BILL ANALYSIS Ó
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THIRD READING
Bill No: AB 535
Author: Quirk (D)
Amended: 8/15/13 in Senate
Vote: 21
SENATE PUBLIC SAFETY COMMITTEE : 7-0, 6/4/13
AYES: Hancock, Anderson, Block, De León, Knight, Liu, Steinberg
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE : 7-0, 6/24/13
AYES: De León, Walters, Gaines, Hill, Lara, Padilla, Steinberg
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 76-0, 4/25/13 (Consent) - See last page for
vote
SUBJECT : Emergency Alert System
SOURCE : Alameda County Board of Supervisors
Alameda County District Attorney
DIGEST : This bill provides for the activation of the
Emergency Alert System where a law enforcement agency receives a
report that an abduction has occurred or that a child has been
taken by anyone, including, but not limited to, a custodial
parent or guardian, and additional existing circumstances exist.
Senate Floor Amendments of 8/15/13 provide for the activation of
the Emergency Alert System where a law enforcement agency
receives a report that a child abduction has occurred or that a
child has been taken by anyone, a specified.
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ANALYSIS :
Existing law:
1. Provides that if an abduction has been reported to a law
enforcement agency and the agency determines that a child, 17
years of age or younger, or an individual with a proven
mental or physical disability, has been abducted and is in
imminent danger of serious bodily injury or death, and there
is information available that, if disseminated to the general
public, could assist in the safe recovery of the victim, the
agency, through a person authorized to activate the Emergency
Alert System, shall, absent extenuating investigative needs,
request activation of the Emergency Alert System within the
appropriate local area. Law enforcement agencies shall only
request activation of the Emergency Alert System for
abduction if these requirements are met.
2. Provides that the Emergency Alert System is not intended to
be used for abductions resulting from custody disputes that
are not reasonably believed to endanger the life or physical
health of a child.
This bill provides for the activation of the Emergency Alert
System where a law enforcement agency receives a report that an
abduction has occurred or that a child has been taken by anyone,
including, but not limited to, a custodial parent or guardian,
and additional existing circumstances exist.
Background
An "Amber Alert" is issued upon the suspicion that a child was
abducted. The AMBER Alert system started in 1996 after the
abduction and murder of nine-year old Amber Hagerman from
Arlington, Texas. Dallas-Fort Worth broadcasters teamed with
local police to develop an early warning system to help find
abducted children.
"AMBER" stands for America's Missing Broadcast Emergency
Response.
The Child Alert Foundation created the first fully automated
Alert Notification System (ANS) in 1998 to notify surrounding
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communities when a child was reported missing or abducted.
By 2002, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children
(NCME) expanded its role in promoting the AMBER Alert; the
Federal Communications Commission officially endorsed the
system; and California established a state-wide AMBER Alert
system. By 2005, all 50 states had operational programs. The
US Department of Justice (US DOJ) continues to look for ways to
improve the AMBER Alert program to increase success in the
recovery of abducted children.
According to the Department of Justice (DOJ), 75% of children
who are abducted and later found murdered were killed within
three hours of being abducted. As such, quick response is
critical in the safe return of children. Since 2002, the
California Highway Patrol (CHP) has activated 205 alerts,
resulting in the safe return of 244 victims.
As noted by the author's office and the Assembly Public Safety
Committee's analysis of this bill, there have been at least two
cases where AMBER alerts have not been issued for children
believed to be at risk after having been "taken," but by a
parent with legal custody. No statewide AMBER Alert was issued
in 2005, when relatives contacted authorities with grave
concerns about Mary Alicia Driscol and her five year-old
daughter Jineva. Driscol drove her daughter from their home in
Contra Costa County to Sonoma County, where mother and daughter
ultimately were found dead in the mother's car in an apparent
murder-suicide. Although sought by local authorities, no
statewide AMBER Alert was issued in this case. The CHP
determined that because the mother had sole custody of her
daughter, an abduction could not have occurred for purposes of
issuing an AMBER Alert.
Similarly, in 2012 Christopher Maffei appeared at his former
girlfriend's home and unexpectedly took their three-year old
daughter and six-year old son. The children were safely rescued
after the boat Christopher had stolen was spotted by a fisherman
about 50 miles off the coast of Pillar Point in Half Moon Bay.
