New Blog Highlights NIJ’s Work to Secure the Future of the NamUs Program

In a new blog, Justice Department Fights for the Missing, NIJ outlines the history, present, and future of the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs), which catalogs photos, fingerprints, dental records and other forensic evidence in an effort to find the missing.

The success of this program has led to a significant increase in cases submitted over the last decade, all while the number of unidentified persons cases has more than doubled during roughly the same time period.

Because of the increase in the program’s demand, NIJ is committed to meeting the evolving needs and challenges of practitioners working to solve these cases, and at the same time, securing the future of the program.

As NamUs had historically been funded by grants, which are meant as short-term exercises in capacity building, NIJ intends to begin administering the program through a multi-year contract. A contract will allow us to continue the program indefinitely and give NamUs direct federal oversight, ensuring its transparency to the American taxpayer.

READ THE BLOG