Torn Apart: A Mother's Call for Justice after Her Daughters' Murder
Alert mother in Washington believes swift action from an Amber Alert could have rescued her 3 children.
Losing three young lives in a heartbeat - Evelyn, 8, Paityn, 9, and Olivia Decker, 5 - has left their mother, Whitney, in a state of unimaginable grief. Officers believe their father, 32-year-old Travis Decker, is responsible for the tragedy. As the search for the suspect continues, Whitney calls for reforms to Washington state's Amber Alert system, believing it could have saved her daughters[1][2].
According to Whitney's attorney, Arianna Cozart, the mother strongly advocates for changes to the system that failed to issue an alert when her daughters went missing. "It's vital for Whitney that this gets fixed," Cozart said[1].
The bodies of the Decker sisters were discovered on Monday, several days after Whitney reported them missing. Travis Decker, their father, is now wanted on first-degree murder charges[1].
The tragedy unfolded after Whitney Decker filed a complaint with local police that her ex-husband didn't return the children following a planned visit[1][2]. The state patrol responded by issuing an Endangered Missing Persons Advisory (EMPA), but not the more widespread Amber Alert. Unlike the Amber Alert, which would send a text message to nearby cellphones, an EMPA does not have this capability[2].
Court documents reveal that Whitney Decker agreed to a parenting plan with her ex-husband in September[1]. However, he refused to sign the agreement when he became homeless[1]. The plan was contingent on Travis Decker seeking mental health treatment and participating in domestic violence counseling. According to court documents, he never complied[1].
The three girls' bodies were found zip-tied and covered with plastic bags near a remote camping area, approximately 130 miles east of Seattle[1]. It's unclear if Travis Decker is armed, but authorities have classified him as dangerous[1].
Relatives informed officials that Travis Decker has the skills to survive in the wilderness for extended periods and can go "off-grid" for months[1]. The Chelan County Sheriff's Office issued a statement advising people who own cabins in surrounding areas to secure their properties, keep their blinds open, and turn on outdoor lights. Investigators have executed search warrants on the site and Decker's devices[1].
When asked for comment, a spokesperson for the Washington State Patrol did not immediately respond[2]. Chris Loftis, the agency's director of public affairs, previously explained to NBC News that the request for an Amber Alert did not meet the strict guidelines set by the U.S. Justice Department[2]. These guidelines state that there must be reasonable grounds to believe a missing child has been abducted, and there must be a known, imminent danger of serious injury or death[2].
In this case, Travis Decker had some custodial rights, so there wasn't an immediate legal presumption that the girls had been kidnapped or that they were in danger[2]. The Washington State Patrol insisted that the EMPA issued achieved the same level of public notification as an Amber Alert would have[2].
Insight: The Demands and Challenges of Issuing an Amber Alert
The guidelines for issuing an Amber Alert in Washington state are strict to prevent unnecessary alerts that could lead to public desensitization and ensure effective use of the system when it matters most. The criteria include the absence of a runaway or abandoned child, a child in imminent danger, sufficient descriptive information, and law enforcement involvement[3][4].
In the case of the Decker family tragedy, the situation did not completely meet these criteria, with the situation mainly being a custody issue rather than an abduction, and insufficient evidence of immediate danger at the time the decision was made not to issue an Amber Alert[1][2].
Also in the News
- Man driving 132 mph tells trooper he was late for a job interview - A speeding incidents ends starkly different from the Decker family tragedy
- Judge temporarily blocks Trump effort to deny visas to Harvard students - Immigration policies affecting international students
Sources
- NBC affiliate KING of Seattle
- NBC News
- Washington State Patrol
- National Center for Missing & Exploited Children
- Despite the ongoing war-and-conflicts in Washington state's politics and general-news, such as the Decker family tragedy and the demands for Amber Alert reforms, a simple custody issue led to a preventable tragedy, leaving Whitney Decker to call for justice.
- In stark contrast, a man admitted to driving 132 mph, stating he was late for a job interview, exemplifying the discrepancy between ordinary crime-and-justice cases and the severe consequences of the failed Amber Alert system in the Decker family case.
