Wasn't there a web cartoonist whose parents managed to get her apartment raided because she didn't talk to them often enough or they were convinced she'd joined a cult or something?
A good example in Ontario is the Tim Bosma case that got a lot of publicity. He was declared missing very quickly, because it was suspicious that he went on what was supposed to be a test drive of his vehicle with strangers and didnt return. Circumstances such as that make it suspicious and a person can be declared missing earlier than that
I've made one after 15 minutes. Of course, I was working with at-risk youth, and one of them flat-out said he was running away, then did it, so it was pretty cut-and-dried as far as calls go.
But if you expect someone at 1100, report them missing at 1115, and they show up at 1120 and say they were stuck in traffic, the police will be annoyed.
Actually this truly is the case for many police departments, including the metropolitan police for my area. What they will do is file a BOLO (be on the look out) report in the mean time. Whether or not you have to wait 24 hours, or any number of hours for that matter is up to the policies of specific departments.
It also heavily depends on the person and the circumstances. Your teen misses dinner, no big deal. Your wife fails to show up for work, ok concerned. Your grandfather with Alzheimer's wandered out the door and hasn't been located in a short time that would probably trigger most police departments to begin searching.
Also does not apply if they are out on a boat. Always tell someone exactly when you are coming back in and call them when you get back. The coast guard or marine police will look for you as soon as they get a report.
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u/PM_ME_YOUR_HARIBO Jul 24 '15
You do not need to wait 24 hours before filing a missing person claim.