A Silver Alert is active for a 76-year-old San Jose woman last seen just before 1:30 p.m. near Modern Ice Drive and Berryessa Road. Sandra Shelby stands 5 feet 2 inches tall, weighs 107 pounds, and was wearing a white shirt and black pants when she was last seen.
The alert was activated by the California Highway Patrol on behalf of the San Jose Police Department, according to a bulletin from CHP Alerts
. Shelby has black hair and brown eyes. Anyone who spots her is asked to call 911 immediately.
Modern Ice Drive sits within a townhouse community in San Jose's Luna Park neighborhood, according to Apartments.com. That last known location gives searchers a reference point as they try to trace her path.
Why the Case Qualifies for a Silver Alert
California's Silver Alert system, established in 2012 and codified under Government Code Section 8594.10, allows local police to request a statewide alert through the California Highway Patrol when someone 65 or older, developmentally disabled, or cognitively impaired disappears under unexplained or perilous circumstances, per the California Highway Patrol. Those requirements are outlined in the California Highway Patrol information cited above.
Penal Code Section 14215 covers individuals who are cognitively impaired, in need of medical attention, missing without a pattern of prior disappearances, or believed to be in danger, according to FindLaw. State law also addresses missing-person cases.
How the Alert Is Being Distributed
Authorities are searching for Shelby after the alert was issued. The statewide alert system itself is run around the clock out of Sacramento by CHP's Emergency Notification and Tactical Alert Center, which evaluates missing person requests from police departments statewide, the agency notes.
Santa Clara County's demographics underscore why local departments treat these searches with urgency. The county is home to roughly 440,000 adults aged 60 and older, and an estimated 12% of residents 65 and older live with Alzheimer's disease or dementia, according to the California Department of Aging. The California Department of Aging also provides Santa Clara County population projections by age for 2025 and 2040.
This is another Silver Alert Hoodline has covered involving a San Jose-area senior, following cases involving 75-year-old Fe Sulayao and 79-year-old Jose Rodriguez. Anyone with information on Sandra Shelby's whereabouts is urged to call 911 right away.
