Columbia, SC (WLTX) - Earlier this week, two children were initially reported missing in a stolen car in Columbia, police later arrested a man for making a false report.
The case had many wondering about why an Amber Alert was not issued. These alerts are designed to activate the urgency for serious child abduction cases.
Amber Alerts are not only serious, they are also difficult to activate. In 2017, 195 Amber Alerts were issued in 38 states, according to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.
Once an abduction is reported, the investigation must reveal all of the following before an alert can be issued:
- Law enforcement agency must believe that the child has been abducted
- The child must be 17 years old or younger
- Law enforcement must believe the child is in immediate danger, or serious bodily harm or death
- All other possibilities for the victim's disappearance have been ruled out
- There is sufficient information to give to the public so they can assist in the search
- The child's name and other critical data must have been entered into NCIC, the National Crime Information Center.
If any of that information cannot be determined, it does not meet the criteria to activate an alert.
For example, Columbia police did not issue an Amber Alert in regards to the missing kids Wednesday. However, they did activate other law enforcement, and it cost a pretty penny. The incident lasted more than five hours; used more than 40 Columbia police officers and civilians; and cost $5,826.68 in manpower resources.
"An Amber Alert requires some very specific information regarding the identity of the children and we were having a very difficult time getting confirmation on names, ages, where they were residing and just verifying his story," Columbia Police Chief Skip Holbrook said. "But as you would expect we have to air on the side of caution and peruse everything like it just as it is reported unless we know otherwise."
All Amber Alerts come from SLED in South Carolina. Once one has been issued, all media outlets have a responsibility to get the information out as soon as possible.The South Carolina Department of Transportation will activate traffic advisory signs throughout the state with the Amber Alert information for up to 8 hours after the alert is initiated.
Since the beginning of this year to now, there have been a total of nine false crime police reports: three of those were stolen vehicle; two felony violations and four reports of misdemeanor violations.