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State takes over AMBER Alert program: Subscribers will get free email updates with registration
By Zach Markovic, zmarkovic@starlocalnews.com
The Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) announced Tuesday it will begin handling AMBER Alert functions in Texas previously performed by BeyondMissing.com.
The system has two components, the flyer creation system and the email notification system. Law enforcement, media and the public will need to set up new accounts on the DPS website to continue using this system. Starting today, the flyers that subscribers have been receiving will have a different look since they will be distributed by DPS instead of by BeyondMissing.com.
The flyer creation component allows local law enforcement to create their own flyers for abducted children in their area, which are then distributed through the email notification portion of the system. This is especially helpful in areas that do not have regional AMBER Alert plans.
Public registration for the new email notification system can be accessed through www.dps.texas.gov/DEM/AMBERALERT/AMBERREGISTER.ASPX, and law enforcement account requests can be found at amber.dps.texas.gov.
This notification system is just one of the ways DPS informs the media and the public about state-issued alerts. The other methods DPS uses for notification on state-issued alerts will remain the same, such as emails to the media and electronic road signs. For a list of state AMBER Alert Network partners, see www.txdps.state.tx.us/dem/Operations/Alerts/AmberOverview.htm.
Texas joined the nation in observing National AMBER Alert Awareness Day on Jan. 13. AMBER stands for "America's Missing: Broadcast Emergency Response," and was named for 9-year-old Amber Hagerman, who was kidnapped and murdered in Arlington, Texas, in 1996.
Shortly after Amber Hagerman's death, law enforcement and media representatives in the Dallas/Fort Worth area created the first AMBER Alert program, serving as a model plan nationwide for alerting the public regarding abducted children. Currently, every state in the U.S. has an AMBER Alert Plan, in addition to several countries around the world. Jan. 13 marked the 17-year anniversary of Amber Hagerman's abduction, which the U.S. Department of Justice has designated as National AMBER Alert Awareness Day.
The Texas AMBER Alert Program was established by Gov. Rick Perry in August 2002, complementing existing local AMBER Alert programs. DPS manages the statewide program and provides law enforcement a mechanism for rapid notification of the media and the public in these serious child abduction cases. From 2002 through the end of 2012, 93 children have been recovered during 87 DPS activations of the Texas AMBER Alert Program.
The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC), which was added as a state partner in 2005, provides notification to the public through wireless carriers, content providers and major retailers.
AMBER Alert
Activation of the Texas AMBER Alert Network involves resources from the following groups:
· Texas Department of Public Safety
· Office of the Governor
· National Weather Service
· Texas Department of Transportation
· Local, state and federal law enforcement
· Media
· Texas Association of Broadcasters
· Independent Bankers Association of Texas
· Texas Lottery Commission
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