An Act to further protect children

This bill amends Massachusetts law to impose stricter penalties on parents, guardians, or caretakers who fail to report missing or deceased children under 16 to authorities. Specifically, it mandates that anyone who willfully neglects to contact law enforcement about a missing child within 48 hours faces up to five years in state prison. Additionally, those who know a child has died but do not notify authorities within one hour could be sentenced to up to five years in prison or fined up to $10,000 with up to two and a half years in a house of correction. The legislation aims to ensure timely reporting of child safety incidents by establishing clear legal consequences for failure to act.