The Austin Police Department is investigating the death of a 19-year-old Texas A&M student who died after falling from a balcony Saturday.
Brianna Aguilera’s mother told KSAT she called Austin police when she couldn’t reach her daughter, and she said they told her they had to wait 24 hours to declare her missing.
Austin police told KSAT that because Brianna “did not meet the criteria of a missing person, a report was not generated.”
>> What we know about Texas A&M student Brianna Aguilera’s death in Austin
However, APD did not confirm whether or not they have a 24-hour missing persons protocol.
Alison Steele had to become an expert in common protocols for missing adults when her 19-year-old daughter died in 2017.
Trinity University student Caylee Mandadi died in what Steele said was a murder, though the suspect was only charged with aggravated assault.
“After she died, I had no doubt in my mind that we needed to do more to fix the ability of Texas law enforcement to find missing adults,” Steele said.
She and her husband helped create the CLEAR Alert, much like the Amber Alert for kids or Silver Alert for seniors.
“Sheriff’s offices, PDs, when they receive a request for service regarding a missing person, they conduct an initial evaluation and they determine whether or not there’s enough information and enough of a threat to contact DPS,” Steele said.
Steele said while she has limited information on Aguilera’s case in Austin, she said one thing is clear.
“They should not be using the 24-hour rule because the CLEAR Alert legislation preempted all of that. That’s not the way we do this anymore,” Steele said.
Bexar County Sheriff Javier Salazar agrees.
“Our policy says nothing about a 24-hour waiting period, my agency here at the sheriff’s office and I can tell you, having worked at the San Antonio Police Department for many years, it’s not a thing,” Salazar said.
He said there has been a common myth that there is a waiting period, even among officers themselves who Salazar said need to be brought up to speed on their agency’s code.
Salazar said when the Bexar County Sheriff’s Office gets a call for a missing person, his deputies are required to make a report and begin a search for that person.
“Even if we don’t believe they’re in grave danger,” he said.
If deputies do believe the person is in danger and the case meets the state’s criteria, local investigators can send it to the Department of Public Safety, which can then issue a CLEAR Alert.
The four pieces of criteria that need to be met in order for a CLEAR Alert to be issued are:
- Is the individual 18 to 64 years of age, whose whereabouts are unknown?
- Has a preliminary investigation verified the adult is in imminent danger of bodily injury or death or is the disappearance involuntary such as an abduction or kidnapping?
- Is the CLEAR Alert request within 72 hours of the individual’s disappearance?
- Is sufficient information available to disseminate to the public to help locate the individual, a suspect or the vehicle used in the incident?
Salazar said while meeting the criteria for a CLEAR Alert is up to his investigators, he still encourages the public to reach out.
“If you’re in doubt, call us,” Salazar said.
That’s the same advice Steele has for anyone who believes their loved one is missing or in danger.
“The more specific they can be right out of the starting block, the better it’s going to turn out,” Steele said. “I always encourage people have a Find my Friends, have a system in place so that you know where your loved ones should be.”
KSAT also reached out to SAPD directly about its missing person protocol. The department has not responded as of Tuesday afternoon.
For SAPD’s current missing persons list, click here.
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