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Oregon Road Conditions & Cams Email Story to a Friend November 11, 2005 New system helps track missing persons By SARAH LEMON Mail Tribune Local police looking for missing children now can quickly notify entire neighborhoods with an automated telephone system new to the county. Jackson County officials Wednesday launched their participation in A Child Is Missing Alert, a free service credited over the past four years with returning 125 missing children to their homes in more than a dozen states. Jackson County is the first county to participate in Oregon. "We decided to do it because it fills in the gap in the Amber Alert system," said Sheriff Mike Winters. Unlike Amber Alert, which uses emergency broadcast messages, A Child Is Missing phones residences and businesses in the immediate area where a child was last seen. Winters said the new service can be more widely used than Amber Alert, typically activated only in confirmed cases of child abduction. The phone service also can be employed in cases of missing college students, Alzheimer’s sufferers and physically and mentally challenged individuals. The nonprofit organization says it has placed more than 11 million phone calls since it was formed in 1997. Advertisement Used in 35 states, the program is funded by a federal Department of Justice grant and corporate and police sponsors, said Marlin Price, the organization’s law enforcement liaison. Ten local law enforcement agencies attended a Wednesday training session on the system. Police responding to a report of a missing person will provide A Child Is Missing Alert with the individual’s name, address and description and other pertinent information. The organization connects via the Internet to an emergency communication network that includes every residential and business phone number listed in the country, Price said. The database is updated four times a year, he added. Representatives for A Child Is Missing say they can place up to 1,000 calls a minute. Recipients who pick up the phone listen to the message 98 percent of the time, they say. In situations that also warrant the more widespread Amber Alert, sheriff’s deputies can take descriptions over the phone and immediately call A Child Is Missing, Winters said. Under less serious circumstances, deputies will wait until they respond in person to take the report. Information then can be transferred to A Child is Missing within approximately 30 minutes, the sheriff added. "We all know that the first three hours is the critical time to find missing kids," Winters said. Although local police take reports of missing persons on a monthly basis, few cases remain unsolved. Only three children countywide are listed with the state’s clearinghouse. Kaelin Glazier — reported endangered and missing from Ruch in 1996 — was the last to disappear. Reach reporter Sarah Lemon at 776-4487, or e-mail New system helps track missing persons ">[email protected] . Jackson County’s missing children: Christie Lynn Farni — Missing under suspicious circumstances since Dec. 14, 1978. She was almost 7 years old when last seen walking to school in Medford. She has pierced ears and a burn scar on her chest. Call Medford Police Department, 770-4783, with any information. Kaelin Rose Glazier — Missing under suspicious circumstances since Nov. 6, 1996. The 15-year-old was last seen in Ruch near Haven Road and Highway 238. She was wearing a long-sleeved green sweater and tan corduroy pants. She has a small scar below her chin. Call the Jackson County Sheriff’s Department, 774-6800, with any information. Edward Chester Nye — Disappeared June 22, 1978, near Prospect. He was on a church camping trip and went off by himself to go fishing on the Middle Fork of the Rogue River. The 14-year- old was wearing brown jeans, a yellow shirt and tennis shoes. Call the sheriff’s department, 774-6800, with any information. Mail Tribune Home | Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life | Opinion AP News | Archives | Site Map | Community | Classified Copyright © 1997-2005 Mail Tribune, Inc. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions | Website Feedback www.bingo.com Home Security Systems Trunks, Footlocker dvd-r Distance Education Computer Security Ztech Media Hosting Sports Equipment Online Casino Salvia Divinorum Student Loans tcg student loan consolidation Online Pharmacy Online Casino Reviews Myspace Home Equity Loans Windermere Van Vleet Rogue Valley Travel Discount Hotel Reservations Southern Oregon Loans Online Casino News Casino Gambling Sites Budget Website Templates Online Bingo Entertainment Guide Advertisement s