California’s First Ebony Alert Leads to Rescue of Missing Los Angeles Teen

The California Highway Patrol's inaugural Ebony Alert has led authorities to the whereabouts of a 17-year-old Black girl who hadn't been seen in nearly a week.

On Jan. 4, Californians received their first Ebony Alert, issued out of Long Beach.

The new emergency alert is akin to Amber Alerts (for abducted or missing children) and Silver Alerts (for missing elderly, developmentally, or cognitively impaired persons).

The Ebony Alert system was created through a new state law that took effect this year. The legislation seeks to expand public awareness of missing person cases involving the "suspicious or unexplainable disappearance of a Black woman or Black person."

With the alerts, authorities can quickly distribute information about a case via highway signs, cell phone alerts, and social media.

The Jan. 4 alert helped police locate a missing 17-year-old girl, who was last seen on Dec. 30.

Police found the girl the morning of Jan. 5, and helped return her to her parents.

State Sen. Steven Bradford, who authored the bill, said the system's early — and successful — use confirms such alerts were very much needed.

"Black children and young women go missing at disproportionately higher rates but do not receive the same level of attention as others who go missing," he said in a statement, adding police typically allocate more manpower and resources to the recovery of Caucasians.

"Rarely is an Amber Alert triggered when an African American person is missing," Bradford has said. "So, hopefully, this will bring forth the resources and media attention that's been denied."

The Ebony Alerts are intended for missing Black people between the ages of 12 and 25, specifically girls and women, though can be broadened in cases where the person is believed to be in immediate danger.

"This new law can reduce the anguish and pain that so many families experience when a loved one is missing," said Bradford.

"I'm proud that California has become the first state in the nation to prioritize the crisis of missing Black people through the passage of the Ebony Alert law."