Oct. 22, 1989: Jacob Wetterling, 11, is abducted by a masked man on a road near his house in rural St. Joseph, Minn., while returning from a Tom Thumb store with his brother, Trevor, 10, and friend Aaron Larson, 11.

February 1990: With the help of others, Patty and Jerry Wetterling establish a foundation in their son's name to call attention to child abduction and abuse.

August 1994: Patty Wetterling lobbies for a bill that would require states to create registration programs for sex offenders.

Sept. 13, 1994: Congress passes the bill that includes the original Jacob Wetterling Sex Offender Registration Act.

June 1996: Jacob's class graduates from Apollo High School in St. Cloud.

October 1998: Patty Wetterling writes an open letter to Jacob's abductor, asking that he tell her what happened to her son. The letter is published in several newspapers and on the Internet, resulting in several significant leads. The case remains open.

Over the years, investigators have followed up on more than 40,000 leads from Minnesota to Europe. They've talked with psychics, checked sightings of Jacob lookalikes and cleared more than 4,000 suspects.

Feb. 17, 2010: 32nd anniversary of Jacob Wetterling's birth.