Missing Person Photos
A missing person is a person who has disappeared and whose status as alive or dead cannot be confirmed as their location and condition are unknown. A person may go missing through a voluntary disappearance, or else due to an accident, crime, death in a location where they cannot be found (such as at sea), or many other reasons. In most parts of the world, a missing person will usually be found quickly. While criminal abductions are some of the most widely reported missing person cases, these account for only 2 to 5 percent of missing children in Europe.
By contrast, some missing person cases remain unresolved for many years. Laws related to these cases are often complex since, in many jurisdictions, relatives and third parties may not deal with a person's assets until their death is considered proven by law and a formal death certificate issued. The situation, uncertainties, and lack of closure or a funeral resulting when a person goes missing may be extremely painful with long-lasting effects on family and friends.
A number of organizations seek to connect, share best practices, and disseminate information and images of missing children to improve the effectiveness of missing children investigations, including the International Commission on Missing Persons, the International Centre for Missing & Exploited Children (ICMEC), as well as national organizations, including the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children in the US, Missing People in the UK, Child Focus in Belgium, and The Smile of the Child in Greece.
Resources for Missing Persons
According to current statistics, 4,000 people in the United States go missing every day.
Sometimes a child suddenly vanishes from the bus stop or the local park or even from their own yard or bedroom. Or a teenager doesn�t return home after a walk to the neighborhood grocery store or a bike ride or a party with friends.
Other times, an adult is mysteriously absent from their job or neighbors haven�t seen them for several days, and family and friends haven�t heard from them either.
Missing Person Photos
Betty Balas
Betty, date, approximate 1980
Date Missing 12/13/1980
Missing From
Los Angeles, California
Missing Classification Endangered Missing
Sex Female
Race
White
Date of Birth 02/02/1904 (118)
Age 76 years old
Height and Weight 5'4, 140 pounds
Associated Vehicle(s) Maroon four-door 1978 Cadillac (accounted for)
Markings and/or Distinguishing Characteristics Caucasian female. Blonde hair, brown eyes. Betty has pierced ears and a scar on her abdomen.
Details of Disappearance Betty was last seen at her home on north Gardner Avenue in the Wilshire district of Los Angeles, California on December 13, 1980. She disappeared together with her husband, Louis, sometime between 6:15 and 9:00 p.m., and neither of them have ever been heard from again.
When authorities checked the Balas residence, they found the front door open and a set of keys still in the lock, the television set turned on, and the bathtub filled with water. There were no indications of a struggle and the only items that appeared to be missing were the couple's car and the car keys.
The Balases' maroon four-door 1978 Cadillac was found the next day in a vacant lot off Crenshaw Boulevard, near the Santa Monica Freeway and seven miles from the Balas home. There were no bloodstains in or on the vehicle.
The Balases vanished the day before Louis was supposed to testify against Larry Eugene Boyce, who on October 31, 1978, had allegedly attacked him in a bank parking garage, robbed him and threatened his life. Boyce, who had previously served eight years in prison for murder, was out on bail at the time Louis and Betty disappeared. In December 1980 he was scheduled to go to trial for a total of fourteen felonies, including kidnapping and robbing Louis.
Dozens of other witnesses were also scheduled to testify against Boyce, and it hasn't been proven that Betty and Louis's disappearances were related to the upcoming trial. He was ultimately convicted of a variety of charges, including kidnapping Louis, and sentenced to life in prison plus 33 years.
Foul play is suspected in the Balases' s. Investigators believe up to three individuals, including a woman who may have been pregnant at the time, were involved in their disappearances. The s remain unsolved.
Investigating Agency
Los Angeles Police Department
877-275-5273
Other
The Doe Network
The Altoona Mirror
California Attorney General's Office
The Los Angeles Times
The San Bernardino Sun
The Santa Cruz Sentinel
United Press International
Missing Person Photos
A missing person is a person who has disappeared and whose status as alive or dead cannot be confirmed as their location and condition are unknown. A person may go missing through a voluntary disappearance, or else due to an accident, crime, death in a location where they cannot be found (such as at sea), or many other reasons. In most parts of the world, a missing person will usually be found quickly. While criminal abductions are some of the most widely reported missing person cases, these account for only 2 to 5 percent of missing children in Europe.
By contrast, some missing person cases remain unresolved for many years. Laws related to these cases are often complex since, in many jurisdictions, relatives and third parties may not deal with a person's assets until their death is considered proven by law and a formal death certificate issued. The situation, uncertainties, and lack of closure or a funeral resulting when a person goes missing may be extremely painful with long-lasting effects on family and friends.
A number of organizations seek to connect, share best practices, and disseminate information and images of missing children to improve the effectiveness of missing children investigations, including the International Commission on Missing Persons, the International Centre for Missing & Exploited Children (ICMEC), as well as national organizations, including the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children in the US, Missing People in the UK, Child Focus in Belgium, and The Smile of the Child in Greece.
Resources for Missing Persons
According to current statistics, 4,000 people in the United States go missing every day.
Sometimes a child suddenly vanishes from the bus stop or the local park or even from their own yard or bedroom. Or a teenager doesn�t return home after a walk to the neighborhood grocery store or a bike ride or a party with friends.
Other times, an adult is mysteriously absent from their job or neighbors haven�t seen them for several days, and family and friends haven�t heard from them either.
Missing Person Photos
