On Tuesday night, the Texas House Committee on Homeland Security and Public Safety unanimously passed a new bill named HB 3556, spurred by the tragic death of 7-year-old Athena Strand, according to Dallas Press News.
The bill aims to empower law enforcement officials to issue regional alerts, dubbed “Athena Alerts,” within a 100-mile radius of a child’s last known location in cases where the strict criteria for an AMBER Alert cannot be met.
In Athena’s case, law enforcement officials had initially struggled to prove that she had been abducted, a necessary condition for an AMBER Alert to be issued. HB 3556 is a response to this situation, providing law enforcement officials with a new tool to help them quickly alert the public of a missing child’s whereabouts. These regional alerts will be delivered faster to the public than AMBER Alerts when the case does not fully meet the criteria for an AMBER Alert.
State Representative Lynn Stucky, who authored the bill, believes that leveraging technology even further is necessary to save more children’s lives. He hopes that the new system will get people to pay closer attention to the messages, as they will be coming from their area, increasing engagement.
Athena Strand was killed by a FedEx delivery driver who had accidentally hit her with his vehicle while delivering a package to her home in rural Wise County. He later panicked, strangled her to death, and dumped her body in a rural area. After his capture and confession, he has since been indicted on capital murder and aggravated kidnapping charges, with prosecutors seeking the death penalty.
One of the primary issues raised by Strand’s case is that an AMBER Alert was not issued until nearly a day after she was last seen. Under HB 3556, law enforcement officials can issue a regional alert within a 100-mile radius of a child’s last known location if the criteria for an AMBER Alert have not been met.
During the committee hearing, Strand’s mother tearfully testified, along with her lawyer, Benson Varghese. Gandy emphasized the bill’s significance and expressed her hope that it can make a difference in other children’s lives. Benson echoed her sentiment, believing that the sooner law enforcement officials can send out the alert, the more likely they will find the child.
Here you can read more about the recently proposed education reform bill in Texas.
