The AMBER Alert and AMBER Alert in Indian Country Symposium, held April 19–20, 2023, in Tucson, AZ, featured a mix of workshops, case studies, and regional meetings highlighting best practices and the latest technological advances for the safe recovery of missing and endangered children. It was also an opportunity to learn about the AMBER Alert in Indian Country initiative and ongoing efforts by the AMBER Alert Training and Technical Assistance Program to help Tribal communities integrate their AMBER Alert plans with state AMBER Alert systems.
The AMBER Alert program is a nationwide partnership between law enforcement agencies, broadcasters, state transportation agencies, the wireless industry, and Internet service providers. Law enforcement agencies issue an alert after determining that a child has been abducted and is in imminent danger. The system relies on OJJDP funding to train AMBER Alert partners and encourage public participation to help locate missing children.
Fifth Anniversary of Historic Legislation for Indian Country
The AMBER Alert and AMBER Alert in Indian Country Symposium coincided with the fifth anniversary of the federal Ashlynne Mike AMBER Alert in Indian Country Act. The law’s enactment followed the 2016 abduction, sexual assault, and murder of 11-year-old Ashlynne Mike on the Navajo Nation reservation in New Mexico. Ashlynne’s brutal murder revealed dangerous gaps across Indian country in the infrastructure needed to find and safely retrieve missing and abducted children. The law marked a significant step in the ability of Tribal communities to implement AMBER Alert plans.
The Ashlynne Mike AMBER Alert in Indian Country Act requires the U.S. Attorney General to provide grants to states and federally recognized Tribes to support AMBER Alert communications plans and integrate Tribal AMBER Alert systems with state plans. Since 2018, OJJDP has continued to support Tribes’ efforts to integrate their AMBER Alert systems with state plans. Today, more than 100 Tribes can access their states’ plans.
The symposium included a special Tribal track with presentations tailored to Native communities. One session gave an overview of a partnership between the North Dakota Highway Patrol and the state’s five Tribal nations. Attendees learned about the role of the highway patrol’s cultural liaison officer, a single point of contact for Tribal authorities. The session also addressed mutual aid agreements between North Dakota and two of the Tribes. The agreements authorize cooperation on law enforcement matters; the state is working to add agreements with two more Tribes. One component is joint training sessions for state and Tribal officers to help build working relationships, which are especially important when the groups must work together quickly to find a missing child. Joint trainings also help educate highway patrol officers about Tribal culture and Indigenous practices.
In an interactive session, “Resilient from Our Roots,” representatives from the Saint Regis Mohawk Tribe in northern New York presented a framework for helping first responders and Native communities heal from trauma experienced when children are abducted or missing. Presenters discussed the impact of trauma across the lifespan and introduced traditional Native approaches to coping with its enduring effects. The framework is based on traditional cultural practices, such as condolence and rites of passage ceremonies.
The symposium featured a total of 36 sessions. It was the first in-person national gathering of AMBER Alert coordinators, clearinghouse managers, child abduction response team coordinators, and Tribal representatives since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Resources:
American Indian and Alaska Native survivors of crime and abuse can find support services using the Tribal Resource Tool, which enables searches by geographic area, a survivor’s age or gender, the crime experienced, or the type of assistance needed. The Office for Victims of Crime produced this resource.
The latest issue of The AMBER Advocate presents a case study of a Utah teen who was abducted from his home by a fellow social gamer. The issue also presents new training opportunities offered by the AMBER Alert Training and Technical Assistance Program in 2023.