If you are an adult and allowing a minor child to stay at your residence, without parental consent, you are breaking the law and can be prosecuted.

RILYA ALERTS:  Children of Color who are Missing

 

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FEBRUARY 24, 2010 MISSING TEEN from Washington DC
Forever Perkins, 14 is missing. She may be in need of medical attention.

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Note: Teen may be in need of medical attention.
Missing: Feb 24, 2010
Height: 5'4"
Hair and Eyes: Brown
Race: Black
Age Now: 14
Sex: Female
Weight: 120 lbs

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FEBRUARY 16, 2010 FATHER may have thrown infant off
The DRISCOLL BridgeGarden State Pkwy - New Jersey
Authorities asking if anyone witnessed anything.
 
Zara Malani Lin Abdur Raheem age 3 months MISSING Feb 16 2010.  New Jersey -
Shamshiddin Abdur-Raheem, of Galloway Township, who does not have custody rights for his daughter, is accused of abducting Zara Malani-Lin Abdur-Raheem Tuesday from her grandmother in East Orange after an argument. He drove off with the 3 month infant and upon apprehension 4 hours later he stated he threw baby Zara off the DRISCOLL BRIDGE into the water which spans Raritan River on the Garden State Parkway, as he was driving south. Water searches are ongoing.
UPDATE: February 23, 2010 Father charged with murder.
Child has not been located.

IF YOU SAW ANYTHING SUSPICIOUS ON THE DRISCOLL BRIDGE,
OR WITNESSED THIS HORRIFIC CRIME, ON TUESDAY, FEB.16, 2010
BETWEEN 4:30 pm and 5:30 pm to call police at (732) 264-4150.
 

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JANUARY 26, 2010 MISSING PRE TEEN from Dundalk, Maryland

China Fergus, 12, is missing. She is a black female with brown eyes and black hair. She weighs 106 lbs and is 5'1  in height.

China was last seen wearing a brown "puffy" 3/4 sleeve length coat, black fitted jeans, and black suede boots with gray fur at the top. She has long black woven hair extensions, and was also wearing a green bracelet, and a silver chain with a cross.

Please notify Baltimore County Police Dept./Det. Stephen Fox 410-853-3650 or 410-307-2020 if you have any information concerning the case of CHINA FERGUS.

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JANUARY 22, 2010 Missing Child from Brooklyn, NY

RILYA ALERT

Patrick Alford, 7 years old is missing.  He is a black male child who is 4’8 and 65 pounds. He has a thin build and is in good physical and mental health. He was last seen wearing a red T-shirt, blue jeans and black sneakers. He was last seen Friday evening leaving the lobby of the Spring Creek Development in the Starrett City section of Brooklyn, where he lives with a foster family.

Alford's biological family says the boy was placed there by ACS officials when he was taken away from his mother. They also say a caseworker informed them that the boy was missing from his foster home.

ACS officials would not go into detail on Saturday about how the boy disappeared or why the child was not residing in his original home.

Patrick Alford, age 7

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DECEMBER 27,2009 MISSING TEEN from Columbus, OH

Brooklyn Johnson, 14, is missing from Columbus, Ohio.
Police said she may be in the company of several unknown adult males that she may have met online and her whereabouts are unknown and of grave concern.
There has been no computer activity on her Facebook or MySpace accounts since she was reported missing.  She is believed to have been wearing brown boots and a tan jacket and was carrying a burgundy oversized purse.
Described as a black female, 5 feet tall, weighing 135 pounds with brown eyes and black hair.

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DECEMBER 26, 2009 MISSING from Illinois

Kierra Johnson, 14 is missing. She was last seen Dec. 26 on the 7600 block of South Racine Avenue and may be in that area, police said. She lives in the 5000 block of South Michigan Avenue.

She is described as a 125-pound African-American with a dark complexion, 5 feet 5 inches tall with brown eyes and black hair.

Anyone with information about her whereabouts should call 911 or Area 1 detectives at 312-747-8385.

