved Project Jason (www.projectjason.org) has been doing that for sometime now. It's a great program!

Maureen

[Jim Harnage]

I am sharing this discussion with members of Missing Person Project Reward at my http://jimharnage.ning.com. I'd love to recieve ideas from all of you at Peace4 and my sites. I feel a burden to begin this idea.It's just an idea birthing in my spirit right now.
Jim
Silent Ministries

[Jim Harnage]

Angelbound; You are right. I've been trying to come up with a way to address that. Here is an idea I had. It is is still in the birthing stage in my heart and spiriit and I've yet to place it on paper.

I was thinking about having a few community meetings. It would include interested persons, missing persons advocates grouops, and at least one LE professional to teach us, to give advice and instruction, and teach the sensitive line between the LE and the public.
The objective would be to open lines of communication. Establish confidence...I'd have a guest LE pro from a new jurisdiction each time. County, city, state, victim advocate with the county, others.
Another objective wold be to cement a positive avenue where to bring info where it would be given attentin. Maybe the agency such as SMRO could be the info receptacle in one city and another in another city. LE then would not be getting 100s of calls in an area from dif yippers but the tippers call the private agency like ours or others and we call the tips to a individual designated in the meetings in LE to offer info to.
Then LE could go out and interview the indivbiduals according to the importance of the tip.
An arm of confidence would be establsished between private missing person agency and LE.
Suggestions?

[Jim Harnage]

The down side of being good at what you do is that we are really being tried now for our efficiency. Jealousy has gotten in the way and it seems that some key persons within the public areana of callers might be told to not have any contact with us.
But we are not here to make friends with LE. We are not there to kiss backside and win pop contestswhen the lives of citizens and children are on the line.
It's kind of like the tug -of-war between the LE and Bounty Hunters over the law trying to keep the bounty hunter from the media attention of catching the bad guy so they (LE) tell the bad guy that the bounty hunter is seeking for them. That's right. You'd be surprised in searching for a fugitive how fiercely the local LE works against the bounty hunter becuase if the bounty hunter catches the bad guy with his or her drive, ability, skills, then it shows up the LE so the LE works against the bounty hunter.
It is politics and about saving face not about finding the bad guy ot the missing person.
What is the answer?
The answer is in the independents organizations like Peace4, SMRO Missing Person Projects like ours, and others, standing our ground, keeping the pics out there, using our independent resources and skills and being determined in the face of opposition to do our jobs and callings, try not to focus on the lack of monetary rewards and focus on the treasures we will laying up in heaven if we hold our stand and keep seeking these folks and children who are missing...conduncing the talk shows, records searches, continuing to build networks across the land, partnerships, for instance, as a fomrer past professional trucker traveling the eastern seaboard I made lots of riends and know of trucking companies who wold be willing to palce pics of missing person at their terminals, hand out pics to their drivers to keep a look out for while on the road, and on and on...

Another "out" for helping is that we get double-crossed sometimes even by other private investigators and officials and even family members who are shallow and want credit before results. We share next thing we know is that we are sitting on back row while a media john is up front disclosing all of our secreats and tips never such as a courtesy mention of our name.

I made a Georgia law agent mad at me and he pouted and is still pouting because I would not lay down and play doormat to his ego and give up my sources on a missing case we are working now from a legal citizen standpoint...but we have to remind ourselves why are we here and what are we doing. Are we gleaning for votes for city council or are we working for families and victims? It makes the difference.
Jim


Jim Harnage
Silent Ministries Recovery Outreach, Inc.
Missing Person "Project Reward"
P. O. Box 1112
Lake Park, GA 31636
229-559-4996
229-300-4882
www.silentministries.org
http://jimharnage.ning.com
"Unity & Friendship Are Grossly Underestimated"

[Jim Harnage]

The down side of this is that we are really b eing tried now for our efficiency. Jealousy has gotten in the way and it weems that some key perons within the public areana of callers might be told to not have any contact with us.
But we a re not here to make friends with LE. We are here to kiss backside when the lives of citizens are on the line.
It's kind of like the tug -of-war between the LE and Bounty Hunters over the law trying to keep the bounty hunter from the media attention of catching the bad guy so they (LE) tell the bad guy that the bounty hunter is seeking for them. That's right. You'd be surprised in searching for a fugitive how fiercely the local LE works against the bounty hunter becuase if the bounty hunter catches the bad guy with his or her drive, ability, skills, then it shows up the LE so the LE works against the bounty hunter.
It is politics and about saving face not about finding the bad guy ot the missing person.
What is the answer?
The answer is in the independents organizations like Peace4, SMRO Missing Person Projects like ours, and others, standing our ground, keeping the pics out there, using our independent resources and skills and being determined in the face of opposition to do our jobs and callings, try not to focus on the lack of monetary rewards and focus on the treasures we will laying up in heaven if we hold our stand and keep seeking these folks and children who are missing...condunting the talk shows, records searches, continuing to build networks across the land, partnerships, for instance, as a fomrer past professional trucker traveling the eastern seaboard I made lots of riends and know of trucking companies who wold be willing to palce pics of missing person at their terminals, hand out pics to their drivers to keep a look out for while on the road, and on and on...

I made a Georgia law agent mad at me and he pouted and is stilll pouting becuase I would not lay down and play doormat to his ego and give up my sources on a missing case we are working now from a legal citizen standpoint...but we have to remind ourselves why are we here and what are we doing. Are we gleaning for votes for city council or are we working for families and victims? It makes the difference.
Jim