The Willow Glen Resident

San Jose police unveil child-abduction-prevention video

Bay City News Service

More than 700 eager schoolchildren screamed "No!" in unison last week as a San Jose police officer unveiling the area's first child-abduction-prevention video asked the kids what to do when a stranger approaches. "Say 'no' really loud, and the good people will hear you and come to help," said officer Frank Swaringen.

He addressed the enthusiastic kids at the AMC Town and Country Theatre before premiering the video to the children, San Jose Mayor Susan Hammer, San Jose Police Chief Louis Cobarruviaz and other local officials and business leaders.

Swaringen, a former actor and Hollywood stuntman, then urged the elementary- and middle-schoolers to follow the other steps in the three-pronged safety plan: Run to a populated spot for protection, and tell an adult. "This is not something you should keep secret," he told the schoolchildren.

Swaringen spearheaded the project and wrote the video script. Working through the San Jose-based Child Quest International Inc., a child-protection group, he created "Milk Cartons: The Way Back Home" in hopes that the video will one day end up in every elementary school in the country. Already, it is bound for 164 San Jose schools.

The project was funded by the city of San Jose, and a Chicago foundation has committed funds for purchase of the abduction-prevention videos for the city's estimated 1,000 elementary and middle schools.

The video features child television stars Taran Smith of Home Improvement and Bryton McClure of Family Matters. Erin Gray of Silver Spoons also stars. In the tape, Smith's 12-year-old character thinks he'll never be kidnapped, but a school visit by a child-safety police officer and a dreamy journey through a magical milk-carton world filled with the faces of abducted children grabs his attention and teaches him to be safe. Last Wednesday, Swaringen took the tape to the 17,000-seat San Jose Arena and flashed excerpts on the Jumbotron screen to fans there for the Sharks-Washington Capitals matchup and "Child Safety Night."

The video's stars autographed copies of the video during the game's first period. San Jose Police Capt. Scott Seaman, who lent a large hand in seeing that the tape was made, said Mayor Hammer has requested copies to send to President Clinton and Secretary of Education Richard Riley.

At the AMC Theatre, Hammer challenged the children to be "ambassadors" and tell their friends about the video. At the game, a San Jose Sharks official exhorted them to share the safety lessons with their brothers and sisters. "I'm going to tell my friends from other schools," said 10-year-old Bryson Teixeira, a sixth-grader at Williams Elementary School.

Los Arboles fifth-grader Monique Melchor plans to tell her friends, neighbors and cousins. "I learned that you're supposed to back up from a stranger, go someplace where there are others and yell for help," she said.

Swaringen hatched the abduction-video idea years ago as a deputy for the Santa Clara County Sheriff's Department. At the time he had parlayed his movie-industry experience into producing and appearing in law-enforcement training tapes on dealing with suspects under the influence of the narcotic PCP and avoiding hostage takeovers. Later, as a San Jose police officer researching his role as a rapist in an assault-prevention video, he interviewed child molestors, murderers and pedophiles. "I decided at that point that my next film would be on child safety," he said.

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