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DECEMBER 15, 2009 MISSING CHILD from Newburgh, NY

RILYA ALERT

Marc Anthony Bookal, 4, is missing.  He is 3-feet-5-inches tall and weighs 42 pounds. Marc is a light-skinned black boy with a medium-length sandy-brown afro and brown eyes. He was wearing a red long-sleeved shirt, white Nike sneakers and gray sweatpants. Police said his skin is blotchy on the backs of his hands.
Marc was last seen about 1:20 p.m., Monday, December 15, 2009 at his family's apartment in a two-family house on Benkard Avenue in Newburgh, NY. Officials said he and his stepfather were getting ready to visit a relative, when Marc walked out of the apartment a couple of minutes ahead of his stepfather. 
When the stepfather left the apartment, Marc was gone. He checked at a neighbor's house, where the boy sometimes goes, but there was no sign of the child. Extensive searches have been made. An Amber Alert could not be issued as it does not meet the criteria of a witnessed abduction or a vehicle description  * or a belief that the child is in danger of serious injury or death, stated the NYPD. 

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UPDATE:  January 5, 2010 Police have called off the ground search for a missing 4-year-old but say city detectives and state police investigators continue to work the case.

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OCTOBER 23, 2009 MISSING from Winter Haven, FL

RILYA ALERT

Masaraha Ross, age 2 1/2, is missing and was was last known to be with her mother, 29-year-old Ronkeya Holmes. Police will not say why they feel the child is endangered, however, there are multiple police agencies searching for the child and her mother, who is also missing.

UPDATE: November 15, 2009  Child/Mother still missing. Possible foul play.

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NEWS REPORT

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Searching for Child's Remains

Rilya Alert was issued on August 10, 2009 Missing in Oakland California

Hassani Campbell, 5  Child has cerebral palsy and braces on both legs

UPDATE:  September 05, 2009  Hassani Campbell is presumed deceased. Investigations are ongoing. They are now seeking his little body.  Anyone with information is to please come forward to assist the detectives in the investigation.

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What is a Rilya Alert?

Rilya Alert is in honor after a beautiful African-American child, Rilya Wilson, who went missing for over eight months before anyone realized she was gone.  This alert system was created to help reduce the response time in which the crucial information is shared with the public so that the tragedy of what happened to this young child does not occur again. 

Rilya Wilson was born Sept. 29, 1996, to a homeless cocaine addict. Ironically, Rilya's name was an acronym for "Remember I love you always." She was taken into state custody when she was less than 2 months old. The woman who was supposed to be caring for Rilya under the foster care system, Geralyn Graham, was indicted for murder. She was also charged with kidnapping and three counts of aggravated child abuse in the case of Rilya who was suffocated or beaten to death sometime in December 2000. Her body was never recovered.


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What is the criteria to have a Rilya Alert issued?

The criteria for a Rilya Alert is:
•   The abduction is of a child age 17 years or younger
•   The parent must have contacted law enforcement to report child missing.
•   A Rilya Alert may also be issued if the child is classified as a runaway by the police. If the parent has reported a missing child and has convincing evidence that child does not have a history of running away, an alert will be initiated within the 1st hour.  We recognize that at times, not all information is readily available (ie: license plate numbers, name of abductor, or witness to abduction. ) In such cases, the available information will be reviewed and verified prior to Rilya Alert.
•   The law-enforcement agency believes the child is in imminent danger of serious bodily injury or death.
•   All children of color meeting the criteria for the Amber Alert will also receive the Rilya Alert.

RILYA WILSON ACT

  Peas In Their Pods was formed in March of 2007 to bring awareness about the epidemic rate at which African-American children are abducted or endangered. The Rilya Alert system was created and Janice Lowery, Founder, explains, “The Rilya Alert is not a replacement of the Amber Alert, but rather an extension created to work for children when the criteria for an Amber Alert is not met.  Because the criteria for a Rilya Alert is more inclusive, we can often help in finding a child who otherwise may not get the media attention necessary."  Statistically,  approximately 42 percent of missing children are African American, yet many times these children receive the least amount of media exposure. This negatively impacts the likelihood that they will be safely reunited with their loved ones.