What is a Blue Alert?
DALLAS - Much of Texas was awakened by a Blue Alert early Friday morning, leaving many wondering, what is a Blue Alert?
Blue Alert: Man wanted for shooting Texas police officer
A Blue Alert was issued early Friday morning for a man suspected of shooting a police officer in the Texas Panhandle.
Blue Alerts are similar to AMBER Alerts and are meant to help speed up the apprehension of violent criminals who have hurt or killed law enforcement.
In addition to phones, the alerts are also shared on TxDOT's dynamic messaging signs.
In order to issue a Blue Alert the situation must fit four criteria, according to the Texas Department of Public Safety:
- A law enforcement officer must have been killed or seriously injured by an offender.
- The investigating law enforcement agency must determine that the offender poses a serious risk or threat to the public and other law enforcement personnel.
- A detailed description of the offender's vehicle, vehicle tag, or partial tag must be available to send to the public.
- The investigating law enforcement agency of jurisdiction must recommend that the Blue Alert be activated.
Blue Alerts were created by an executive order from Texas Governor Rick Perry in 2008.