‘Athena Alert’ heads to Texas governor, allows for faster notices on missing children

A bill that allows quicker activation of alerts when a child goes missing is headed to Texas Gov. Greg Abbott’s desk.

The bill, passed Sunday in the Senate, would let law enforcement issue alerts when a child goes missing without confirming an abduction. It was filed following the kidnapping and murder of 7-year-old Athena Strand.

A FedEx contract driver has been charged in the girl’s death. She was kidnapped outside of her father’s home near Paradise on Nov. 30, 2022, but it wasn’t until the next day, about 24 hours later, that law enforcement issued an Amber Alert, which can go out when officials believe an abduction has occurred.

“If this alert had been in place when my daughter disappeared, I have no doubt that the Wise County Sheriff’s Office would have activated it,” Athena’s mother Maitlyn Gandy said in a written statement sent by the law group representing her in a wrongful death lawsuit. “Unfortunately, their hands were tied because my daughter’s disappearance didn’t immediately meet the strict criteria for a statewide AMBER alert.

“It was a helpless feeling that I wouldn’t wish on any parent,” she continued. “My hope is that every state will follow Texas’ lead and amend the law so that no other parent has to wait when their child is missing.”

The bill would allow for activation of the alert system within a 100 mile radius of the location where the child was last seen or thought to have gone missing and in all counties adjacent to that location.

The bill was field by Rep. Lynn Stucky, a Denton Republican, after consulting with Gandy and her attorneys at Varghese Summersett, who are handing the wrongful death lawsuit against the driver, FedEx and contractor Big Topspin, according to a news release from the law group about the bill’s passing.

Rep. Tan Parker, a Flower Mound Republican, carried the bill in the Senate.

“The support for this bill has been overwhelming,” said Benson Varghese, Gandy’s attorney. “It’s a common sense bill that will save lives without creating a financial burden on taxpayers or an operational burden on law enforcement.