Kansas requires cell phone firms to provide records.

• Position: LEGISLATION - Brief article

Kansas is the first U.S. state to require cell phone companies to hand over critical information to law enforcement officials in missing person cases.

The new law, prompted by the 2007 kidnapping and murder of an 18-year-old Kansas woman, Kelsey Smith, compels the firms to provide ping information to authorities promptly. The pings, or cell phone signals, provide data about a phone's location. The legislation requires cell phone companies to provide authorities with this information, which may help locate a missing person quickly.

After Smith went missing, her parents and law enforcement fought with her...