Missouri Blue Alert notification goes into effect Monday
An emergency notification system designed to alert Missouri citizens when a law enforcement officer is wounded or killed in the line of duty goes into effect Monday.
Colonel Sandra Karsten, superintendent of the Missouri State Highway Patrol, announced Friday the Blue Alert System was now operational.
The Blue Alert System, or Senate Bill 34, was signed into law July 6 by Governor Eric Greitens.
“Blue Alert is an important program that lets every law enforcement officer in the state of Missouri know that the community supports them and has their back,” Greitens said in a news release Friday. “Our police officers do dangerous work to protect all of us, and this program will help us ensure that anyone who assaults a law enforcement officer is quickly found and brought to justice.”
The law states a Blue Alert, similar to an Amber Alert, can be issued for the following reasons:
1. A law enforcement officer is killed or seriously injured in the line of duty; or
2. An officer is missing in connection with official duties; or
3. There is an imminent and credible threat to kill or seriously injure a law enforcement officer; and
4. There is actionable information known about a suspect for a public notification to be helpful to law enforcement; and
5. The law enforcement agency involved requests or approves the alert being issued.
The idea behind the alert is to quickly get suspect information out to the public.The alert will provide the public with a description of the suspect, the suspect vehicle and license plate number through the Emergency Alert System, text messages and MoDOT message boards.
You can contact your cell phone service provider to see whether the Blue Alert text messages will be available on your phone.
