Mississauga supports changes to Ontario’s Amber Alert system

By

Published July 8, 2022 at 5:21 pm

amber alert
Photo by Tony Webster/Wikimedia Commons

The tragic death of an 11-year-old autistic boy has Mississauga resident Kaye Hamilton fearing for her own child.

Hamilton’s three-year-old son was diagnosed with autism in October 2021, she told Mississauga Council on July 6. Council heard Hamilton speak before considering a motion to support changes to the Amber Alert.

“Prior to the diagnosis journey, I had no experience with the autistic community,” Hamilton said.

But since then she has been welcomed and supported within that community. And she felt compelled to speak out in support of a call for changes to Ontario’s Amber Alert system.

An alert system may have saved 11-year-old Draven Graham who died in Lindsay. He was found in the Scugog River on June 13, about 24 hours after he was reported missing.

“My family and the autistic community were deeply saddened by the tragic loss of Draven Graham…I heard many people wonder why an Amber Alert had not been issued,” Hamilton said.

Right now, the Amber Alert is used when a child is abducted.

An online petition launched in the days following the boy’s death is calling for a “Draven Alert” system.

“We’re all wondering why a similar system is not in place for our vulnerable and special needs children when they go missing and our risk of danger, injury or death,” Hamilton said.

Like many children with autism, Hamilton said her son is considered “a flight risk.”

“There is nothing more terrifying than the idea of losing your child,” she said.

Also, like Draven, her son may not be able to call for help.

“My son has limited verbal skills, he is not able to communicate when he is sick or hurt if something is wrong, or what many of his needs are,” she said.

Mississauga councillors unanimously supported a motion to call on the Ontario Minister of the Solicitor General and OPP commissioner, and the Premier’s office, to make necessary changes to the system and create a new alert, the “Draven Alert.”

insauga's Editorial Standards and Policies advertising