TEXAS, USA — Cell phones across Texas buzzed shortly before 5 a.m. Friday morning after a Blue Alert was issued for a 33-year-old man who was wanted out of Memphis, Texas, in the Panhandle. The consumer complaints to the Federal Communications Commission about the alert have been coming since.
The FCC says it’s received about 4,500 consumer complaints about the Texas Blue Alert as of Monday morning.
In general, according to the FCC's website, when it receives a complaint, the agency responds either by providing relevant educational material or sending the complaint to the service provider
Seth Altman, 33, was named as the suspect, according to the Blue Alert, which seeks to help authorities find suspects who are accused in incidents involving a law enforcement officer.
Altman -- who is white and was described as 6 feet, 2 inches tall and 220 pounds with red hair and blue eyes -- was last seen on foot around 11 p.m. Thursday in the 200 block of South 4th Street in Memphis, about 90 miles southeast of Amarillo and 275 miles northwest of Dallas. Altman was seen heading toward U.S. 287, according to the alert. Altman was also listed among the 10 Most Wanted Fugitives in Texas for attempted murder of a peace officer. Texas DPS is offering a reward of up to $10,000 and says he should be considered armed and dangerous.
Many across Texas have taken issue with the timing of the alert on social media, though.
Comments on posts about the Blue Alert on Reddit, including in the Dallas subreddit, pointed users to file complaints with the FCC.
The FCC says they don’t have data on how many Texans may have their alerts turned off, but a spokesperson says, “we ask that consumers please not unsubscribe to wireless emergency alerts. They could save your life.”
Statewide AMBER and Blue Alerts are supposed to be sent between 6 a.m. and 11 p.m., including on holidays and weekends, according to the Texas Department of Public Safety’s frequently asked questions on emergency alerts, but AMBER and Blue Alerts initiated by Texas regional alert networks could differ.
The Blue Alert program was signed into law in 2008 and the criteria for the alert includes:
- A law enforcement officer must have been killed or seriously injured by an offender.
- The investigating law enforcement agency must determine that the offender poses a serious risk or threat to the public and other law enforcement personnel.
- A detailed description of the offender's vehicle, vehicle tag, or partial tag must be available for broadcast to the public.
- The investigating law enforcement agency of jurisdiction must recommend activation of the Blue Alert to the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS).
