Res. No. 252-00-11144RESOLUTION NO. 1 252-00-11144
A RESOLUTION OF THE MAYOR AND CITY
COMMISSION OF THE CITY OF SOUTH MIAMI,
ENDORSING THE CONCEPT OF AN "AMBER PLAN" FOR
THE CITY OF SOUTH MIAMI AND MIAMI -DADE
COUNTY, INSTRUCTING THE CITY MANAGER TO
IMPLEMENT AN AMBER PLAN WITH THE SOUTH
MIAMI POLICE DEPARTMENT FOR CITY CABLE
CHANNEL 5, AND RECEOMMENDING THE MIAMI -DADE
COUNTY AND THE MIAMI -DADE LEAGUE OF CITIES
ENDORSE AND IMPLEMENT AN AMBER PLAN FOR THE
ENTIRE COUNTY, PROVIDING AND EFFECTIVE DATE
WHEREAS, the City of South Miami recognizes that the protection of our
children is a duty of the highest importance; and
WHEREAS, the abduction of children is a problem of national and local
importance; and
WHEREAS, an effective program of widespread and timely public notice that a
child abduction has taken place can be an effective tool to assist in the recovery of an
abducted child before serious harm has occurred; and
WHEREAS, the Arlington Texas area has developed such an effective program, "Amber
Alert"; and
WHEREAS, the implementation of such as program in Miami -Dade County
could be a vital tool to help protect our children.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED BY THE MAYOR AND CITY
COMMISSION OF THE CITY OF SOUTH MIAMI, FLORIDA:
Section 1. That the City of South Miami endorse the development and
implementation of an Amber Alert Program in South Miami and Miami -Dade County.
Section 2. The City Manager is directed to implement such a program with
the South Miami Police Department and City Cable Channel 5.
Page 2 of Res. No. 252 -00 -11144
Section 3. Miami -Dade County and the Miami -Dade League of Cities are
encouraged to develop a countywide program.
Section 4. This resolution shall be effective immediately after the adoption
hereof.
PASSED AND ADOPTED this 19 day of December , 2000.
ATTEST:
I.1
nz ~
MAYOR
COMMISSION VOTE:
Mayor Robaina:
Vice Mayor Feliu:
Commissioner Russell:
Commissioner Bethel:
Commissioner Wiscombe:
5 -0
Yea
Yea
Yea
Yea
Yea
Excellence, Integrity, Inclusion
MEMORANDUM
To: Honorable Mayor, Vice Mayor
and City Commission
From: Charles Scurr�0 U�"
City Manager
Date: December 19, 2000
Re: Agenda Item
Amber Alert
A RESOLUTION OF THE MAYOR AND CITY COMMISSION OF THE CITY OF
SOUTH MIAMI, ENDORSING THE CONCEPT OF AN "AMBER PLAN" FOR THE
CITY OF SOUTH MIAMI AND MIAMI -DADE COUNTY, INSTRUCTING THE
CITY MANAGER TO IMPLEMENT AN AMBER PLAN WITH THE SOUTH MIAMI
POLICE DEPARTMENT FOR CITY CABLE CHANNEL 5, AND
RECEOMMENDING THE MIAMI -DADE COUNTY AND THE MIAMI -DADE
LEAGUE OF CITIES ENDORSE AND IMPLEMENT AN AMBER PLAN FOR THE
ENTIRE COUNTY, PROVIDING AND EFFECTIVE DATE
BACKGROUND AND ANALYSIS
This resolution is sponsored by Mayor Robaina and Vice Mayor Feliu.
The tragedy of the abduction of children is, unfortunately, an increasing problem in our
society and community. An essential component in the prevention of these tragedies is a
timely and widespread public alert that a child has been abducted.
The Arlington, Texas area has developed a program to address this need. That program,
called the "Amber Alert", is named in the memory of nine - year -old Amber Hagerman. In
1996 she was abducted while playing near her home and was later found murdered. The
Arlington community, in conjunction with their association of radio managers and law
enforcement, developed a program to give listeners timely information about area child
abductions.
