FCC gets thousands of complaints over Blue Alert in Texas shooting
NORTH TEXAS — North Texans understand the danger, but they are still trying to comprehend the timing of an emergency notice to cell phones about an officer's shooting in Memphis, Texas.
The Blue Alert blared through cell phones and rattled devices, startling Texans with an unplanned awakening at 5 a.m. The Texas Department of Public Safety issued the notice to find Seth Altman, wanted for the attempted capital murder of a peace officer.
"Yeah, so I was about to be up in about an hour or so," Jordan Stickler said. "Then, I heard the alert come off, and it kind of freaked me out for a second."
Stickler and many others thought the tone signaled an Amber Alert, but it was not. Brad Elmore and his wife, Audrey, have five children, including a toddler.
"This one kind of seemed louder than normal for some reason," Elmore said.
His wife was worried the noise would wake up their baby as a wave of devices started going off.
"He pretty much ignored it," Audrey Elmore said. "It went off on my phone, his phone, our watches, and then my daughter's phone, so I could hear it throughout the house."
The wee-hour disruption did not sit well with Texans, who filed complaints with the Federal Communications Commission. A spokesperson said the FCC received nearly 4,000 grievances about the Blue Alert. The agency has yet to say how it will handle the filings.
Blue Alerts have been in the law books and active in Texas since 2008. DPS sent a statement about its function.
"We would like to remind the public that Blue Alerts are urgent public safety warnings that are meant to warn people of possible danger. They are designed to speed up the apprehension of violent criminals who kill or seriously wound law enforcement officers by generating tips and leads for the investigating agencies, and therefore giving those agencies the best opportunity to apprehend a dangerous criminal," DPS said.
Some even wonder if the state should look closely at the law. North Texans said the danger and the immediacy became more of a disruption than any action they could perform for public safety.
"But the crazy part was it was eight hours away from here. So it was pretty far away which kind of made me wonder why we're getting it?" Stickler said.
Brad Elmore said the instances can make the public desensitized to the alerts. DPS said it has to implement the alert when the time calls for it.
"The Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) is responsible for administering multiple alerts as part of the Statewide Alert Program. Each of these alerts—and the criteria needed to meet them—were established by laws passed by the Texas Legislature," DPS said.
The Elmores became benefactors of those alerts. Recently, Brad Elmore's father went missing for 12 hours. DPS issued a Silver Alert. He was located.
"It may be annoying in the moment, but you know, you got to catch yourself," Elmore said. "I may need to pay attention because this is somebody's loved one that's missing. And you know, I might see a clue that can save their lives."