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(a) The Legislature finds that:\n(1) Public alerts can be one of the most effective strategies in combating child abductions;\n(2) Professionals in the field of child abduction and missing children agree that in the case of an abducted child, the first few hours following the abduction are critical in finding the child, and that if a child is not found within two to four hours, it is unlikely that the child will be found alive;\n(3) The rapid dissemination of information, including a description of the abducted child, details of the abduction and details of the abductor to citizens of the community and region is, in deed, critical;\n(4) When alerted to an abduction, the citizens become an extensive network of eyes and ears serving to assist law enforcement in expeditiously locating and safely recovering the child; and\n(5) The most effective method of immediate, public notification of the abduction of a child is through the broadcast media.\n(b) The Legislature declares that given the successes other jurisdictions have experienced in using broadcast media alerts to locate and safely recover abducted children quickly, it is altogether proper and within the public interest of the

he successes other jurisdictions have experienced in using broadcast media alerts to locate and safely recover abducted children quickly, it is altogether proper and within the public interest of the people of the Virgin Islands that the Government establish the Amber Alert Program in the Virgin Islands.