every 3 minutes, a child is abducted
just one of the many disturbing things i learned today while taking an online training course for my job.
also, there's this. look closely at these facts, people:
did you know that people wait an average of TWO FUCKING HOURS before reporting a child missing? just to make sure they're well and truly missing? jesus christ, people.
for the love of god, REPORT THEM MISSING AS SOON AS YOU SUSPECT THEY'RE MISSING. if it turns out they're just next door, or fell asleep under the bed, that's fine -- it's no big deal. i work for law enforcement, and i promise you that it'll be okay. what's not okay is waiting. those first hours are the most critical, and the sooner we can get help to you and get the word out to the media, the better the chances of a positive outcome.
furthermore, over 30% of witness information is gathered from people who come forward after like 48 hours (or something like that) -- people who didn't realize they were witnessing anything out of the ordinary until after they saw the story on the news or whatever. be vigilant, and pay attention. i cannot stress this enough -- if you see something that raises suspicion, do not hesitate to call 911 and report it. it's entirely possible that an abduction has occurred and either hasn't been reported yet, or is in the process of being reported. i'd much rather send an officer to check the situation and have it be a false alarm than for you not to call in and let that child slip through our fingers.
the amber alert program has helped recover almost six hundred children since its inception, and it's only getting more effective. it would be so much better if we had the information before seeing it on the news, or on a sign along the highway. how many people out there aren't even aware that there's an active amber alert?
sign up for wireless amber alerts, and get the alerts as a text message on your cell phone.
you could make all the difference in recovering a missing or abducted child.