AMBER Advocate Magazine

This issue centers on the tragic abduction and murder of 11-year-old Ashlynne Mike in May 2016, which prompts sweeping changes in how child abductions are handled in Indian Country. Her mother, Pamela Foster, shares her heartbreak and frustration over the slow response from authorities, attributing it to bureaucracy and a lack of preparedness. The tragedy leads to the passage of the AMBER Alert in Indian Country Act of 2017, which expands the alert system on Native American reservations by making tribes eligible for federal grants. In the “Faces of the AMBER Alert Network” section, Stacey Pearson from Louisiana—a third-generation law enforcement officer and manager of the Louisiana Clearinghouse for Missing and Exploited Children—describes how her work investigating unsolved murders strengthens her commitment to protecting children. Jennifer Viets from Montana, the state’s AMBER Alert Coordinator since 2012, emphasizes the importance of strong relationships with law enforcement and alert partners. A front-line story from Florida highlights the rescue of an 11-year-old girl with a history of sexual abuse, found after a citizen who saw the alert on TV discovered her banging on the windshield of an abandoned car. Internationally, U.S. and Mexican officials participate in joint training to improve cross-border abduction responses, and Lithuania hosts AMBER Alert training for ten European nations. In Ohio, “Awesome Otto,” a trained dog, provides emotional support to child abuse victims during forensic interviews and court proceedings. The issue also covers a community workshop on human trafficking in Dallas, where survivors share their experiences.

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