"Every minute a child is missing is a minute too long," said Crist. "We must take every action possible to help ensure that children are safely returned to their loved ones as quickly as possible. This program saves lives."
The Attorney General's Office is joining with The Wireless Foundation, the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC) and the U.S. Department of Justice to promote the Wireless AMBER Alerts initiative. The AMBER Alert program was created in 1997 when Dallas-Fort Worth broadcasters teamed up with local law enforcement to develop an early warning system to find abducted children. The program has grown so that now 90 percent of Americans with wireless devices may receive localized AMBER Alerts as free text messages, instantly raising awareness of recent child abductions and often producing valuable information on the child's whereabouts.
AMBER stands for "America's Missing: Broadcast Emergency Response" and was also named after Amber Hagerman, the Texas girl whose abduction and murder led to creation of the Alert system.
"It is our hope that by enlisting the more than 13 million Florida wireless subscribers in the Wireless AMBER Alerts Initiative, we can greatly increase the likelihood of recovering an abducted child during this critical time period," said Steve Largent, president and CEO of CTIA-The Wireless Association and president of The Wireless Foundation. "Wireless technology has given us the ability to become the guardian angels of our communities, and I urge Florida residents everywhere to sign up today."
"We can all help keep children safer by participating in the free Wireless AMBER Alerts program," added Ernie Allen, NCMEC president and CEO. "To date, more than 300 children have been successfully recovered as a direct result of an AMBER Alert, and we hope to bring even more children home with the help of Florida's citizens."
