Ellen Furhman of Tracy, CA, contacted me after reading one of my blog posts about using the British approach to CCTV to help keep a watchful eye on children. She and a friend are organizing “Missing Children’s Day” and may pursue some of my ideas. Here is some of what she wrote:

• “A friend of mine is organizing an event on Missing Children's Day, May 25th, in a park in Tracy. Attending will be the Polly Klass Foundation, Sandra Levy's dad, a couple of public office holders, search & rescue groups, search dogs, the police & fire departments, etc, speaking or having demonstrations (fingerprinting, dogs searching for kids throughout the day, search & rescue gear.) She will be writing to Governor Schwarzenneger and asking him to include a mention of our event when he makes a declaration about National Missing Children's Day. It is not a money-making event, just informative, and a way for Tracyites to, again, show our support to the family and friends of Sandra Cantu, and the 17 year-old boy who was recently found held captive and tortured in Tracy for a year.”

I wish them great success. Please help spread the word.

One idea I suggested to Ms. Fuhrman was finding a way to enhance the Amber Alert systems already in place with what might be called a directory or database of privately owned surveillance cameras, which owners would permit local authorities to use during an Amber Alert crisis.

Here’s how it might work:

1. Private citizens with surveillance cameras placed around their property (both residential and commercial) would voluntarily register their cameras for use in an alert.
2. Local police stations would broadcast recorded phone messages to the community during an alert (as some already do). For example, a local police department recently robo-called my house when a child was reported missing, describing the child and where he was last seen, then giving the number to call if anyone had any information.
3. When someone has a surveillance camera in the area where the child was last seen, they would contact the police and turn over relevant surveillance images.

I wonder if something like this might not already be available on toll roads and highways in some states. Currently in Illinois, roads with electronic signage display Amber Alert information about abductors’ vehicles and license plate numbers. In addition, the Illinois Dept. of Transportation (IDOT) is installing an extensive network of surveillance cameras to watch for accidents so emergency vehicles can be deployed rapidly. It should be possible to add these cameras to the Amber Alert system, too.

Let’s make little Sandra Cantu the last child we have to watch skipping happily into the off-camera arms of a monster.