Say Yes for Kids

My children disappeared on February 12, 1996 while the entire Northwest was in the grip of a major storm.

Six months later, The Oregonian published an editorial titled “Say Yes for Kids”, that noted the abduction of the Cruz children.

The Oregonian described the findings of the Oregon Task Force on Family Law in the same editorial and stated that “the recommendations ought to be atop the Legislature’s urgent priority list next January (the 1997 session).”

The 1997 Legislature passed the recommendations, but the Task Force on Family Law’s work was directed at reducing Oregon’s divorce rate, and did not address the issue of kidnappings.

At the conclusion of the 2003 session, Senate President Peter Courtney appointed the Task Force on Parental and Family Abductions, which held hearings and reported its findings to the 2005 legislature.

Senate Bill 1041 (Aaron’s Law) passed the 2005 legislature in dramatic fashion, clearing the House on a unanimous vote in the final days of the session.