What is a Purple Alert - meaning after non-verbal autistic woman went missing in Cranston, Rhode Island
A Purple Alert bill was passed in Rhode Island after a non-verbal autistic woman went missing in Cranston.
The Rhode Island Senate passed the Purple Alert bill on Monday. The bill will create a system to help find missing adults with serious disabilities whose health and safety is at risk.
Lawmakers proposed the bill after non-verbal autistic woman went missing in Cranston. Linda Delomba was found alive, but advocates said an alert system may have helped find her faster.
She was found inside a parked vehicle after multiple days of searching. “Our recent experience in Cranston showed clearly that we need an alert program that is tailored to the specific needs of adults with more serious disabilities in our community who rely on caregivers in their daily lives,” Rhode Island State Senator and Cranston Police Major Todd Patalano said.
It would be similar to existing silver and amber alerts to help locate a missing adult with disabilities. The bill still needs approval from Gov. Dan McKee.
“An alert catches people’s attention and prompts action. It gives urgency to a situation and when the community reacts quicker and takes the missing person alert seriously more people will be found sooner,” Autism Project Executive Director Joanne Quinn said. She added: “It’s also critical to pair the alert with training of public safety personnel on how to engage best with members of the autistic community and other people with disabilities so they may answer the call out and not fear the people working to help them.” The legislation would require the Rhode Island Department of Emergency Management Agency to review the policies of the alert every year, and provide trainings to all agencies involved.
A Purple Alert is a system used to help locate and safeguard missing adults with mental, cognitive, intellectual, or developmental disabilities. It's a standardized and coordinated community response but focused on a specific population at risk. Purple Alerts aim to engage the public in the search and provide a coordinated response to increase the chances of a missing person's safe return.