Inspired by the system in place in the United States since 1996 and in Canada since 2003, the Abduction Alert plan was implemented in France in 2006.

This device aims to massively send key information to the population so that a child who has been abducted can be found as quickly as possible. As soon as it is triggered, the Abduction Alert plan discloses specific information to find the child: age, size and appearance of the child, the clothes he was wearing the last time he was seen, the description of the possible kidnapper’s car, his typical profile…

Kidnapping alert: decision and criteria for triggering the device

It all starts with reporting the disappearance of a child to the police or the gendarmerie. Subsequently, the decision whether or not to trigger the Kidnapping Alert plan rests with the competent public prosecutor at the territorial level (he comes under the High Court, numbering 173 in France). The public prosecutor concerned by the kidnapping case takes the decision to trigger the Kidnapping Alert plan in close consultation with the investigators, and after consultation with the Ministry of Justice.

Concretely, there is four criteria necessary for triggering the Abduction Alert system :

  • it is a question of a proven kidnapping and not of a disappearance, even worrying;
  • the victim is a minor;
  • the life or physical integrity of the child is in danger;
  • the public prosecutor has information the dissemination of which can allow the location of the child and / or his abductor.

     

Despite everything, it happens that even if these four criteria are met, the public prosecutor chooses not to trigger the alert, in particular because he considers that its dissemination may endanger the life of the child. When possible, the parents of the abducted child must give their prior consent to the activation of the Abduction Alert plan.

Removal alert plan: the different elements that may appear in the message

Written by the public prosecutor himself, always in close consultation with the investigators, the alert message consists of specific elements so that the child is found as quickly as possible.

The message can thus contain:

  • identification elements : date, time and place of abduction, description of the suspect vehicle or license plate number, first name and recent photograph of the victim, photograph of the suspect;
  • a formula encouraging the population not to intervene alone, because of the potentially violent nature of the suspect and the fact that he could be armed;
  • a phone number and an email address who to contact if information is available to advance the investigation.

This message can of course be modified at any time according to the new elements available to the investigators.

Kidnapping alert plan: who is broadcasting the message?

As soon as it is drafted, the alert message is disseminated by the major ministries and sent to the media, who are required to relay it since the agreement signed in 2006 when the system was created. The message will thus be broadcast on French motorway signs, on radio and television channels that have signed the agreement.. This includes public service radio and television channels, but also non-stop radio and television channels, other private TV and radio channels, and of course AFP (Agence France Presse). The companies managing the French motorway network have also signed the agreement and therefore disseminate the Abduction Alert, just like public transport (RATP and SNCF).

Finally, it should be noted that since 2011, the social network Facebook has also been broadcasting the Abduction Alert in order to reach as many people as possible and share it en masse.

The Abduction Alert plan thus benefits from a network of more than 60 actively engaged partners, in order to guarantee the proper implementation and success of the system.

Kidnapping alert: what is the duration of the device?

The partners of the Abduction Alert system broadcasting the alert message undertake to broadcast the spot “every 15 minutes for a period of three hours”, Notes the Ministry of Justice on the site dedicated to this device.

Beyond this period, each media is free to continue broadcasting the alert, unless a specific request is made by the authorities. The alert is of course immediately raised when the child is found. However, the Ministry of Justice does not specify a minimum or maximum duration of the alert dissemination, everything is managed on a case-by-case basis. Nevertheless, history shows that the Abduction Alert plan has rarely been triggered for more than a day or two, even if the child is not found.

We can imagine that continued dissemination of the message could threaten the survival of the child, or that the information initially disseminated has become obsolete (child no longer wearing the same clothes, change of vehicle without further information, etc.), rendering the dissemination of the message useless or even dangerous.

How many Kidnapping Alerts have already been set up in France?

Since the device was created in 2006, 23 Kidnapping Alerts have been triggered in France, within the jurisdiction of 19 Courts of First Instance. In all, 28 children were involved, some alerts concerning several children. All were found, some during the broadcast of the alert message, others a few days to a few months later.

In an explanatory video (below), the Ministry of Justice recalls that to be effective, this device must remain exceptional, otherwise it would lose its effectiveness and attract less attention from the population, and must be used only when all the criteria are met.

Invited not to intervene alone and to warn the authorities, citizens can nevertheless mobilize on social networks and become essential relays of the alert, a small gesture which can however allow investigators to find the abducted child as quickly as possible.

Source and additional information:

http://www.alerte-enlevement.gouv.fr

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