 Monson Police Department
Massachusetts Amber Alert Plan
The Massachusetts Amber Alert Plan is a voluntary, cooperative effort involving the Massachusetts Chiefs of Police Association, the Massachusetts State Police, the Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency (MEMA) and local broadcasters. Radio, cable and television stations statewide will receive a child abduction alert message and may broadcast this every 30 minutes for up to 4 hours in an effort to solicit the public's assistance in recovering an abducted child and quickly apprehending the suspect.
Guidelines:
An Amber Alert should only be issues for serious child abduction cases. It should not normally be used for runaway or parental-abduction cases, the 2 leading causes of missing children. The only cause for an alert under these circumstances would be if law enforcement believes the life of the child is in serious danger (e.g., if a parent threatened to harm the child and this information can be verified). Each case will be to be judged on an individual basis.
Criteria for the Amber Alert Notification Plan Activation:
Although each case has its own set of circumstances, law enforcement agencies must follow the activation criteria as closely as possible.
The child must be under the age of 18, and
Police must believe the child is in danger of serious bodily harm or death, and
There is enough descriptive information for police to believe that an AMBER Alert will help locate the child
If all criteria is not met, the Amber Alert Notification Plan should not be activated. While each case must be judged individually, most "child custody" situations do not meet the criteria.
Circumstances where an AMBER Alert would be activated:
Child is abducted and there are witnesses to the crime
Child is missing and there is evidence of foul play, and law enforcement believes the child was abducted
Vehicle was stolen or "carjacked" and a child was left inside the vehicle
Child is missing and particular consideration is given to their behavior or mental capacity in some way contributing to their disappearance. The child is also considered endangered
Circumstances where an AMBER Alert would NOT be activated:
Child is missing and law enforcement has no evidence of foul play
Child runs away from home
Child is missing as a result of a custody dispute and the child is not considered to be at risk of bodily harm or death
An adult is missing
Restriction of Liability:
The Monson Police Department makes no claims, promises or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness, or adequacy of the contents of this web site and expressly disclaims liability for errors and omissions in the contents of this web site. No warranty of any kind, implied, expressed or statutory, including but not limited to the warranties of non-infringement of third party rights, title, merchantablility, fitness for a particular purpose and freedom from computer virus, is given with respect to the contents of this web site or its hyperlinks to other Internet resources. Reference in this web site to any specific commercial products, processes, or services, or the use of any trade, firm or corporation name is for the information and convenience of the public, and does not constitute endorsement,
recommendation, or favoring by the Monson Police Department.
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