AMBER Alert in Indian Country: Protecting Children in Tribal Communities

• NCJ Number: 253539
• Date Published: February 2020
• Length: 1 page
• Agencies: OJJDP-Sponsored
• Publication Type: Report (Technical Assistance); Report (Grant Sponsored); Program/Project Description

Annotation

This information sheet briefly describes the AMBER Alert training and technical assistance resources designed specifically for an effective response to cases of missing children in Indian Country.

Abstract

In 2006, the U.S. Justice Department's Office of Justice Programs (OJP) announced the AMBER Alert in Indian Country Initiative. Selected Tribal communities served as demonstration projects for the development and implementation of AMBER Alert resources and practices in other Tribal communities. As a result, AMBER Alert plans have been adopted in Tribal communities across the country. About 1,500 Tribal officials and community members have attended training or participated in technical assistance programs. There have been successful child recoveries in AMBER Alert or Child Abduction Recovery Team (CART) activations in Indian Country. In 2010, the U.S. Justice Department's Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) brought the Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Program to Indian Country. The ICAC assesses the extent to which Tribal youth are victims of, or at risk for, computer-facilitated sexual exploitation. Tribes are provided with hardware, software, and training to conduct investigations and prevention programs that target computer-related crimes against children. Resources are listed for the Tribal Child Abduction Plans Project, the Tribal Help Desk and Database, and Indian Country training programs.