WENATCHEE, Wash. – As investigators now search for the father accused of killing his three young daughters in central Washington, people have asked 4 News Now: Why didn’t the state issue an AMBER Alert for the girls on Friday?
It’s a question that comes up often when children are reported missing.
The answer is that the Washington State Patrol has very specific criteria for issuing an Amber Alert and those alerts aren’t issued all that often.
AMBER stands for America’s Missing: Broadcast Emergency Response. It’s named for a child named Amber Hagerman who was kidnapped and murdered in Texas in 1996.
It’s used in all 50 states.
WSP is the AMBER Alert manager for Washington.
Under the plan, law enforcement agencies around the state have to request that WSP issue an Amber Alert.
WSP’s Amber Alert criteria is outlined in this plan, last updated in 2019.
The criteria states that all of these criteria need to be met:
The child is under eighteen (18) years of age, is known to be abducted, and is not a runaway or throw away from home.The abducted child is believed to be in danger of imminent death or serious bodily injury.There must be enough descriptive information available to believe that an AMBER Alert activation will assist in the recovery of the child. (Must include as much of the following information as possible.)
Where the abduction took placeA specific physical description of the child. This can include clothing worn when last seen; height; weight; age; hair and eye color; hair length; any additional distinguishing physical characteristicsA physical description of the abductor. This can include approximate height; weight; hair color/length; eye/skin color; clothing; any distinguishing physical characteristicsPlace last seenDescription of the vehicle, such as color, make, model, license number, approximate year (older, newer)
If those criteria are not met, the law enforcement agency can instead follow the Endangered Missing Person Advisory Plan (EMPA).
AMBER Alerts aren’t sent out all that often. A report from the Department of Justice shows Washington issued just four of them in 2022. Idaho issued two the same year.
In the Wenatchee case, police say they contacted WSP Friday night to request an AMBER Alert, but it did not meet the criteria.
Friday night, police knew that the girls had not been returned to their mother and that the girls’ father, Travis Decker, and that he was believed to be living out of his truck.
They did not know specifically when the children were last seen.
Wenatchee Police issued an EMPA instead.
So, what’s the difference?
The difference between AMBER Alerts and EMPA is how the public is notified.
Under an AMBER Alert, a message is often delivered to cell phones in the immediate area.
The state’s EAS system is activated, which is when an alert interrupts TV or radio broadcasts.
AMBER Alerts are emailed to people who sign up to receive the alerts and the alerts are posted to social media.
Finally, when vehicle descriptions are available, the AMBER Alert will show up on highway reader boards.
An EMPA does not activate the EAS system and typically does not go out to cell phones, but cities and counties may have their own emergency activation system that will send those alerts.
EMPAs will also show up on highway reader boards when a vehicle description is available. WSP will also post EMPAs to social media.
You can also read about Idaho’s Amber Alert criteria, which is similar to Washington’s, at this link.
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