KNOXVILLE, Tennessee — The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation honored National Missing Children's Day by positing a video with the latest trends it is seeing and some advice for parents on how to handle technology with with children.
TBI's Assistant Special Agent In Charge, Shelly Smitherman, who leads the missing children and AMBER Alert programs said Tennessee sees around 600 runaways a month.
Smitherman said though the children leave on their on, they are not always safe. She said most children who run away are usually influenced by a stranger or someone they met online.
"The public needs to understand the importance of us recovering these kids to get them in a safe environment," Smitherman continued, "a lot of these kids are at risk."
According to the TBI, the U.S. sees 400,000 missing children yearly. Smitherman says Tennesseans are in-luck because TBI has state-wide authority to take over any missing persons case.
Smitherman says the TBI has great resources, and it uses them no matter what the cause of a child's disappearance is.
Smitherman does say there are some ways to help cut down on the chances your child will run away.
1) Communicate with your child.
Ask them what social media they use, ask how often they are on it and ask if they have people who are bothering them on it. Communicating will make it normal for a child to talk to you about this, and will make them more likely to come to you with problems.
2) Set rules for your child.
Smitherman says the number one problem parents face are when they don't know what their kids are up to on the internet. Smitherman says parents should never allow children to lock themselves in their room. Set up a centralized location where your child can use the internet and limit the amount of time they spend on it.
3) Monitor what your child is doing.
Smitherman said it is important you know what your child is up to online and verify what they are doing.
Smitherman says trust is the way to ensure your child will come to you with problems.
"Be honest with them" she said about setting up rules." She continued "I have open communication with my kids and I think it is important for every parents to have that."
Talking about former cases, Smitherman said "you don't forget a case."
She said everyone should help parents locate missing children. And the best way to do that, she said, is go to the TBI's website and see their list of missing children in Tennessee.