In the summer of 1981, 6-year-old Adam Walsh was abducted and murdered by convicted serial killer, Ottis Toole. Adam’s murder sparked national interest and even inspired his father to fight for justice with his own television show, “America’s Most Wanted.”
Years later, John Walsh teamed with one of the men who ultimately solved the case to create an organization with dedicated to comprehensive child safety. On June 16, that organization will come to Toledo to provide area parents with necessary tools to keep their children safe.
DNA LifePrint, a Florida-based organization dedicated to improving child safety across the nation, will come to Taylor Kia at 6300 W. Central Ave. as part of its DNA LifePrint Child Safety Program.
The event will run from 9:30 a.m. – 2 p.m. is completely free of charge. At the event, DNA LifePrint will provide Toledoans with its new Biometric Fingerprinting and a complete, FBI-certified DNA identification kit.
Joseph Matthews, founder of DNA LifePrint, said the process does not take long and involves using state-of-the-art technology to put together a portable kit families can keep in the privacy of their own homes.
“All you do is swab the inside of the cheek, put it in a solution and you have it forever. If you ever need it, God forbid, the police can use it,” Matthews said.
Matthews said the fingerprinting process involves taking a digital scan of all 10 fingers on a child’s hands and taking a high-resolution digital photo. Both the fingerprint scan and the photographs are burned to a disc and no other copies are made, he said.
“What some people don’t realize is that if you have just a thumb or one or two fingers, the FBI won’t accept it,” he said. “They have to take all 10 digits to be able to put it in their database.”
Any parent who has a kit put together will also receive a free “Child Safety Journal.” Inside the journal, Matthews said parents can write down the child’s personal information as well as answer questions an investigator would ask before beginning a search.
“What we want to do is encourage every parent around the country to get the kit for their kids,” Matthews said. “It’s really a no-brainer to get the kit. The peace of mind alone is worth it.”
The event is sponsored by Taylor Kia, with all costs covered by the dealership. For those who cannot attend the free event but still want to obtain a kit, they can be purchased at www.dna-lifeprint.com for $6.95 with a $7.95 shipping and handling fee.
