Mom of boy who disappeared in 1979 recounts ‘total horror’
She never saw or heard from him again.
Nearly 35 years later, Hernandez — who had worked at a corner store by the bus stop — told authorities he lured Etan into the store basement by promising him a soda, then choked him. Hernandez’s defense says the 55-year-old Maple Shade, New Jersey, man confessed falsely because he’s mentally ill.
Etan’s disappearance influenced both parenting and policy in America. He was one of the first missing children pictured on a milk carton, and his case was among several that spurred an era of more parental protectiveness.
The May 25 anniversary of his disappearance became National Missing Children’s Day. His mother served on a 1980s federal advisory board on missing children, and she testified in Congress to back legislation that ultimately produced the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, a nationwide clearinghouse for information.