Amber Hagerman’s Story: A Texas Tragedy That Led to The Creation of AMBER Alerts

Nearly 30 years ago, in January of 1996, Arlington, Texas, was the site of a tragic abduction that would change the way kidnappings are handled in Texas forever. On January 13, 1996, 9-year-old Amber Hagerman and her little brother went for a bike ride. Sadly, though, this ride ended in tragedy.

Amber and her 5-year-old brother wanted to go for a ride; they were only supposed to go around the block, but according to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, the young siblings took a detour to the parking lot of an abandoned Winn-Dixie with a "cool ramp."

Texas Tragedy That Led to The Creation of AMBER Alerts

As the tragic story goes, her brother decided to leave first; he headed back to their grandparents. It was at some point after he left that Amber was abducted. According to reports, the man was either white or Hispanic and driving a black truck. One witness said this man snatched Amber "kicking and screaming" off of her bike.

Tragically, by the time that Amber was found, she had been murdered and her body dumped in a creek at a nearby apartment complex.

Police believed that Amber was kept alive for at least a couple of days, which sparked hope that perhaps someone had seen her or her abductor at some point. However, there was no way for the public to be made aware of abductions, let alone report sightings of missing children. So, no one was even aware to be on the lookout for her.

You may have assumed, like I did for the longest time, that an "Amber Alert" had to do with the color "amber." Like a "Code Red," but that's not the case. The System that has helped save thousands of children wasn't named after a color; it was named to honor one young victim whose beautiful life was cut tragically short, but also set in motion something that has proven so important.

After all these years, Amber's killer has still not been found. Her death remains a tragic Texas mystery, and many still hold out hope will hopefully one day be solved. But because of Amber, over 1,200 children have not suffered the same fate as her to date.

According to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, a woman named Diane Simone first had the idea for what we now know as "AMBER Alerts." She realized that we needed a fast and reliable way to inform the community about child abductions. Her idea caught on, and to date, "AMBER Alerts" have helped bring thousands of children home.

Perhaps knowing the story of the "Amber" in "AMBER Alerts" might help someone who sees one not to disregard it. And who knows, maybe you knowing Amber's story might help save a life.