In the entertainment world, a triple-threat is someone who can sing, dance and act. In the world of protecting children, Margie Quin is a triple threat. She is Tennessee's AMBER Alert Coordinator, Child Abduction Response Team Commander and Missing Person's Clearinghouse Director.
“I can't imagine you would ever get tired of searching for missing children,” said Quin. “If you can't devote all of your efforts to the search for a missing child you need a new line of work.”
The Reluctant Coordinator
Quin was recognized as the 2009 AMBER Alert Coordinator of the Year for her passion for finding children. However, she was a bit reluctant to become the state coordinator two years earlier because she had spent the past 18 years as a “door kicking” kind of police officer. Quin was assigned because of her expertise tracking suspects' cell phones during AMBER Alerts, a skill she picked up as a narcotics agent.
“I was excited, but it was a little intimidating because the stakes are so high,” said Quin. “The program was running successfully in Tennessee, but I'm not interested in the status quo and so I saw what I could do to make it better.”
Quin saw the CART program as a natural way to improve the AMBER Alert program. She started the first CART for the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI) and oversaw a mock child abduction scenario so the team could receive certification. Quin also heads the TBI Top 10 Most Wanted and Gang Intelligence programs and supervises agents assigned to the FBI Terrorism Task Force.
“We've had gang bangers take children at gunpoint, and we've had children taken from some of the domestic extremists. You wouldn't think all these programs would come together but they do,” said Quin.
Motivation
A Will Rogers quote spurs Quin to do even more: “Even if you are on the right track, you will get run over if you don't move.” Quin added, “That's my philosophy … while the AMBER Alert is the right track, CART is an effort to keep moving.”
Quin has been responsible for the safe recovery of more than 22 children and has helped in the recovery of missing children from other states who were believed to have come into Tennessee.
The AMBER Alert that stands out most for Quin happened before she was a coordinator. A woman shot and killed her husband and took off with their three children. Quin tracked the suspect's cell phone for 18 hours before the woman finally turned on her phone for three minutes to check voice mails. Authorities arrested the woman and recovered the children within minutes.
“You recover a child from an AMBER Alert, and you have saved a child's life,” said Quin. “Nothing is better than that. I've tracked and apprehended bank robbers and murderers, and nothing compares to saving a child.”
For the Love of Children
TBI Fusion Center Supervisor Jerri Powell nominated Quin for the 2009 award because of her impressive record but also for something hard to quantify. “What is not so easy to explain in writing is Quin's deep love for children, especially children in peril,” wrote Powell.
Quin would like to use technology to help children in peril. She wants to push out the alerts quicker and plans to provide online training for AMBER Alert, CART and missing children cases. She also wants other officers to share her concern for missing children.
“Children's issues are the most underfunded and under publicized in my mind,” said Quin. “Police departments spend more time looking for stolen weed eaters instead of missing children.”
Despite all the responsibilities, Quin still finds time at home to read, follow sports and spend time with her husband and three-year-old Josie, their adopted daughter from Guatemala. Quin said she would love to figure out a way to put a “LoJack” tracking device on Josie.
Quin described the conversation she has with her daughter whenever she leaves for work. “Where are you going, mama?” Josie will ask. “I'm going out to help children,” Quin will answer. “OK,” Josie responds. You get the sense from Quin that Josie's word of approval means more than any award.