A frantic search for a nine-year-old deaf girl took place during a tabletop exercise for the York County Child Abduction Response Effort (CARE) Team in York, Pennsylvania, on September 17, 2020. The drill used realistic documents and involved simulated neighborhood canvassing, checking Megan’s Law offenders, checking video surveillance, and utilizing forensic searches and cell phone tower data.
The team was also tasked with verifying tips called into an actual tip line, and eventually found the scenario “victim” safe. Participants also coordinated medical treatment, family reunification, and forensic interview of the child.
“Our best lessons learned have come from ideas and mistakes from the past,” said Lt. David Kahley, West York Borough, Pennsylvania, Police Department and CARE Team Coordinator.” We find out what works and what doesn’t work. For instance, something as simple as keeping track of our investigative tasks on a whiteboard, so everyone knows what has been completed and what needs to be worked on. It helps the team stay on track and prevents repetitive work.”
The exercise involved 36 members from 17 local, state and federal agencies, including investigators, probation and parole, assistant district attorneys, victim/witness coordinators, forensic interviewers, search and rescue specialists, K9 handlers, 911 dispatchers, and logistic coordinators.
Kahley said all members had an opportunity to weigh in and offer ideas to help with the investigation. For example, the forensic interviewer brought up the need for having an interpreter to help during the search and when the child was recovered.
CARE was organized in 2006 and was certified in November 2010 by AATTAP through the USDOJ’s Child Abduction Response Team (CART) certification program. Each new member receives CART training and additional missing person trainings from local investigators.
“After our drill, we complete an after-action report to evaluate ourselves,” said Kahley. “We’ve learned during the past couple years to take everything that worked, improve on it, and fix the things that didn’t work.”
The organization holds quarterly meetings and annual trainings, either tabletop or simulated mock drills. CARE plans to have a full-scale mock drill next year.