A big thing was made a few months ago by Qld Police regarding the introduction of Amber Alerts for missing kids. I live at Gold Coast - about 30km from where she was found and never heard anything about Tiahleigh being missing. It is usually on the local news.
12.6 Amber alerts
Definitions
For the purposes of this section:
Amber alert
means a process that involves the urgent broadcast of relevant information through the media and other
means to the public to facilitate the search for, location and the safe recovery of an abducted child or high
risk missing child.
Abducted child
means a person under the age of eighteen years who:
(a) is reasonably suspected of having been abducted or taken away by a person; and
(b) there appears to be an imminent risk of death or serious harm to them.
It is irrelevant whether the person taking the child has lawful custody of the child, or whether the person
has obtained the consent of a parent/guardian to take the child.
High risk missing child
means a person under the age of eighteen years who:
(a) is missing in concerning or suspicious circumstances; and
(b) there appears to be an imminent risk of death or serious harm to them.
Rationale for an amber alert
An amber alert is intended for time critical situations. While it can be a very important tool in helping to locate a child, it
is not always appropriate in every circumstance. The inappropriate use of amber alerts could undermine the credibility,
integrity and effectiveness of the system.
When considering the activation of an amber alert the circumstances and risk factors of each case should be appraised
on its’ own merits.
POLICY
For an alert to be issued there should be:
(i) sufficient descriptive information available to make an amber alert effective; and
(ii) reasonable grounds for believing an amber alert will assist in the location and safe recovery of the child.
See ‘Amber alert guidelines’ on the Communications Group web page on the Service Intranet for further details
https://www.police.qld.gov.au/corporatedocs/OperationalPolicies/Documents/OPM/Chapter12.pdf