An Amber Alert (alternatively styled AMBER alert 2022 today) or a child abduction emergency alert (SAME code: CAE) is a message distributed by a child abduction alert system to ask the public for help in finding abducted children. The system originated in the United States.
What does AMBER mean in Alert?
AMBER is a backronym standing for America’s Missing: Broadcast Emergency Response. It was created in reference to Amber Rene Hagerman, a girl who was abducted and later found murdered in 1996. Alternative regional alert names were once used; in Georgia Amber Alert or Wyoming Amber Alert.
The System began in 1996 when Dallas-Fort Worth broadcasters teamed with local police to develop an early warning system to help find abducted children. AMBER stands for America’s Missing: Broadcast Emergency Response and was created as a legacy to 9-year-old Amber Hagerman, who was kidnapped while riding her bicycle in Arlington, TX, and then brutally murdered. Other states and communities soon set up their own AMBER plans as the idea was adopted across the nation.
Has AMBER Alert ever worked?
For frantic families desperate for the return of their children, every moment can feel like years. Hearteningly, in nearly half of cases, children involved in AMBER Alert cases are reunited with their caregivers within three hours of their abduction. Another nearly 1 in 5 kids come home within four to six hours. Fewer than 6 percent of cases see children separated from their families for more than 48 hours.
Not every AMBER Alert case features a clear-cut motive for abduction. But among those for which a reason can be determined, nearly 4 in 10 are the result of a family dispute. This was the cases for 6-month-old Mitchell Farris, who was abducted in 2014 by his own parents from his great-grandfather, under whose care officials had placed the baby.
In over a quarter of cases, domestic disputes play a role. For instance, in 2014, 9-year-old Alexy Voronenko was taken by his father, who had previously been jailed for abusing his mother. And in around one-fifth of cases, children are abducted – in some cases unintentionally – when the vehicles they’re in are stolen. In a frightening 2014 case, a car was stolen – and in the backseat was 20-day-old Henry Flores, who was left there while his mother and sibling were in a gas station market. Other motives include sexual intentions, ransom, and Internet luring.
In nearly 7 in every 10 cases, children are successfully reunited with their parents. And in just over 17 percent of cases, the recovery is a direct result of the Alert. Just under 6 percent of cases end up being unfounded, while just over 5 percent are hoaxes. Sadly, over 3 percent of cases result in the death of the child, and 1.5 percent of cases are still active.
Is AMBER Alert a true story?
Amber Rene Hagerman (November 25, 1986 – January 15, 1996) was a nine-year-old girl abducted while riding her bike with her brother in Arlington, Texas. Her younger brother, Ricky, had gone home without her because Amber had wanted to stay in the parking lot for a while. When he returned to go get her, Ricky found her bicycle without her. A neighbor who had witnessed the abduction called 911. On hearing the news, Hagerman’s father, Richard, called Marc Klaas, whose daughter, Polly, had been kidnapped and murdered in Petaluma, California, in 1993. Ricky, and Amber’s mother, Donna Whitson (now Donna Norris), called the news media and the FBI. They and their neighbors began searching for Amber.
Four days after her abduction, near midnight, One man was walking his dog when he discovered Amber’s naked body in a creek behind an apartment complex with severe laceration wounds to her neck. The site of the discovery was less than five miles (8 km) from where she was abducted. Her murder remains unsolved as of 2022.
What was the recent Amber Alert case?
The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation issued the alert on behalf of the Blount County Sheriff’s Office. According to the TBI, Alexis may be with 23-year-old Nathaniel Covington. He is wanted out of Blount County for Kidnapping.
Byrn is 5’3″, 180 pounds with brown hair and blue eyes—though TBI lists her weight as 150 on the same AMBER Alert update. TBI currently does not have a vehicle description to share at this time.
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WVLT) – An hour after posting an AMBER Alert, the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation canceled the alert for 14-year-old Alexis Byrn. According to a post, police found Byrn and Nathaniel Covington in Clarksville, Indiana. The TBI said Byrn is safe and Covington is in custody.
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