Yes, this is true and for brievity's sake I did not want to repeat this point from part 1 in the series. It's definitely a factor, yet the rates per 100,000 in Virginia are still very high irrespective of the reporting from California or Florida.
You raise a valid point though, and if applied to the national level there's certainly an innumerable amount of missing children (and persons) that go unreported.
When I enter Walmart, I notice a large board with pictures of missing kids. Many people never even bother to look at it, so it tends to fade into the background. @v4vapid this is why your work is so important. I believe someone will pay attention at just the right moment and end up saving a child.
I was stationed in Norfolk in the Navy and knowing that Virginia is "spook central" would make this the perfect place to do their dirty deeds. It would be great to hear from "the ones that got away" and the methods they use, so families can know how to prevent this.
A shiver runs down my spine when I think of how close I came to being a statistic...
Teach your children well, indeed...
Thanks for responding, I'm always curious about people's experience in Virginia and your comments are very interesting. In part I of this series I focused a lot of my attention on Norfolk and the surrounding area. From the available data, Norfolk in particular has some of the highest concentration of missing children and appears to be a hotbed for human trafficking.
"Spook Central", and the state's proximity to DC political power are important elements to consider.