North Dakota to launch Feather Alert for missing Indigenous people

North Dakota law enforcement will add new alerts to its emergency system starting Aug. 1, including the Feather Alert for missing Indigenous people and the Missing, Endangered Persons Alert for adults aged 18 to 65, according to the North Dakota Monitor. The updates were announced during the Government-to-Government Conference on June 5 in Bismarck.

North Dakota Highway Patrol Lt. Jenna Clawson Huibregtse said that Feather Alert emergency phone notifications will only be used in abduction cases. Websites, social media, billboards and media releases will be used in cases that don’t involve abduction or threats of bodily harm. House Bill 1535, sponsored by state Rep. Jayme Davis, created the alerts and was signed into law by Gov. Kelly Armstrong on May 2.