Officials recognizing Amber Alert anniversary | Community Spirit

Every year, the nation pauses to remember Amber Hagerman, the namesake of the national Amber Alert program.  Amber was abducted and murdered on Jan. 13, 1996. Since the origination of the national initiative, moe than 550 children have been successfully recovered as a direct result of the Amber Alert.

Louisiana has one recognized statewide Amber plan that is coordinated and administered by the Louisiana State Police. It is a statewide, collaborative effort between law enforcement and broadcasters focused on safely locating an abducted child within the critical two to three hour period following abduction.  It is an investigative tool which supplements law enforcement efforts to locate an abducted child whose life is in immediate danger.   Since the inception of the Louisiana Amber Alert Plan in October 2002, there have been only twelve activations.  In all cases, the children were successfully recovered.  There were no activations in Louisiana between 2009 and 2011.

“Although no cases warranted a Louisiana Amber Alert activation in recent years, we remain resolute and committed in our efforts to protect all children against the potential horrific consequences of abduction,” said Colonel Mike Edmonson, state police superintendent and the state program’s first Amber alert coordinator.  “Our capabilities were enhanced in 2011 when the legislature transferred the Missing and Exploited Children Information Clearinghouse to the Louisiana State Police.  Our children are our most precious asset and our efforts to protect them will be relentless.”

In 2011 the Amber Alert expanded its dissemination efforts to include Facebook, which is located at http://www.facebook.com/AMBERalertLA.  Active alerts and (Level II) media advisories may also be accessed via the official Louisiana State Police Facebook page.  Level II media advisories are intended to broadcast information about endangered missing children whose cases do not rise to the level of an Amber alert, but do require additional attention.  These advisories do not utilize the Emergency Alert System.  Cellular subscribers can sign up for free Amber alert text messages at www.wirelessamberalerts.org.

The state police strictly adheres to the Amber alert criteria, as recommended by the Department of Justice. The abducted child must be 17 years old or younger;  the child must be in imminent danger of serious bodily injury or death, and there must be enough descriptive information about the abducted child, suspect and vehicle in order to make an Amber alert activation viable. The Amber alert plan is not intended for runaways or for the majority of parental abductions, except in rare circumstances.

For more information, please visit: www.LSP.org , www.louisianaamberalert.com and www.missingkids.com