Ashlynee Mike Amber Alert in Indian Country Act

Floor Speech

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Mrs. TORRES. Mr. Speaker, I rise tocommend the United States Congress for taking the right step forward in helping combat the high numbers of children abduction and crime rates in Indian Country.

As a former 911 operator, I know that the AMBER Alert program has led to the rescue of countless lives across the United States--but until now, access to this critical tool has been limited for our tribal communities.

Mr. Speaker, the passage of this bill will give tribes across the United States the ability to respond quickly to child abductions and help ensure the public safety of their citizens. These precious young lives are no less valuable than any others and they deserve to be protected.

Last November, I introduced Savanna's Act as a result of the disturbing increase in murdered and missing Native American women and girls. My bill is named in honor of Savanna LaFontaine-Greywind, a 22- year-old pregnant member of the Spirit Lake Tribe who was tragically murdered.

While I am hopeful that the institution of an AMBER alert program will help bring some much needed relief to this issue, we must do more to address the gap of information sharing between tribal, local, and federal law enforcement agencies. My bill aims to do just that.

Let's keep the momentum going and finally bring full justice to our Native American neighbors.

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Source