/PRNewswire/ -- Keep Georgia Safe, Georgia's only private, non-profit organization with the mission to provide safety education and crime prevention training to Georgia's families and law enforcement agencies, has partnered with the Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI) to communicate abduction alerts via cell phones. Now, when the GBI issues an alert that a child has been abducted, Keep Georgia Safe immediately sends the abduction information to subscribers' cell phones.
"Statistics show that the first three hours after a child's abduction are the most critical in recovery," says Keep Georgia Safe founder Gary Martin Hays. "Through this network of cell phone subscribers, we can all help recover Georgia's kids and return them home safely."
"Without the combined efforts of law enforcement, the broadcasters and emergency management, this program would be ineffective," says Vernon M. Keenan, director of the GBI. "We eagerly welcome the assistance of the private sector in getting the word out to Georgia citizens about missing children, missing adults and/or dangers they may face."
Keep Georgia Safe has a two-pronged approach to crime prevention: 1) Proactive: School Curriculum Initiative and Community Safety Seminars, Web Resources and Media Campaigns 2) Reactive: Alert System Network. As the only organization that sends out all three of Georgia's emergency alerts, the Keep Georgia Safe Wireless Network uses a text platform to notify opt-in wireless subscribers when the GBI issues any of its three emergency alerts:
-- Levi's Call: (Georgia's AMBER Alert) for an abducted or missing child
-- Mattie's Call: elderly or disabled missing person alert
-- Kimberly's Call: dangerous fugitive alert
Keep Georgia Safe provides the alert service free of charge. Standard text charges, if any, will apply pursuant to the agreement with your cellular provider. To join the network, visit www.keepgeorgiasafe.org and enter your cell phone number. Subscribers will not receive any calls or alerts other than GBI-issued alerts. For more information on Keep Georgia Safe or its alert network, visit www.keepgeorgiasafe.org or call 770.934.8000.
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Tuesday, December 16, 2008
If You Have a Cell Phone, You Can Help Return Abducted Children, Missing Persons
Wednesday, October 8, 2008
Amber Alert Issued for Georgia Child
Editor's Note: The license plate for the vehicle is 616HWS.
If you have information, please contact Burke County Sheriff's Office, 706-554-2133.
A three year old white male, Isaiah Ezekiel Tan, has been abducted. He was last seen in Midville, Georgia, wearing a navy blue t-shirt and cartoon underwear. The child is 3'2" and weighs 36 pounds.
He is believed to be with suspect Deloris Marie Miller, age 46, in a black Cadillac with Tennessee plates. Miller is 5'6", weighs 150 pounds ad has brown hair and eyes. She was last seen wearing a light brown button-up shirt with blue jeans and black tennis shoes.
It is believed the vehicle may be traveling to Tennessee.
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Wednesday, June 18, 2008
Amber Alert issued for Two Florida Children
The State of Florida issued the Amber Alert Wednesday morning after the children were reportedly abducted by a male relative. THe suspect made threats against the children ans is considered armed and dangerous.
Angela Ragins a 12 year old Caucasian female with blond hair and blue eyes.
James Ragins a 14 year old Caucasian male with blond hair and blue eyes.
The suspect is James Ragins, 36, who is a white male, about 6 feet 2 inches tall, with brown hair and brown eyes.
The suspect vehicle is a 1990 white Chevrolet Blazer, with a champagne-colored stripe down the side and Florida tag 534-IKX.
Lake County Sheriff's Office at 352-343-2101 or 911.
More information may be available at http://codeamber.c.topica.com/maalWSXabIbkkbLmA6JbafpLR8/
Wednesday, June 4, 2008
OAAA Partners with the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children for Outdoor Advertising AMBER Alert Initiative
The Outdoor Advertising Association of America (OAAA) today announced a new initiative that will use digital billboards to help recover abducted children across the country. OAAA, the industry group representing outdoor advertising companies, is partnering with the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC) as a secondary AMBER AlertTM distributor.
“Digital billboards are on the cutting edge of outdoor advertising technology and are uniquely suited to purposes like AMBER Alerts,” said Nancy Fletcher, OAAA’s president and CEO. “Because they can be updated by computer, AMBER Alerts on digital billboards can reach thousands of drivers within minutes of the Alert being issued.”
