Project Coordinator, Child Abduction Response Teams (CARTs)
Derek VanLuchene is a Project Coordinator for the AMBER Alert Training and Technical Assistance Program (AATTAP) with a focus on AATTAP's Child Abduction Response Team (CART) program and continuing to expand the number of US DOJ Certified CART programs, increase the number of trained CART programs in Indian Country and assist previously-trained teams in maintaining operational capacity and readiness. Derek works closely with a talented team of CART trainers, the AATTAP CART Certification team to assess the status of CART programs across the country.
Derek brings a unique perspective to the investigation and response to child abductions. In 1987, when Derek was 17 years old, his 8 year old brother Ryan was abducted and murdered by a repeat sex offender. Ryan was taken from the family’s backyard in a rural Montana community. Since that time, Derek has devoted himself to issues of sex offender management and child abduction response.
Derek spent 18 years as a Montana Law Enforcement Officer working for both the Conrad Police Department and The Montana Division of Criminal Investigation. Currently, Derek manages Ryan United, a non-profit organization dedicated to his brother. Through Ryan United, Derek provides resources to crime victims, law enforcement, corrections officials specific to sex offender management, child abduction and community safety.
Derek has worked as an associate with FVTC and its National Criminal Justice Training Center, as well as with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, for over 10 years and has taught extensively in the CART program and other investigative courses.