Page 17 - EAST BlueNote March April 2018

Status of the “Blue Alert” Program

By Jeff Gray – Legislative Agent

On May 19, 2015, President Obama signed into law a measure that required instant nationwide "Blue Alerts"
to warn about threats to police officers and help track down the suspects who carry them out. The law was
named in honor of two New York City Police Detectives who were assassinated while sitting in their police
patrol car in December 2014. Their killer posted threats to law enforcement on social media before the attack.
The President and Congress realized that implementing a nationwide system will help to ensure that infor-
mation on credible threats, like those posted by the individual who killed Detectives Ramos and Liu, is widely
disseminated so that officers have advance warning, and can apprehend the criminal before he or she can do
more harm.

In response to Congress’s action, House Bill 1044 was introduced in the 2015 Session of the North Carolina
General Assembly. This bill was strongly supported by the FOP and other law enforcement groups, as well as
many others. It was ratified on July 1, 2016.

On July 11, 2016, Governor Pat McCrory signed into law the “Blue Alert Notification System.” The Blue
Alert Notification System is designed to help protect the law enforcement community by establishing a notifi-
cation process to aid in the apprehension of violent criminals who kill or cause serious bodily injury to local,
state, or federal law enforcement officers. The Blue Alert System is modeled after the AMBER and Silver
Alert systems that are currently in place in NC and the rest of the nation.

Established under the North Carolina Department of Public Safety, the Blue Alert System is a voluntary coop-
erative effort among North Carolina radio and television broadcasters, local and state law enforcement, the
Department of Transportation and the North Carolina Center for Missing Persons. The goal is to use local
radio and TV stations, electronic highway signs and lottery terminals to immediately notify citizens of the

suspected assailant, facilitating their rapid apprehension by law enforcement. By using media broadcasts and
Department of Transportation messaging signs, any Blue Alert would cover the state with information identi-
fying or giving a detailed description of the offender, the offender’s vehicle, and license plate information or
other pertinent information. In the event of a Blue Alert, a notification is sent out to law enforcement statewide
that a suspect is on the run after seriously injuring or killing another officer. It can also send out alerts to the
general public via various media outlets. The aim is to hinder the violator’s ability to flee the State and facil-
itate a swift capture thus eliminating the threat to the community and law enforcement personnel.

Currently, there are 27 states that have implemented a Blue Alert program. Fortunately - - to date - - North
Carolina has not had to implement its notification system.

All of the criteria are found in NC G.S. 143B–1023 and must be met before the NC Center for Missing Persons
will activate a Blue Alert.

 A law enforcement officer is killed or suffers serious bodily injury. Under NC G.S. 14-32.4(a), serious
bodily injury is defined as bodily injury that creates a substantial risk of death, or that causes serious
permanent disfigurement, coma, a permanent or protracted condition that causes extreme pain, or per-
manent or protracted loss or impairment of the function of any bodily member or organ, or that results
in prolonged hospitalization.

 A law enforcement agency with jurisdiction determines that the suspect poses a threat to the public and
other law enforcement personnel and possesses information that may assist in locating the suspect,
including information regarding the suspect's vehicle, complete or partial license plate information,

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