( CNN ) -- May 25 , National Missing Children 's Day , is a day on which we honor and remember missing children . This date was chosen specifically because it is the date in 1979 when 6-year-old Etan Patz went missing on his way to school in New York . The Patz case has resurfaced as a result of some potential new leads and an arrest that hopefully will result in the case finally being solved . I have the greatest respect and empathy for the parents of Etan , who are going through what is clearly one of the greatest nightmares any parent can experience -- never again seeing and not knowing what happened to one 's own child . Just as the Lindbergh case in the 1930s became a landmark case for increased national awareness concerning ransom kidnapping , the Patz case became a landmark case for increased national awareness concerning `` stranger abduction . '' Each of these cases played a major role in creating laws , but they also fueled some confusing stereotypes . When I joined the FBI in 1970 and someone talked about child abduction , you immediately assumed it was a ransom-motivated case . In less than 20 years , the attitude drastically changed to almost immediately assuming any child abduction involved a sexual predator . Either assumption is obviously not always correct . Because of his young age and other case factors , it can be reasonably assumed that Etan was most likely abducted . However , children can be missing for a wide variety of reasons ( e.g. , runaway , lost or injured , benign episode , family abduction ) other than nonfamily abduction . Children can also be abducted by nonfamily members for a variety of reasons ( e.g. , to solve a personal problem , ransom/profit , to kill , miscellaneous criminal activity , political ) other than sexual gratification . Most missing children are not abducted and most abducted children are not missing . The typical child abduction is a relatively brief event in which the child is usually returned before anyone had time to note the child was missing . The best research data we have indicate that only a very small percentage of missing children were abducted by a nonfamily member . Of these cases , most of the abducted children were teenagers . And of the nonfamily-abducted children , almost all of them were returned alive and relatively uninjured a short time later . Understanding that the terms missing and abducted are not synonymous and interchangeable is important in awareness and prevention efforts . In addition , sexually motivated nonfamily abduction is probably the only aspect of sexual victimization of children that people think occurs more often than it actually does . People tend to underestimate the likelihood that a family member or trusted acquaintance will sexually victimize their child , but overestimate the likelihood of stranger abduction . I am aware of no research that indicates that children today are any more likely to be abducted by sexual predators than they were 50 years ago . Many adults love to reminisce about an idealistic childhood during which they did not lock their doors and could play outside with no fear of abduction , but believe that today they can not let their children out of their sight . However , nonfamily members abduct less than a few hundred children each year in a manner that fits our stereotypical image of an abducted and missing child . The danger of sexual victimization of children comes predominantly from family members and acquaintances , not strangers . On this important day , we should remember the reality of missing children such as Etan Patz , but not at the expense of ignoring or misunderstanding other types of victimization of our children . The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of Kenneth V. Lanning .
May 25 is National Missing Children 's Day , chosen because of Etan Patz . Kenneth Lanning : Children can be missing for a wide variety of reasons . He says most missing children are not abducted , most abducted children are not missing . Lanning : Awareness about missing vs. abducted children can help prevention efforts .