I know that Jim and Anna Stephenson, the parents of Christopher Stephenson, whom our legislation in Ontario is named after, appeared before committee a few days after we did. This is the bill that was proclaimed on April 21, 2001.
Some of our findings were cited in some research that came from the U.S. back in 2002. They demonstrate how important it is for the police to have information about registered sex offenders in a particular area and why delays in getting this information are so dangerous. We know that 44% of these children are murdered within the first hour. Holly Jones was murdered on May 12, 2003, six years ago today. We know from information coming out of the investigation that Holly was killed within the first hour, probably 20 minutes or so after she was abducted. We also know that 74% are murdered within three hours and that 91% are murdered within 24 hours. We know from statements made from Joseph Fredericks, the killer of Christopher Stephenson, that Christopher died within the first 24 hours after he was abducted.
I can't emphasize strongly enough how crucial it is that this information be utilized. That is, the sex offender registry information should be utilized for law enforcement purposes other than those of a sexual nature. One of the reasons is that, particularly for abducted children, we don't always know in those first early hours what the motivation is. It could have a sexual purpose or it could have a ransom purpose. We're not always sure.
At this point, I'm going to turn it over to Superintendent Truax.