Missing, Murdered Children Honored at Mass. State House

(NECN: Kristen Carosa) – It was an emotional day at the state house for the family of Molly Bish. On Wednesday, they joined elected officials for a commemoration, honoring the memories of missing and murdered children.

Molly Bish went missing from her job as a lifeguard in Warren back in 2000. Her body was discovered three years later.

The Bish family continues to fight for the passage of Molly's Bill.

Dozens of people joined Magi Bish and her family for the Massachusetts missing children's day ceremony at the state house Wednesday.
The 13th annual event remembered 40 missing children in Massachusetts.

"I started it here so that families in Massachusetts would have a place to go to remember and honor their children and to make others aware that there are still children missing," says Magi, who lost her daughter Molly 13 years ago when she was taken from her lifeguard post at Comins pond in Warren.

Magi and her husband John started the ceremony to gather and to share stories with other families who have missing children.

"We are always pleased to be able to recognize them and tell them that no matter how difficult or how long, there is still hope."

And while it is a day to help families cope, it's also a day to remember that there is more to do to keep our children safe.

"It’s a day to spur us to do better - to make sure every child is safe and that if there is a predator out there to make sure they are held accountable," says Attorney General Martha Coakley.

James Gardiner, former director of the Molly Bish Foundation, attended the event to talk about just that: innovative ways to keep our children safe.

He highlighted Molly's Bill and the EZ-ID program.

"What Molly's Bill does is reformats license plates using numbers and symbols: a heart, a diamond, a square."

Gardiner says by reformatting the license plate it will help to better identify vehicles at the time of an abduction or crime. He says it would take the number of characters from six down to four.

"In a time of abduction, time is critical so that info is important," he says.

Molly's Bill is currently is the joint transportation committee and is waiting to go to the full house and senate for approval. Gardiner says he asks everyone to go to their legislators and speak with them about the bill.

"It is our responsibility to protect our children," he says. "If we do nothing else, we need to make sure that are safe and protected."

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