| The House and Senate approved a nationwide, federally
subsidized AMBER Alert system that helps to rescue abducted children. The
legislation also provides for stiffer penalties on sexual offenders. The
AMBER Alert system, is already active in many states, when a child is
missing the alert will send out information about the suspected abductions
via highway signs, radio and television notices. Cleveland Democrats
Stephanie Tubbs Jones and Dennis Kucinich were the only Ohioans that voted
against the bill.
Making kids safer Making kids safer 04/14/03 A powerful tool to protect America's children was overwhelmingly approved by both houses of Congress Thursday. The measure, commonly known as the Amber alert system, will severely ratchet up federal penalties for those who kidnap and sexually abuse children. Given the rash of high-profile abductions of children over the past two years, it was inevitable that the federal government would join the list of states, including Ohio, that have adopted their own rapid response Amber alert systems. The effectiveness of the program is beyond dispute. The early warning system, which instantly broadcasts electronic emergency messages about abducted children and their captors, has been credited with helping to save the lives of a number of children since states began adopting the idea in 1996. Some critics of the measure, which sailed through both the House and the Senate, question whether the mandatory minimum sentences in the bill unduly strip discretion from judges. But that argument finds little sympathy among most Americans, who have no tolerance for those who prey on children. The pending law is designed to save the lives and dignity of the young and to punish harshly those who kidnap or abuse them. The effort will make America safer for its most vulnerable citizens. It is a fitting legacy to the memory of Amber Hagerman, the kidnapped and murdered child for whom the program is named. The House and Senate approved a nationwide, federally subsidized AMBER
Alert system that helps to rescue abducted children. The legislation also
provides for stiffer penalties on sexual offenders. The AMBER Alert system,
is already active in many states, when a child is missing the alert will
send out information about the suspected abductions via highway signs, radio
and television notices. Cleveland Democrats Stephanie Tubbs Jones and Dennis
Kucinich were the only Ohioans that voted against the bill. |