Parents In Penobscot County Can Get Free Child ID Kits From The Sheriff’s Department

It's something you hope you'll never have to use, but if you need it, it could save precious time.

Child ID kits contain important information about kids, like physical characteristics and fingerprints, that can be used by law enforcement agencies to track down or identify a child who has gone missing.

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This information is stored in the kits and stays in the custody of the child's parent, caregiver, or guardian. It's not entered into any database or anything like that. This is strictly information to be used in case of an emergency.

According to the National Child ID Program, which has provided over 70 million inkless in-home child ID kits since 1997 to communities like Penobscot County, the information the kits contain becomes invaluable to law enforcement agents when a child goes missing.

"These inkless kits do not enter a database and are stored at home by parents, providing them with a gift of safety they hopefully never have to use.

The kits take two minutes to complete and allow parents to safely store in their own home the vast majority of their child’s vital information should law enforcement ever need it."

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According to Sheriff Troy Morton, they're valuable tools, and, as such, the Penobscot County Sheriff's Office is providing them to families in Eastern Maine for free.

"The program is designed to give parents and guardians an important tool to help protect their children by ensuring critical identification information is readily available in the event of an emergency. The Child ID Kit enables parents to easily record their child's physical characteristics, fingerprints, and DNA on an identification card. Should a child ever go missing, the kit provides law enforcement with vital information that can significantly assist in locating the child quickly and safely."

Sheriff Morton says the kits are being provided through a partnership with some NFL Alumni and several law enforcement agencies, including the Department of Justice, the National Sheriff's Association, and the National Child ID Program.

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To get your free child ID kit, you can contact the Penobscot County Sheriff's Office located at 85 Hammond Street in Bangor, or you can call 207-947-4585.
Sheriff Morton says local law enforcement agencies throughout the county will also have the kits available to distribute to families who are interested in obtaining a kit.