What is Required For an AMBER Alert to be Issued?

In 1996, Amber Hagerman was riding her bike when a man pulled her off her bike and tossed her into his pickup truck. Her body was found four days later; she was only 9 years old.  Today, the AMBER Alert Program is partnership among law enforcement, broadcasters, transportation officials and the wireless cell phone industry which sends out urgent bulletins to secure assistance from the public in the recovery of an abducted child.

AMBER Alert Guidelines

Because the AMBER Alert program is a voluntary cooperation, there are no requirements for issuing an alert, but rather there are guidelines to "minimize potentially deadly delays":

• confirmation of the abduction by law enforcement
• child is believed to be at risk of serious injury or death
• ample descriptions readily available
• standard maximum age of the child
• entry in National Crimes Information System

Stranger abductions are known to be the most dangerous type of abduction for young children, so AMBER Alerts should be reserved mostly for these cases. There is a concern that over use of the system wll render it a much less effective tool mobilize the community and heighten awareness to look for the child, the abductor or the abductor's vehicle.

Imminent Danger

Law enforcement should use their best judgement assessing the level of imminent danger the child is in, as AMBER Alerts should only be issued when there is a high level of risk of death or injury. Since AMBER Alerts are activated most often for stranger kidnappings, this criteria is usually met.

Ample Available Descriptions

AMBER Alerts cannot be effective unless law enforcement can quickly pass along detailed descriptions of the child, their clothing, the abduction itself, what the abductor looks like and a description of the vehicle involved. The whole point of an AMBER Alert is to secure the safe return of the child and arrest the suspected abductor; without good descriptions there is not much for anyone to be looking for.

Standard Maximum Age of Child

Most states use the criteria that AMBER Alerts can be issued for children who are 17 years old and younger. For those states that use a lower age as their criteria, it is helpful if they honor a request from another state to pick up their AMBER Alert. Standardizing the age of children that can trigger an Alert will increase effectiveness of the program and prevent confusion.

NCIC System

AMBER Alerts are often more effective when they quickly reach beyond the local jurisdiction where the abduction took place. A key to making this happen is quick, complete entry of the case information (notated as a Child Abduction) into the National Crime Information Center system.

Get Legal Help

If you or someone in your family has been involved in a child abduction or any other crime, contact a criminal law attorney for assistance and to get your questions answered. Not everyone who is arrested is guilty, and a solid defense is critically important to protecting your rights and your freedom.