Once police have confirmed that an abduction has taken place the Amber Alert network
is activated. Local television and radio stations immediately broadcast an "Amber Alert"
that the child has been abducted, providing appropriate description and location
I
information. The public at large can then become an arm of law enforcement to find the
child before serious harm is done. The details of the program are attached.
The Amber Alert Program has direct applicability in Miami -Dade County. Mayor
Robaina has met with Miami -Dade Mayor Alex Penelas in an effort to stimulate a
countywide effort.
This resolution:
1. Formally endorses the program by the City of South Miami;
2. Activates the program on Cable Channel 5
3. Calls upon Miami -Dade County and the Miami -Dade League of Cities to
work together to develop and implement a countywide program.
RECEOMMENDATION
Approval is recommended.
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DALLASIFORT WORTH
December 6, 2000
City of South Miami PD
Mayor Julio Robiana
6130 Sunset Dr.
South Miami, FL 33143
RE: The "Amber Plan"
Dear Mayor Robiana:
AMBER PLAN
LAW ENFORCEMENT REVIEW COMMITTEE
Sgt. Robin Chavez, Carrollton P. D.
Lt. Nancy Wright, Saginaw P. D.
Da. Pat Ripley, Bedford P. D.
Lt. David Paris, Irving P. D.
Sgt. Alan Patton, Grand Prairied P. D.
Cmdr, Gary Fowler, Mansfield P. D.
Sgt. Mike Simonds, Arlington P. D
IA. Bill Walsh, Dallas P. D.
Enclosed please find a copy of the "Amber Plan," created by the Association of Radio Managers,
and area law enforcement.
If you have any questions please contact me at 817- 459 -5318.
Sincerely,
SGT. MIKE SIMONDS
ARLINGTON POLICE DEPARTMENT
AMBER REVIEW COMMITTEE CHAIRPERSON
620 W. DIVISION STREET +ARLINGTON, TEXAS 76011
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DALLASIFORT WORTH
Amber Plan Update
The Amber plan is named in memory of nine - year -old Amber Hagerman. In 1996,
Amber was abducted while playing near her Arlington home. She was later found
murdered. In response to community concern, the Association of Radio Managers
(ARMS), with the assistance of area law enforcement, created the Amber Plan to
give listeners timely information about area child abductions.
The Activation Process
Once police have confirmed that an abduction has taken place, they notify WBAP
and KRLD radio stations by fax. The fax message includes information that could
be helpful to the public, including: a description of the child, what the child was
wearing, where the child was last seen, a description of the vehicle used in the
abduction and a description of possible suspects. After WBAP and KRLD have
communicated with each other to verify receipt of the information, WBAP /KSCS (the
primary emergency broadcast stations for Dallas /Fort Worth) activate the EAS
system that triggers EAS receivers at all the other radio and TV stations.
Simultaneously, an audio message containing police information about the
abduction is sent to all stations.
TV Joins the Amber Plan
IN 1999, the management at KM approached ARMS about expanding participation
in the Amber Plan to directly include Dallas /Fort Worth TV stations. That contact
closely followed a phone survey ARMS conducted with the 33 Dallas /Fort Worth
police departments that participate in the plan. That survey found widespread
support for TV's direct involvement. After discussing both the merits and technical
aspects of including TV, ARMS decided to invite all TV outlets to participate.
As of today, KDFW (Ch. 4), KXAS (Ch. 5), WFAA (Ch. 8), KTXA (Ch. 21), KUVN (Ch.
23), KDAF (Ch. 33), KXTX (Ch, 39), KFWD (Ch. 52) and KPXD (Ch. 68) have
decided to join KTVT (Ch. 11) in this service to the community. Again, the
participating TV stations will receive the bulletin material the same way the 32
participating radio stations receive the information -- following activation of the EAS
system. TV stations can either transcribe the information included in the audio
bulletin or rebroadcast that audio message.
Amber Plan Training Video
That same police department survey found the need for the creation of a training
video to fully explain the Amber Plan. The video has two main purposes:
1. To provide clarification on activation criteria.
2. To visually show police how abduction information is distributed to the various
broadcast outlets.
The video tape, produced free of charge by KTVi, features Dee Anderson of the
Arlington Police Department. Copies of the tape will be sent to each of the police
departments participating in the Amber Plan. Copies will also be sent to each of the
participating Radio /TV Stations to help news managers and on -air staff understand
the plan.
