Student Builds Database of Missing Black Women

Howard University junior Avery Bernard Johns created Deadlining to document missing and murdered Black women and girls in Washington, D.C.

Updated on Nov. 2, 2026 in Sex Crimes

Student Builds Database of Missing Black Women

Howard University junior Avery Bernard Johns created Deadlining, a public database documenting missing and murdered Black women and girls in Washington, D.C., from 1961 through 2025. She presented her research on redlining and missing Black women and girls at the University of New Hampshire on Oct. 1.

Why it matters

Black women make up about 7% of the U.S. population but 20% of missing persons cases each year. Bernard Johns said she built the database after noticing how often reports of missing Black women in Washington go unnoticed by mainstream media and law enforcement.

The database covers cases from 1961 through 2025, and six-year-old Hattie Yvonne Jackson, who disappeared near Rock Creek Park in July 1961, is still missing. Bernard Johns is working with the Metropolitan Police Department's Victim Services Division on the project, and the total number of cases tracked was not reported.

The players

Avery Bernard Johns

A Howard University junior double majoring with minors in data science and criminology, who built the Deadlining database.

Metropolitan Police Department Victim Services Division

The Washington, D.C. police unit that assists crime victims and worked with Bernard Johns on the database.

The details

Bernard Johns identified cases, confirmed locations, and gathered information across numerous sources, teaching herself to code to build the database. She plans to expand Deadlining nationally with an interactive map and geospatial analysis, and she hopes the work will influence public policy and how authorities document these cases.

July 1961: Six-year-old Hattie Yvonne Jackson disappears near a picnic area at Rock Creek Park.
Oct. 1: Bernard Johns presents her research at the University of New Hampshire during the Justice Studies Fall 2026 Colloquium.
Nov. 2, 2026: An article about the Deadlining database is published.

Historical Context

Bernard Johns connects her project to redlining, the historical practice of denying services to Black neighborhoods in Washington, D.C., arguing that the same patterns of neglect shape how missing Black women are documented today. Her research frames the disappearance of Hattie Yvonne Jackson as a case shaped by that legacy.

Residents of Washington, D.C. who have information about missing persons can contact the Metropolitan Police Department directly to report it. The database offers a public record that families and community members can consult when tracking cases that may otherwise go unreported.

The takeaway

Missing persons cases are not always documented equally, and public records like Deadlining can help reveal gaps that official channels miss. Readers who suspect a case has been overlooked can raise it with local police or community advocates.