The AMBER Alert Program, operated by the U.S. Department of Justice, is a voluntary partnership between law-enforcement agencies, media outlets, and transportation agencies to activate an urgent bulletin in the most serious child abduction cases.
OAAA’s new initiative enhances the overall goal of the AMBER Alert program – to notify as many people as possible about a recent child abduction, and to provide information which can help in the search for the abducted child, suspected abductor, and/or suspected vehicle and in the safe return of the child. AMBER Alerts will be distributed by a central computer server to OAAA members participating in the program which fall within the specific, geographically targeted areas for the Alert.
“Today’s announcement reflects the dynamic progress we continue to make in improving the AMBER Alert system. This exciting initiative shows that public-private partnerships are central to the protection of our children,” said Jeff Sedgwick, the Acting Assistant Attorney General of the Office of Justice Programs and the National AMBER Alert Coordinator.
The program is named after 9-year-old Amber Hagerman, who in 1996 was abducted while riding her bike in her Texas neighborhood and later found murdered. Since the program’s inception in 1997, AMBER Alerts have been credited with the successful recovery of more than 399 children.
“The success of the AMBER Alert program is directly related to people’s willingness to get involved, which is invaluable,” said John Kelly, Chairman of NCMEC’s Board of Directors. “OAAA’s digital technology will allow thousands more to join the search and aid in the rescue and recovery of these children.”
Initial OAAA members participating in the partnership include CBS Outdoor, Clear Channel Outdoor, Epic Outdoor Advertising, Fairway Outdoor Advertising, Lamar Advertising Company, Magic Media, Norton Outdoor Advertising, Titan Outdoor, and YESCO (which also designed the software for the program). These companies operate more than 900 digital billboards in the United States in hundreds of communities.
Friday, May 9, 2008
Wireless AMBER Alerts™ Are Available to Help Reunite Abducted Children in Georgia with Their Families
BUSINESS WIRE--An AMBER Alert was recently issued in Georgia urging citizens to be on the lookout for an abducted baby and his abductor. During these times, when a child’s safety is in question, many people wonder if there is anything they can do individually to help.
Your audience might be interested in knowing that in addition to paying close attention to AMBER Alerts when they are distributed via broadcast outlets or on highway signs, they can also sign up to receive AMBER Alerts as free text messages on their wireless devices. Their participation will add critical eyes and ears to the search for abducted children.
Any wireless subscriber may opt in to receive free Alerts by completing a simple registration process at www.wirelessamberalerts.org or their wireless carrier’s website. Most wireless customers can text the word AMBER followed by a space and their 5-digit ZIP Code to 26237.
AMBER stands for “America’s Missing: Broadcast Emergency Response” and was created in 1996 when Dallas-Fort Worth broadcasters teamed with local police to develop an early warning system to find abducted children. The AMBER Alert Program was soon adopted across the nation and is a legacy to Amber Hagerman, a 9-year-old girl who was kidnapped while riding her bicycle in Arlington, Texas, and then murdered. All 50 states have since established AMBER Alert programs.
President Bush authorized the national AMBER Alert program as part of the PROTECT Act signed in 2003. The law formally established the federal government’s role in the AMBER Alert program, appointing the Department of Justice (DOJ) as the agency responsible for coordinating AMBER Alerts on the national level. The wireless industry has officially partnered with the U.S. Department of Justice and the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children to make free Wireless AMBER Alerts available to cell phone subscribers.
More than 390 children have been successfully recovered as a result of the AMBER Alert network.
The Wireless Foundation is a non-profit organization that was formed by member companies of CTIA-The Wireless Association® in 1991. The Foundation oversees a number of programs designed to put wireless technology to work addressing the challenges of society.
The National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that works in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Justice's Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention. NCMEC's congressionally mandated CyberTipline, a reporting mechanism for child sexual exploitation, has handled more than 550,000 leads. Since its establishment in 1984, NCMEC has assisted law enforcement with more than 130,300 missing child cases, resulting in the recovery of more than 112,900 children. For more information about NCMEC, call its toll-free, 24-hour hotline at 1-800-THE-LOST or visit its web site at www.missingkids.com
The U.S. Department of Justice's mission is to enforce the law and defend the interests of the United States according to the law; to ensure public safety against threats foreign and domestic; to provide federal leadership in preventing and controlling crime; to seek just punishment for those guilty of unlawful behavior; and to ensure fair and impartial administration of justice for all Americans.