New Criteria for Amber Plan Activations
The original criteria for activation of the Amber Plan defined "abduction" as an
incident involving a child under 18, unwillingly removed from their environment
without permission from the child's legal guardian or representative. It was also
believed that the Amber Plan would be used for abductions involving strangers.
This did not take into account the involvement of babysitters and others.
Over the last several months, ARMS has become concerned about the number of
Amber Plan activations. Several police representatives have voiced concern as well.
If the plan continues to be activated in an environment of being "safe rather than
sorry", public and police confidence in the plan will suffer. Candidly, the media and
police roust work together to ensure that does not happen. Although each case has
its own set of circumstances, police must follow the abduction criteria as closely as
possible. On the other hand, the media and the public must understand the
pressures and time constraints law enforcement encounter when a child is reported
missing.
After weeks of discussion, a special committee made up of police and broadcast
representatives has come up with new guidelines for activation of the Amber Plan.
For police to activate the Amber Plan, two criteria must be met:
1. The child should be 15 years of age or younger, or with a proven
mental or physical disability, and
2. Police must believe the child is in danger of serious bodily harm or
death.
If both criteria are not met, the Amber Plan should not be activated. From the
beginning, both police and broadcasters have agreed that the plan should not be
used for runaways. Also, while each case must be judged individually, most "child
custody" situations do not meet the criteria.
2
ARMS /Police Activation Review Committee
To ensure that these new guidelines are given proper consideration, Law
Enforcement formed a committee made up of police representatives. The
committee reviews the circumstances surrounding each Amber Plan activation.
If a police department continually disregards the criteria, ARMS will instruct
broadcasters not to honor that agency's activation requests.
Local & National Amber Plan Activities
In the last few months, in part due to extensive media coverage about the
successful recovery of area children (including NPR and the Fox Network's
"America's Most Wanted "), ARMS has received calls from people interested in
starting similar activation programs in their communities.
ARMS representatives met with members of Congress and the National Association
of Broadcasters and gave them an Amber Plan overview. Meanwhile, in Dallas /Fort
Worth, the Association plans to develop an Amber Plan brochure. When completed,
the brochure will be made available to school and neighborhood groups to further
community knowledge and understanding of the plan's activation guidelines and
procedures.
For more information:
Media Involvement Contact, Steve Mace (214) 521 -8111
Law Enforcement Contact, Sgt. Mike Simonds (817) 459 -5318
! jil • ►.
Dallas /Fort Worth, Texas
POLICE DEPARTMENT PROCEDURAL LIST
SETTING UP YOUR SYSTEM:
1. Incorporate the standardized form (attached) into your department's child
abduction protocol. The form may be recreated or simply photocopy the
sample form onto the department's letterhead.
2. Provide confidential fax numbers (below) to Officer(s) who will coordinate
communication with radio stations. If you prefer, preprogram the fax
numbers into your department's fax machine for easy reference in the future.
3. Distribute a test fax to the two radio stations to confirm the system is in
place. Be sure to indicate on the standardized form that your department is
conducting a test. Request the two primary radio stations conduct a call back
to your department.
UPON CONFIRMATION OF A CHILD ABDUCTION IN YOUR AREA:
1. Determine and prepare information for public distribution.
2. Designate department contact for radio stations. Include name and phone
number on standardized form.
3. Fax the document to:
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LG_
4. The two radio stations will immediately call your department to confirm the
information. Upon confirmation, the radio stations will immediately proceed
with distributing the information to the other participating radio stations.
5. Subsequent updates from your department can be provided to KRLD and
WBAP at your discretion. Upon closure of the child abduction case,
distribute a final bulletin to the two primary radio stations.
6. If you should have any difficulties or do not receive a call back from both
stations, you may call: KRLD -AM and /or WBAP -AM.
4
t • 11 942
TO: KRLD -AM
MESSAGE:
We have confirmed a child abduction in our city. Please
broadcast the following information:
POLICE DEPARTMENT'S CONTACT NAME AND PHONE NUMBER
FOR VERIFICATION:
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