We heard from a woman on Facebook this week who made me realize I probably should highlight here on the blog how the lottery participates in a very important law-enforcement program here in Iowa: the state’s Amber Alert notifications.
A woman named Amber sent us this message Sunday morning on Facebook: “Yesterday during the Amber Alert, I was in a Casey’s General Store and I noticed the screen on your machines was the Amber Alert. I found this to be an amazing act from you guys! Thank you for caring enough to plaster this throughout thousands of stores across Iowa! Good job, Iowa Lottery!”
You’re welcome, Amber! And thank YOU for reaching out to us.
The lottery has been a part of the Amber Alert system here in Iowa ever since it was activated back in 2003. With lottery terminals and video display screens in about 2,400 retail locations across the state, we can really amplify the message about an Alert and hopefully get that many more eyes and ears on the case.
During an Alert here in Iowa, the lottery’s video-display screens in retail stores are reprogrammed to only display details about the case. Our regular marketing and winner messages are put on hold during an Alert so information about the case is the only thing displayed.
As quickly as possible after an Alert is activated, we’ll reprogram our screens to display the basics about the search underway, the victim, the description of the vehicle involved, and the suspect. If a photo of the victim is available, we add that to the screen as soon as we can.
We also send a message about the Amber Alert to the lottery terminal in each retail location. Clerks in the store can then print out the message to help spread the word about the Alert.
The state’s latest Amber Alert was issued Saturday afternoon when a 9-year-old girl was abducted in Solon in eastern Iowa. We were able to distribute details about the Alert within about 20 minutes of it being issued, and added a photo of the abducted girl to our display screens a little while later.
The search thankfully ended Sunday morning when the girl was found safe. Her stepfather was later taken into custody in Davenport and charged in the case.
We’re glad to be a part of the Amber Alert system to help spread the word about abducted children. We know that time is always of the essence, and every little bit helps.
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