Maryland Missing Persons Alert Systems
Key information
Only Law Enforcement can request an Amber, Silver, or Purple Alert through the Maryland State Police
Only law enforcement can request an AMBER or Silver alert through the MDSP.
The Maryland Department of State Police uses several types of alerts to help protect the public and locate missing people. These alerts are used for serious situations, such as child abductions or endangered individuals, and are shared quickly with the public.
Alerts may be sent in different ways, including phone alerts, text messages, emails, social media posts, and highway message signs. State and local law enforcement work together to share this information as fast as possible.
Below is a list of alert types used in Maryland and what they mean.
AMBER Alert
When a child is reported missing, police must first determine if the case meets the criteria for an AMBER Alert. An alert is activated only when:
- Police confirm a child under 18 has been abducted
- The child is believed to be in danger of serious harm or death
- There is enough information about the child, suspect, or vehicle to help locate them.
- The child is believed to still be within the area
- The child’s information is entered into the National Crime Center (NCIC).
Only a Law Enforcement agency can request an activation of the Amber Alert System through the Maryland State Police
What happens next
- The local police contact the MDSP Headquarters Duty Office at 410-486-3101 to request activation.
- The Child Recovery Unit reviews the details and issues the alert.
- Alert information is shared through:
- The Emergency Alert System
- News broadcasters and social media
- State highway signs
- Law enforcement networks
- The public is asked to be aware and call 911 right away with any sightings.
Only law enforcement can request an AMBER Alert through the MDSP.
If your child is missing
- Act immediately
- Search your home or area thoroughly
- Immediately call 911 with your child's name, date of birth, age, height, weight, clothing description, and any other unique identifiers.
- If your child disappears in a store - notify the manager or security office then immediately call 911.
- Ask the police to enter your child into the NCIC Missing Person File.
- Call the Maryland Center for Missing and Unidentified Persons (MCMUP) 800-637-5437 for help.
Silver Alerts
The Maryland Silver Alert program, created in October 2009, alerts public safety agencies and the general public in instances of an adult, suffering cognitive impairments, such as dementia or Alzheimer's, who has been reported missing, and their disappearance poses a credible threat to the health and safety of the individual.
MDSP created a multi-tier designation for reporting alerts involving missing persons suffering cognitive impairment regardless of age.
- Tier 1: Missing person is likely traveling in a vehicle.
- Tier 2: Missing person is likely traveling on foot.
Additional criteria to for a Silver Alert includes:
There is enough descriptive information about the missing person and the vehicle for law enforcement to issue an alert, AND
The missing person suffers a cognitive impairment, including a diagnosis of Alzheimer's Disease or Dementia, AND
The missing person's disappearance poses a credible threat to the health and safety of the individual, AND
The investigating agency has already activated a local or regional alert by contacting media outlets in their jurisdiction, AND
The missing person has been entered into the National Crime Information Center (NCIC)
Steps to take
- Get help immediately. There is no waiting period to report someone missing in Maryland.
- Call friends, neighbors, and relatives to check if they’ve seen the person.
- Call 911 or go into your local police station to file a missing person report. Be sure to give their name, date of birth, age, height, weight, clothing description, and any other unique identifiers.
- Search your home thoroughly and determine if they took any possessions or had access to money.
- Do not touch their computer if you believe it may have information about their disappearance.
- After filing the initial missing person report with local police, you may call the Maryland Center for Missing and Unidentified Persons at 1-(800)-637-5437.
Only law enforcement can request a Silver Alert through the MDSP.
Purple Alert
The MDSP Purple Alert, started in 2024, is a system to find missing adults aged 18 to 60 with cognitive, intellectual, developmental disabilities, brain injuries, or hearing impairments who are endangered and don't fit Amber or Silver Alert criteria. The alert also covers people who are deaf, hard of hearing, or may also have visual impairments. Additionally, the disappearance must pose a credible threat of immediate danger/serious bodily harm and they can only be returned safely through law enforcement.
Steps to take
- Get help immediately. There is no waiting period to report someone missing in Maryland.
- Call friends, neighbors, and relatives to check if they’ve seen the person.
- Call 911 or go into your local police station to file a missing person report. Be sure to give their name, date of birth, age, height, weight, clothing description, and any other unique identifiers.
- Search your home thoroughly and determine if they took any possessions or had access to money.
- Do not touch their computer if you believe it may have information about their disappearance.
- After filing the initial missing person report with local police, you may call the Maryland Center for Missing and Unidentified Persons at 1-(800)-637-5437.
Only law enforcement can request a Silver Alert through the MDSP.
