Florida Purple Alert program starts July 1
Florida has multiple color alerts for different emergencies in the state.
Last year, a new system, Purple Alerts, was signed into law. A year since taking effect, the system will go active on July 1. So what does a Purple Alert do?
Under 2021’s SB 184 , a Purple Alert can be issued , under the new law, when an adult goes missing who is at least 18-years-old and has:
- A mental or cognitive disability that is not Alzheimer’s or Dementia
- An intellectual or developmental disability
- A brain injury
- Another physical, mental, or emotional disability not related to substance abuse
Purple Alerts can also be issued for adults who meet multiple of the above criteria, when their disappearance indicates a credible threat of immediate danger or serious bodily harm to himself or herself, as determined by local law enforcement.
Under the law passed last year, Purple Alerts are issued for those who cannot be returned to safety without law enforcement intervention, and who do not meet the criteria for activation of a local Silver Alert , or the Silver Alert Plan from the Florida Department of Law Enforcement.When a Purple Alert is activated, local law enforcement must notify the media and alert subscribers in their jurisdiction, or the jurisdiction where the missing individual is believe to have gone or may be located. Local agencies can also request that the Purple Alert be broadcast on lottery terminals within the geographic regions they may have gone.
From FDLE
The Florida Chiefs and Sheriffs, Florida Department of Transportation, Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles Florida Highway Patrol, Florida Department of Law Enforcement, and Florida legislators have worked in conjunction with concerned citizens and organizations to develop Florida’s Purple Alert Plan.
The Florida Purple Alert is used to assist in the location of missing adults suffering from a mental or cognitive disability that is not Alzheimer’s disease or a dementia-related disorder; an intellectual disability or a developmental disability; a brain injury; other physical, mental or emotional disabilities that are not related to substance abuse; or a combination of any of these and whose disappearance poses a credible threat of immediate danger or seriously bodily harm.
Purple Alerts engage the public in the search for the missing person and provide a standardized and coordinated community response.
For more information please visit the FDLE Missing Endangered Persons Information Clearinghouse website or contact us by phone at 1-888-356-4774.
Sign-up to receive email or text alerts when a Purple Alert is activated.
