Top Ten Family Abductions

Introduction

The victim parent in child abduction cases does not have much to be happy about after years pass with their children still missing. The resourceful victim parent may find something beneficial to all involved.

What if the family abduction is remarkable and extraordinary? That is something! Thus, the concept is "Top Ten Family Abductions."

What? It is a sort of contest or gallery. Victim parents can submit their cases by email. The "best" cases will be posted here in our Top Ten. Maybe we can even develop a system to vote for the "best" of the Top Ten.

Why? The inner workings of the parental kidnapper are quite foreign to the average, normal person. Some study of this dreadful phenomenon may be enlightening, both to the victim parent and children.

Are you ready? Let’s go! How about starting with criteria and points? This new web page can be improved by your feedback and suggestions!

The Keene kids case will illustrate how it is done.

1. Preparation for the Parental Kidnapping

  1. One point for repeating falsehoods to the children about the victim parent.
  2. One point for terrorizing the children (things like "We can’t sit on the porch because someone will pass by and shoot us.")
  3. One point for preparing a plausible "cover story" for gullible people.
  4. One point for using the slander and falsehoods in 1(a) to 1(b) to recruit helpers to assist in the betrayal of the children.
  5. One point if these "helpers" continue after the abduction to act as "kidnappers representatives" to undermine efforts of the victim parent to recover the children.
  6. One point if these "helpers" or "abductor reps" are professional people.

[Keene Kids: In the Preparation category, the kids score on all items = 6 points]

2. Kidnapping Children to Another Jurisdiction

  1. One point for crossing state lines in the U.S.A.
  2. Two points when a parent kidnaps children from another country to the U.S.A.
  3. Three points for abductions from the U.S.A. to a foreign country.
  4. Four points if the foreign country is not a democracy.
  5. Two points if the children are taken to a place where the language is foreign for them.

[Keene Kids. 3 points for each known instance of 2(a) + 2 points for 2(b) + 2 points for 2(e) = 7 points.]

3. Years Abducted Per Child

One point per year.

[Keene Kids. 2 children x 7 years = 14 points.]

4. Inaction by Authorities

  1. One point for local police departments who violate the law by not looking for missing children (see How to Kidnap Your Children).
  2. Two points for state police who violate the law by not looking for missing children.
  3. Three points for advice that doesn’t work from FBI agents (such as, get a court order from the jurisdiction where the children were abducted).
  4. Three points for Federal District Attorneys, who say the child kidnapping cannot be acted on because the Department of Justice said that their cases must involve at least four kilos of cocaine.
  5. Two points for each Department of the Federal Government that cannot provide practical help.

[The Keene Kids are on a run! They garner points for all categories 4(a) to 4(d) + 4(e) twice (Department of Justice and Department of State) = 13 points.

I regret that I did not tell the Federal District Attorney, 4(d), that the abductor was carrying four kilos of cocaine, so that when the children were recovered and the cocaine was not found, I could meekly admit, "Sorry, I lied about the cocaine." Tip to victim parents: Mention that your missing children are carrying a large, heavy suitcase full of cocaine.]

5. Abuse of the Abducted Children

  1. Two points for threatening and terrorizing the victim children.
  2. Two points for hiding the children from the victim parent.
  3. Two points for portraying the victim parent as the source of all problems.
  4. Two points for preventing the victim children from receiving letters from the victim parent at a last known address.
  5. Two points for preventing any private conversation between the victim children and parent.
  6. Two points if the children can never know personally their victim parent after the kidnapping.
  7. Two points for physical abuse of the abducted children.

[Keene Kids score at least 10 points. I call this the "taken into slavery" syndrome.

A good theory is that any contact of the children with other people may reveal problems – what children don’t have problems that a parent addresses? – and that such problems may be interpreted as inadequate child care. According to this theory abducted children must be isolated and muted to protect the interests of the abductors.]

6. Abuse of Victim Parent

  1. Two points for slander and libel about the victim parent.
  2. Two points if the libel is distributed internationally.
  3. Two points if "helpers" of the abductors assist in the libel process.
  4. Two points if slander to the employer of the victim parent leads to loss of a job.
  5. Two points for each immediate family member of the victim parent who can be defrauded with this slander to actually sympathize with the kidnapper.
  6. One point for each $10,000 spent by the victim parent on recovery efforts – travel, communications, legal fees, etc.

[As usual, the Keene Kids are up there with the best of ‘em, scoring at least 13 points.]

7. Damage to the Victim Children

  1. Two points for physical scars. These could include signs of physical violence or general systemic effects of the misery of being an abused child.
  2. Two points for psychological effects, such as depression, anger, hostility, feelings of hopelessness, etc.
  3. Two points for social effects, such as impaired trust (the children were betrayed by the parental kidnapper), failed social relationships in friendship and later romance and family life (the children have been taught by example that deceit and cruelty are acceptable).
  4. Two points for later problems with the law – a real possibility since the children have been taught that one can take what one wants without reprisal.

[It may still be too early to score this category. For one thing, little information on present damages is available to the victim parent. In one brief phone call, I was able to observe that my daughter was unable to state a single true statement in a several minute phone call – and this is a rather pathetic indicator of future success in life as an honest, decent person.

Just guessing, but let’s give the Keene Kids about 5 points.]

The Cruelty Index

Well, the Keene Kids weigh in with a respectable 68 points. Of course, this is a new kidnapping cruelty index and is not tested scientifically for validity or reliability. It might also be called the injustice, oppression or abduction index.

Of course, I am biased in favor of my own children. If I can’t route for them in activities at their local school, I can get a little satisfaction that when it comes to being kidnap victims, these kids are not slouches!

Disclaimer: This page is no doubt incomplete and under construction. Hopefully, it will be interesting and educational. Perhaps other victim parents will feel less alone in seeing this or want to share their experiences with me.

Copyright © 2002 James J. Keene

Please use Back on your browser to return to Missing Keene Kids.