Font Resize"In an abduction...we find that in the first three hours, 45 percent of the children that are abducted are murdered," says Anchorage Police Lt. Dave Parker.
In 1996 nine year old Amber Hagerman was riding her bike near her grandparents' Arlington, TX home when she was kidnapped. Four days after her abduction, a man walking his dog found Amber's body in a creek bed. An autopsy revealed her throat had been cut. She had been alive for two days before being killed.
A member of the public suggested in Amber's memory broadcast stations should send out abducted children alerts just like severe weather warnings.
"It goes automatically on air," says Alaska Broadcasters Association Ex. Director Darlene Simono. "It will interrupt programming."
In 2003 President George Bush signed AMBER Alerts into law. Alaska State Troopers determine if an Alaska AMBER Alert is issued.
"We have the criteria," says Public Safety Department Spokesperson Megan Peters. "We have the Amber Alert Coordinator."
"The Troopers are the clearing house," Parker says. "They actually run the system. But any police sergeant here can actually
Amber Alerts, however, are only sent out if certain criteria is met. The abduction must be confirmed for a child under 18. The child has to be at risk of serious injury or death. Police must have a detailed description of the child and suspect. All that information has to go into a national crime database.
"If we are not able to give information to the public to tell them what they are able to do to help, it's not a useful tool at that moment in time," Peters says.
With the push of a button an AMBER Alert can be sent out to all broadcast agencies. State Homeland Security Director Brian Fisher is responsible for making sure all AMBER Alert radio and TV equipment is in place.
"It's incredibly important," Fisher says. "There aren't many systems in the state that can provide this kind of state wide notification to people in a rapid fashion."
However, there have been mistakes like accidental alerts.
"It still tested the entire system," Fisher says. "And it's our responsibility to ensure that when we get the system out statewide that it actually goes."
"We don't stress a small technical glitch as being the system is not working," Simono says, confident, even if there are mistakes, the system works.
"Broadcasters, their flow of information, it gets out there," Simono says. "You get a press release from APD. There's a lot of what you call redundant sources that work."
The belief is activating early saves lives. As Amber's death proved most children found more than a day after missing almost always never come home. To date, Justice Department officials credited the AMBER Alert program for saving nearly 500 children's lives.
It is critical during an AMBER alert for the public to assist. The easiest way to do that is to get an alert sent directly to your cell phone. Click here for a link to sign up.
To contact the Newsroom, call 907-274-1111.
