Lawmakers in Jefferson City this week signed off on a new statewide Purple Alert, known as RJ's Law, that is designed to speed searches for people with developmental disabilities who wander and may be in immediate danger. Supporters say the alert would give families and first responders a coordinated system instead of depending on frantic neighborhood posts or scattered social media pleas. The measure is now on Gov. Mike Kehoe's desk for his consideration.
The bill would create a Purple Alert System within the Department of Public Safety to help identify and locate missing people with developmental disabilities and to set statewide policies and training for responding agencies. The language directs DPS to coordinate with the Missouri State Highway Patrol, Department of Transportation, Department of Health and Senior Services, the state lottery and local law enforcement to build a compatible alert system and crisis intervention training program by July 1, 2027. Representative Sherri Gallick offered the amendment that added the new section to the bill, according to the legislative journal: Journal of the House.
How the alert would work
Under the proposal, a Purple Alert could be activated only when a person with a developmental disability is reported missing and believed to be at immediate risk. That tightens use of the system to urgent, potentially life threatening cases rather than routine absences. The alert would push key descriptions and last known locations into local media and law enforcement channels in a way similar to the state's Blue Alert system, with the goal of quickly drawing community and first responder attention. Rep. Sherri Gallick told reporters, "he tried to get help and since the child wasn’t abducted, they had to reach out and rely on social media," a gap the bill aims to close, as reported by FOX2.
Why families pushed for the law
Families who testified before legislators described incidents of so called elopement, sudden and unexpected wandering by someone with autism or other developmental differences, and how quickly those situations can turn deadly if a child or adult moves toward water or traffic. Parents told local reporters they often had only neighbors, phone calls, social posts and frantic word of mouth to rely on while precious minutes slipped by. Those firsthand accounts from Kansas City area families helped drive lawmakers' push for a formal alert system, per KSHB.
Vote and what comes next
Roll call coverage shows the House approved the measure 137–1, with Rep. Bryant Wolfin the lone "no" vote, and lawmakers have sent the language to Gov. Kehoe for his decision, according to reporting from FOX2. If the governor signs the bill, the Department of Public Safety must issue implementing rules and set up the required crisis intervention training so the alert system can come online within the timeline laid out in the statute. Supporters say a focused Purple Alert could give families and first responders quicker tools when every minute counts.
