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FBI Honors Mother Of Dru Sjodin For Her Advocacy Work

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) -- The mother of Minnesota native Dru Sjodin (Drew Shuh-DEEN') is being honored by the FBI for her work in helping create the national sex offender's database.

Linda Walker was recognized Friday at FBI headquarters in Washington.

Sjodin was 22 when she was kidnapped from a North Dakota shopping mall parking lot in 2003. Her body was discovered months later near Crookston, Minn.

Since then, Walker has traveled nationwide to raise awareness about violence against women and children. She helped Congress create Dru's Law, which requires convicted child molesters to be listed on a national database.

Ralph Boelter, the outgoing head of the FBI in Minneapolis, says the FBI and Walker hope the work done in her daughter's memory will lead to greater protection for the most vulnerable citizens.

(© Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

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