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 Case Updates with Photos
James Arthur Cole
Cole, date, approximate 1994
Date Missing 04/12/1994
Missing From
Severna Park, Maryland
Missing Classification Endangered Missing
Sex Male
Race
White
Date of Birth 09/06/1972 (50)
Age 21 years old
Height and Weight 5'6 - 5'7, 140 pounds
Clothing/Jewelry Description A burgundy and green baseball shirt, blue jeans, a green Loyola baseball cap, and new low-cut beige and black hiking boots.
Markings and/or Distinguishing Characteristics Caucasian male. Brown hair, brown eyes. Cole's nickname is Jimmy. His hair was shoulder-length at the time of his disappearance. He has a tattoo of a black widow spider on his right forearm.
Details of Disappearance Cole was last seen in Severna Park, Maryland early on the morning of April 11, 1994. The previous evening, he and his brother went to the now-defunct Shangri-La restaurant and cocktail lounge, then to the Gingerbread Man Restaurant.
Cole's brother eventually went home, and Cole returned to the Shangri-La in the 500 block of Ritchie Highway. He left at 1:30 a.m., alone and visibly intoxicated, probably en route to the home he shared with his parents on Hodges Lane, four blocks away. He didn't have a car and often walked home after spending some time in local bars. He never arrived home.
Cole's family reported him missing 24 hours later, after they searched for him in the neighborhood without result. A witness who knew him claimed he saw him buying coffee at a Taco Bell restaurant near Ritchie Highway and Jumpers Hole Road in Pasadena, Maryland the month after his disappearance. This sighting has never been confirmed and his parents don't believe it was genuine.
Cole left behind all his belongings and money. His girlfriend spoke to him on April 10 and said he was in good spirits at the time. His parents and brothers now live in Texas. Cole is a graduate of Severna Park High School and was employed by K&J Maintenance Co. in 1994. He never picked up his last paycheck.
Because Cole was adopted, it took more than a decade for police to locate his biological relatives and obtain a DNA sample for comparison with unidentified bodies. His family never believed he left of his own accord, because he was happy with his life, was close to his relatives and had a serious relationship with his girlfriend, whom he'd been seeing for three years. His remains unsolved.
Investigating Agency
Anne Arundel County Police Department
410-222-3588
Other
Anne Arundel County Police Department
The Doe Network
The Baltimore Sun
The Capital
The Washington Examiner
CBS News, Baltimore
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 Case Updates with Photos