A practical, step-by-step guide for families and caregivers who need to act quickly, stay organized, and work effectively with law enforcement.

Start Here: What to Do Right Now

If your loved one is missing and lives with schizophrenia or another serious mental health condition, treat the situation as urgent. You do not need to wait 24 hours to ask for help. Call 911 or your local law enforcement non-emergency number, explain that your loved one is missing, and clearly state any safety concerns, medical needs, recent symptoms, or behaviors that may place them at risk.

• Call law enforcement immediately and ask to file a missing person report.
• Say clearly that your loved one has schizophrenia, may be disoriented, frightened, paranoid, unable to ask for help, or without medication.
• Share when and where they were last seen, what they were wearing, where they might go, and whether they have a phone, vehicle, transit card, ID, or access to money.
• Gather a recent photo, full name, date of birth, physical description, scars or tattoos, medication list, provider names, and emergency contacts.
• Write down the report number, officer or deputy name, agency phone number, and next follow-up time.

How to File a Missing Person Report

Contact the law enforcement agency where the person went missing. If you are unsure which agency has jurisdiction, call 911 and ask to be connected to the correct department. Tell the dispatcher or officer that you want to file a missing person report for a vulnerable adult and explain why the person may be endangered.

Information to Provide

• Legal name, nicknames, date of birth, age, height, weight, hair and eye color.
• Recent photos that accurately show current hairstyle, facial hair, glasses, tattoos, scars, or mobility aids.
• Last known location, time last seen, who last saw them, and any known direction of travel.
• Clothing, shoes, backpack, jewelry, phone, wallet, ID, keys, vehicle, bicycle, or transit pass.
• Diagnosis, medications, missed doses, recent hospitalization, crisis contacts, treating clinic, and any known triggers.
• Places they may go: former addresses, parks, libraries, shelters, hospitals, faith communities, transit hubs, stores, or encampments.
• Safety risks such as suicidal statements, confusion, paranoia, inability to care for basic needs, exposure to weather, or history of victimization.

Ask for These Next Steps

• Ask whether the report will be entered into the National Crime Information Center, often called NCIC, as an endangered or at-risk missing person when appropriate. Law enforcement may ask the Federal Bureau of Investigations to assist in a missing person search. Only the FBI has direct access to the database.
• Ask whether a recent photo can be attached to the report and shared with patrol officers.
• Ask how tips should be reported and who your point of contact will be.
• Ask what additional documentation would help, such as medical information, guardianship or conservatorship paperwork, or a crisis plan.
• Ask when and how you should follow up if your loved one is not located quickly.

What to Do After Filing the Report

After the report is filed, keep a written log of every call, lead, sighting, and search effort. Include dates, times, names, phone numbers, locations, and what was said. Share credible new information with law enforcement quickly but avoid overwhelming the assigned officer with duplicate or unverified reports.

• Call nearby hospitals, emergency departments, psychiatric crisis units, detox centers, shelters, jails, transit police, and outreach teams.
• Contact friends, relatives, neighbors, case managers, landlords, coworkers, faith leaders, and places your loved one visits regularly.
• Create a one-page flyer with a clear photo, basic description, last-seen location, medical vulnerability, case number, and police contact information.
• Post online carefully. Use one consistent flyer, avoid sharing sensitive medical details beyond what is needed for safety, and direct tips to law enforcement.
• Preserve your loved one’s room, notes, devices, social media accounts, and recent messages in case investigators need them.

NamUs: What It Is and Why It Matters

NamUs, the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System, is a free, secure national database and resource center for missing, unidentified, and unclaimed person cases in the United States. It is administered by the National Institute of Justice and supports families, law enforcement, medical examiners, coroners, forensic professionals, and investigators.

How Families Use NamUs

Families can submit information about a missing loved one, add identifying details, upload photographs, and help provide records that may support identification, such as dental records, fingerprints, medical imaging, and family DNA reference samples. A NamUs case can also make information visible to trained professionals and, when appropriate, to the public.

How Law Enforcement Uses NamUs

Investigators use NamUs to store, search, compare, and share case information across jurisdictions. NamUs can help connect missing person records with unidentified remains cases and offers no-cost forensic, investigative, and analytical support, including assistance with biometrics, DNA, fingerprints, dental information, anthropology, and lead development.

Tips for Locating Your Loved One

Search Likely Places First

Think about where your loved one goes when stressed, frightened, tired, hungry, or trying to feel safe. Search familiar routes and quiet public places, including libraries, transit stations, parks, emergency rooms, shelters, churches, community centers, convenience stores, and former homes. If your loved one experiences paranoia, they may avoid obvious family locations and choose places that feel anonymous or low-stimulation.

Use a Calm, Safety-Focused Message

If you call, text, or post online, keep the message simple: “We love you. You are not in trouble. We just want to know you are safe. Please call or text us, or go to any hospital, police station, library, or shelter and ask someone to contact us.” Avoid arguing about beliefs or symptoms in public posts.

Coordinate Volunteers Carefully

• Assign one person to communicate with law enforcement and one person to manage family updates.
• Use a shared map or spreadsheet to track places checked, calls made, and flyers posted.
• Tell volunteers not to chase, threaten, corner, or confront your loved one. Ask them to call 911 or the police tip line if they see the person and believe there is immediate danger.
• If your loved one is found, approach slowly, speak calmly, reduce stimulation, offer food or water, and let trained responders handle safety decisions when necessary.

What Law Enforcement May Do With the Report

Depending on local policy, available information, and the level of risk, law enforcement may enter the missing person into state and national databases, alert patrol officers, check hospitals or jails, review surveillance video, contact transit agencies, request phone or vehicle information through lawful processes, issue a public bulletin, coordinate with other jurisdictions, or assign follow-up to a missing persons investigator.

Police may also ask family members for DNA reference samples, dental records, fingerprints, medical records, or information about tattoos, scars, surgical implants, and prior injuries. These details can be important if the case becomes long-term or if investigators need to compare records across jurisdictions.

Mental Health, Privacy, and Safety Considerations

An adult generally has the right to be missing, and police may not be able to detain or force treatment unless the person meets legal criteria for emergency intervention, has committed a crime, or there is a court order, guardianship, or conservatorship that authorizes specific action. Even so, sharing mental health and safety information can help responders understand risk, choose a safer approach, and connect the person with crisis services if they are located.

Family Checklist

• Filed missing person report and saved report number.
• Provided photo, description, diagnosis, medication information, and last-seen details.
• Asked about NCIC or endangered missing person entry when appropriate.
• Created and distributed one-page flyer with police contact information.
• Called hospitals, shelters, jails, crisis units, libraries, transit agencies, and familiar locations.
• Entered or requested entry into NamUs and gathered dental, fingerprint, DNA, or medical identification records.
• Kept a daily log of searches, calls, tips, sightings, and follow-up conversations.
• Identified one family spokesperson and one law enforcement contact.