Contact: Isaac Padilla
505/986.4263
Isaac.Padilla@nmlegis.gov
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Brittany Alert Passes the New Mexico Senate
Santa Fe, NM – Senate Bill 21, sponsored by Senator Jacob Candelaria (D-26-Bernalillo), unanimously passed the New Mexico Senate. The Brittany Alert, similar to the Amber Alert, creates a notification system for law enforcement when an individual with severe physical, mental or developmental disabilities is reported missing.
“The Brittany Alert is an important tool for law enforcement to help locate our state’s most vulnerable residents if they go missing,” Sen. Candelaria said. “Brittany Alert can be used by law enforcement and our communities to rapidly distribute information so we can bring the missing person home safely.”
Brittany Redford-Gonzales —a developmentally disabled 25-year-old with the intellectual capacity of an 11-year-old who went missing for 18 days—inspired Sen. Candelaria to introduce this bill. Brittany was 200 miles from home with an ex-boyfriend when authorities discovered her location. Amber Alert was unavailable to first responders because Brittney’s disappearance did not fit the narrow scope of circumstances covered by the Amber Alert system.
“There is a good chance that Brittney Redford-Gonzales would have been safely returned much sooner if Brittney Alert was in existence” Sen. Candelaria said. “The Brittney Alert is a simple and effective tool that law enforcement can use to keep vulnerable New Mexicans safe.”
The State Senate approved the Brittany Alert unanimously during the 2015 Legislative Session. The bill, however, never received a vote on the House Floor.
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