What is a Blue Alert and why did my phone just go off?
You've heard of
Silver and Amber Alerts, but what is a Blue Alert?
TEXAS, USA — As law enforcement searches for a suspect accused of
killing a Nassau Bay police sergeant, millions of Texans' phones notified them
to be on the lookout with a Blue Alert.
The
Blue Alert was launched in Texas in 2008 when then-governor Rick Perry signed
Executive Order RP-68.
It was created to let residents across the state know when an
offender who killed or seriously injured a federal, state or local law
enforcement officer in the line of duty is on the run.
According to DPS, four criteria must be met to
issue the alert:
- A
law enforcement officer must have been killed or seriously injured by an
offender.
- The
investigating law enforcement agency must determine that the offender
poses a serious risk or threat to the public and other law enforcement
personnel.
- A
detailed description of the offender's vehicle, vehicle tag, or partial
tag must be available for broadcast to the public.
- The
investigating law enforcement agency of jurisdiction must recommend activation
of the Blue Alert to the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS).
·
exas is one of the 34 states that currently has the system in
place.
·
Wednesday's alert was an effort to locate 21-year-old Tavores D.
Henderson, who is accused of killing Nassau Bay Police Sgt. Kaila Sullivan, 43,
Tuesday night.
·
While the suspect was being handcuffed, police said he was able to
get away from Sullivan and another officer, get back in his vehicle and hit
Sullivan while leaving the scene.
If
you have any information regarding Henderson's whereabouts, call (713) 222-TIPS
or the Harris County Sheriff's Office at (713) 906-9597.
0 Comments