AMBER Alert family meets police involved in recovery
( Left to Right: Det. Lt. James Pierce [Winchester PD], Officer Frank Limoncelli [Winchester PD], Sgt. Peter MacDonnell [Winchester PD], Tpr. Stephen Buccheri [MSP], Owen Thomas, Emily Thomas, and James Thomas)

The Thomas family meets Trooper Stephen Buccheri
On March 7, 2007, at Massachusetts State Police General Headquarters, the trooper, who recovered the child that was the subject of the February 23, 2007, AMBER Alert out of Winchester, met for the first time the parents of the child.

James Thomas and Emily Thomas of Winchester, along with Emily's parents, Bill Gedraitis and Nancy Gedraitis, met the following members of the law enforcement community who assisted in the recovery of their son Owen:

 

  • Massachusetts State Police Trooper Stephen Buccheri;
  • Massachusetts State Police Trooper Nicole Morrell, Massachusetts Child AMBER Alert Plan Statewide Coordinator;
  • Detective Lieutenant James Pierce, of the Wincester Police Department
  • Sergeant Peter MacDonnell, of the Winchester Police Department
  • Officer Frank Limoncelli, of the Winchester Police Department

 

Owen Thomas in front of antique State Police cruiser
The Massachusetts Child AMBER Alert Plan is a voluntary partnership between the Massachusetts State Police, Massachusetts Chiefs of Police, Massachusetts Broadcasters Association, Mass Highway, the Massachusetts Turnpike Authority, the Massachusetts Port Authority, MEMA, the Massachusetts State Lottery Commission and the MBTA Transit Police. Many of these partners were in attendance at today's gathering. Members of the media, important partners in the success of the Massachusetts Child AMBER Alert Plan, were also in attendance.

For more information on the Massachusetts Child AMBER Alert Plan, please visit the Executive Office of Public Safety AMBER Alert website, also available under "Hot Topics" section on the Mass State Police website.

Three basic criteria must be met before the State Police will activate an AMBER Alert:

  • A child under the age of 17 years has been abducted;
  • The child is in danger of serious bodily harm, injury or death; and
  • There is enough descriptive information to believe that an AMBER Alert may help locate the child.

 

Emily Thomas with son Owen
However, when a child is abducted, numerous resources can be mobilized in an effort to locate the child even before an AMBER Alert is actually activated. Leading up to the Winchester activation, State and Winchester police were out in force actively looking for the subjects of the AMBER Alert; and investigators were developing information that would help locate the subjects.

Even if it appears that a case of a missing child does not meet the criteria for an AMBER Alert, State Police assets may still be mobilized to assist local communities in locating the child. While an extremely important resource, an AMBER Alert activation is just one of many valuable tools law enforcement may utilize to bring about the successful recovery of an abducted child. Whether or not an AMBER Alert is activated, the State Police is always available to assist when a child has been abducted.