Obstacles hinder effectiveness of Oklahoma's new Kasey Alert system for missing adults

OKLAHOMA CITY (KOKH) — The Kasey Alert System notifies Oklahomans of missing people ages 18-59 in the state, bridging the gap of missing people who are overlooked.

However, some people face obstacles when it comes to sending an alert. Advocates told Fox 25 that to send a Kasey Alert, a police report must be filed, but some have problems filing those reports and fail to send a Kasey Alert to make their loved one known missing.

The Kasey Alert system went into effect in November, alerting Oklahomans of missing at-risk individuals ages 18 to 59,

“We have the alert system for missing minor children and we have the alert system for, you know, our missing seniors, but we were really missing, that middle portion of individuals,” said Kayla Woody, of CPN (Citizen Potawatomi Nation) Prevention Specialist at the House of Hope.

The system is named after a 29-year-old Cherokee citizen, Kasey Russell, who went missing in 2016. Russell is just one of many missing and murdered Native Americans in Oklahoma,

“Currently in the state of Oklahoma there are over 86 missing indigenous individuals, and that's according to the NamUs system that we have,” Woody said. “This is a huge problem, not only in Oklahoma but across the country.”

The Kasey Alert system hopes to reduce the number of missing people in the state by raising awareness, but advocates say there are many obstacles that prevent the system from working as it is designed to,

“In order for someone on this list to send an alert, a police report must be filed,” Woody said. “You know, there's a majority of people who… obviously don't trust law enforcement, so they're not going to file these reports. There are individuals who go to law enforcement. 'order and try to file reports and they're denied for, you know, various reasons.

Advocates also say alerts aren't as accessible as they should be,

“I will say personally that I haven’t gotten any of these alerts on my phone about missing people,” Woody said. “And there's not really an easy way to look at these alerts to see who is currently missing at that time.”

Because the Kasey Alert system is still relatively new in the state, advocates hope the problems some people are facing can be quickly resolved.