One terrifying moment on an Annapolis doorstep has turned Shari Bailey into a regular at the Maryland State House. Bailey says her nonverbal daughter Laila once slipped out the front door while in a nanny’s care, vanishing before anyone noticed. That scare is now driving a bipartisan push in the Maryland General Assembly to protect children and adults who run away, a behavior advocates refer to as elopement.
The package of bills Bailey is championing zeroes in on two main goals: better training for first responders and law enforcement, and easier access to tracking technology for families whose loved ones are at risk of bolting. She says that after Laila’s episode, she set out to build a coalition that crossed party lines in Annapolis, and this week, lawmakers from both sides of the aisle showed up at hearings to back her effort.
What's in the bills
The proposed legislation would require mandatory law-enforcement training on how to spot elopement behavior and how to de-escalate encounters with people who have autism or dementia. It would also relax some of the barriers that make it hard for families to obtain GPS-style tracking devices, according to organizers, with several provisions modeled on what is being called the LEAD Act.
"With proper training, officers can recognize the signs, deescalate and more effectively respond in ways that are protecting both the individual and the officer," Sen. Mike McKay said, as reported by WMAR2 News. Bailey and allied advocacy groups describe the measures as practical tools that can shorten searches and cut down on the most dangerous moments when a person is missing.
As outlined by Laila's Gift, the LEAD Act would also put more weight on public outreach, data collection, and caregiver resources, aiming to create a clearer statewide playbook for when someone with autism or dementia takes off.
Why advocates call it urgent
For families, the numbers behind elopement are not abstract statistics; they are worst-case scenarios waiting to happen. Advocates and researchers point out that about half of children with autism have attempted to wander or elope, and many of those incidents put them in immediate danger near traffic, bodies of water, or other hazards.
The CDC notes that roughly half of children and youth with ASD have been reported to wander. A parent-survey study published in Pediatrics found that about 49 percent of children with ASD had tried to elope, and around one quarter had been missing long enough that parents feared for their safety. Families and advocates argue that standardized training and faster access to locating technology can turn those long, frantic searches into shorter, safer outcomes.
How this builds on past steps
Maryland has already taken a first step on the problem inside schools. Ace’s Law (HB 1204), passed in 2025, requires public and certain nonpublic schools to notify parents after an elopement and to report those incidents to the state so trends can be tracked. The full text and reporting timeline for HB 1204 are posted by the Maryland General Assembly.
Organizers say the LEAD Act proposals, which were announced by Laila’s Gift last year, are meant to build on Ace’s Law rather than replace it. The idea is to go beyond school reporting and add statewide training, better access to technology, and coordinated first-responder protocols. Baltimore Fishbowl covered the rollout ahead of the 2026 legislative session.
What's next in Annapolis
Supporters told lawmakers that the measures are designed to be noncontroversial and flexible, so counties can tailor training programs and device access to local circumstances without reinventing the wheel. Hearings this week drew no organized opposition, and several of the bills are already slated for follow-up committee work.
As reported by WMAR2 News, sponsors include Delegate Aaron Kaufman and Sen. Mike McKay. Bailey says she is betting that a bipartisan, nuts-and-bolts approach will get these tools and trainings in place for Maryland families sooner rather than later, so that the next time a door swings open unexpectedly, the story ends with a quick reunion instead of a statewide search.
