New Jersey lawmakers advance resolution to honor U.S. hostages on anniversary of Robert Levinson’s disappearance
TRENTON, N.J. — Eighteen years after retired FBI special agent Robert A. Levinson vanished on Kish Island, Iran, New Jersey lawmakers are moving to formally recognize the ordeal endured by his family and the families of other Americans held hostage or wrongfully detained abroad.
The Assembly Oversight Committee on Thursday advanced Assemblyman Michael Inganamort’s joint resolution (AJR231) designating March 9 as U.S. Hostage and Wrongful Detainee Day in New Jersey. The date marks the anniversary of Levinson’s disappearance on March 9, 2007, while on an unofficial CIA intelligence-gathering mission into Iran’s nuclear program. The federal government has maintained that Iran sanctioned his abduction.
“Eighteen years missing, five declared dead. No goodbyes. No funeral. It’s a nightmare no family member should endure,” the resolution states. For Levinson’s daughter, Sarah Levinson Moriarty, that pain persists.
“We go about our lives, counting down the days to the weekend, a vacation, a birthday or a holiday. Time passes differently for families like Sarah’s,” Inganamort (R-Morris) said. “They don’t have answers, only presumptions. They can feel forgotten as the rest of us move on from what is only a news headline.”
Inganamort said Levinson Moriarty — a constituent in his district — has become a leading advocate for hostage families nationwide. “Sarah, a constituent in my district, has been a tireless advocate for families of American hostages and those who have been wrongfully detained overseas. She has championed legislation to designate March 9 as National Hostage and Wrongful Detainee Day and to establish the official Hostage and Wrongful Detainee flag, both of which were enacted into federal law,” he said.
The flag, designed by hostage families, now flies above the White House, the U.S. Capitol and the State Department each year on March 9, Flag Day, Independence Day, and whenever an American hostage comes home.
“Americans are being taken when they travel to different countries across the world just for being American, and it has been consistently happening for a long time,” Levinson Moriarty told lawmakers during Thursday’s hearing. “…I would like to see [New Jersey] lead the way, especially because this is an issue that affects our state so deeply.”
As of October 2025, U.S. officials believe nearly 50 Americans are being held hostage or wrongfully detained in at least 13 countries, though precise numbers remain unclear. Levinson, who would be 77 this year, is considered the longest-held American hostage.
Inganamort’s resolution follows a federal proclamation championed by Rep. Tom Kean (R-N.J.) in 2023 and highlighted by former President Donald Trump in March. If approved by the Legislature, New Jersey would become the first state to formally recognize the day and fly the Hostage and Wrongful Detainee flag.