An AMBER Alert was not issued because he was a "parent with no
legal restrictions against having the children." (See San
Francisco Chronicle article, "Kids recovered after abduction,
police say.")
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FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes
Local: Yes
According to the Senate Appropriations Committee, potential
annual costs in the range of $45,000 to $90,000 (Special Fund*)
to the extent the provisions of this bill result in addition
AMBER alerts. As the provisions of this bill essentially
clarify current practice, additional costs are not estimated to
be significant.
SUPPORT : (Verified 8/19/13)
Alameda County Board of Supervisors (co-source)
Alameda County District Attorney (co-source)
California Association of Highway Patrolmen
California Police Chiefs Association
Child Abuse Prevention Center
Contra Costa County Police Chiefs Association
Crime Victims Action Alliance
Crime Victims United of California
Klaas Kids Foundation
National Association of Social Workers, California Chapter
Peace Officers Research Association of California
Polly Klaas Foundation
ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT : The author states in part:
. . . In California, AMBER Alerts are administered by the
California Highway Patrol (CHP). In conjunction with
criteria established by the DOJ, alerts are issued if the
following conditions are met:
1. Investigating law enforcement agency confirms an
abduction has occurred;
2. Victim is 17 years of age or younger, or has a mental
or physical disability;
3. Victim is in imminent danger of serious injury or
death; and
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4. There is information, that if provided to the public,
could assist in the child's safe recovery.
Since 2002, CHP has activated 205 alerts, resulting in the
safe return of 244 victims.
In an intelligence brief released to the author's office by
the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), custodial
motivated abductions augment the threat to children. A
primary hindrance in recovering a child abducted by a
custodial parent is "the perception by law enforcement that
a child is not at risk in the physical custody of a parent,
even if the parent is the abductor?When a custodial child
is reported to law enforcement, the child should be
considered to be in danger, especially in cases which the
custodial parent has been reported to have previously
threatened to abduct or harm their child; are mentally
disabled; or are unemployed and are therefore financially
unstable." Further, the abduction should be taken more
seriously in instances in which the abducting parent has a
history of previous threats "to abduct or harm their child;
are mentally disabled; or are unemployed and are therefore
financially unstable."
According to the US Department of Justice, 800,000 children
are reported missing every year in the US. An estimated
200,000 are abducted by a family member. No parent ever
wants to have to report a missing child. However, when such
action is needed, quick and coordinated response by law
enforcement can help to safely return the child.
However, there is ambiguity as to whether or not an AMBER
Alert may be activated if the abduction of a child was done
by a parent or guardian. . . .
According to the DOJ, 75% of children who are abducted and
later found murdered were killed within three hours of
being abducted. As such, quick response is critical in the
safe return of children. . . .
The AMBER Alert system has been a powerful tool in helping
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law enforcement to safely and quickly recover abducted
children.
However, there is a discrepancy in current law that needs
to be addressed. There is disagreement if, all other
factors considered, an AMBER Alert can be issued if the
abductor is a parent or guardian. The relationship between
the child and the abductor should not be an inhibiting
factor if there is reason to believe that the child's life
is at risk.
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 76-0, 4/25/13
AYES: Achadjian, Alejo, Allen, Ammiano, Atkins, Bigelow, Bloom,
Blumenfield, Bocanegra, Bonilla, Bonta, Bradford, Brown,
Buchanan, Ian Calderon, Campos, Chau, Chávez, Chesbro, Conway,
Dahle, Daly, Dickinson, Donnelly, Eggman, Fong, Fox, Frazier,
Beth Gaines, Garcia, Gatto, Gomez, Gordon, Gorell, Gray,
Grove, Hagman, Hall, Harkey, Roger Hernández, Holden, Jones,
Jones-Sawyer, Levine, Linder, Logue, Maienschein, Mansoor,
Medina, Melendez, Mitchell, Morrell, Mullin, Muratsuchi,
Nestande, Olsen, Pan, Patterson, Perea, V. Manuel Pérez,
Quirk, Quirk-Silva, Rendon, Salas, Skinner, Stone, Ting,
Torres, Wagner, Waldron, Weber, Wieckowski, Wilk, Williams,
Yamada, John A. Pérez
NO VOTE RECORDED: Cooley, Lowenthal, Nazarian, Vacancy
JG:d 8/20/13 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
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