WASHINGTON, April 30 (UPI) -- President George W. Bush stood on a podium Wednesday with kidnap victim Elizabeth Smart and signed legislation that establishes the national AMBER Alert system and stiffens penalties for child abduction and sexual abuse.
"This law carries forward a fundamental responsibility of public officials at every level of government to do everything we can to protect the most vulnerable citizens from dangerous offenders who prey on them," Bush said.
The president made his remarks during a ceremony in the Rose Garden at the White House attended by the victims and families of children who had been kidnapped or killed. Also present was the family of 9-year-old Amber Hagerman, who was kidnapped and killed in 1996 while riding her bicycle in Arlington, Texas; and Jacqueline Maris and Tamara Brooks, the teenagers kidnapped in California and rescued a half-day later after their abductor waged a gunfight with police and was killed.
"In your great suffering and loss, you have found the courage to come to the defense of all children. Because of you, this critical measure is now becoming law. Because of you, children and parents you may never meet will be spared from the harm and anguish your families have known. We are honored to have you all here today," Bush said.
About 100 child advocates, law enforcement officials, congressional members, and supporters watched as Elizabeth Smart emerged from the West Wing with her parents. Smart was abducted from the bedroom of her Salt Lake City home 10 months ago. The Fox television program "America's Most Wanted" had aired the case with a description of her alleged abductor, drifter Brian David Mitchell and his wife, Wanda Barzee. Both were arrested and charged in the case.
"No child should ever have to experience the terror of abduction, or worse. No family should ever have to endure the nightmare of losing a child. Our nation grieves with every family that has suffered unbearable loss. And our nation will fight threats against our children," Bush said.
There had been speculation over whether Smart, who was reunited with her family March 12, would make a public appearance. She has been fiercely protected from the media since her return. Wearing a white print dress, with her hair pulled back into a neat ponytail, Smart stood between her mother and father with a glowing smile.
Neither Smart nor her parents spoke with reporters while at the White House, and they did not make any statements at the ceremony.
The Child Protection Act of 2003 provides for tougher penalties for sex offenders. It gives judges more discretion in extending their court-ordered supervision and includes a mandated two-strikes-then-life provision for convicted sex offenders. It abolishes the statute of limitations on child kidnapping and sex offenses.
The new law makes computer-generated child pornography illegal. Bush said that obscene images of children "no matter how they are made" incite abuse, raise the dangers to children and "will not be tolerated in America."
The measure doubles the funding to $20 million by 2005 for the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, an arm of the U.S. Department of Justice. It provides for the appointment of a national AMBER Alert coordinator who will be charged with establishing standards for activating the system.
And it also authorizes $20 million for communications systems along highways to help recover abducted children.
Rep. Martin Frost, D-Texas, said it was a long road to getting the bill approved, but that the president's action made the hard work worthwhile.
"I am extremely pleased that today the president will enact a nationwide AMBER Alert system into law," said Frost, the ranking Democrat on the House Committee on Rules.
The AMBER Alert, named for Amber Hagerman, stands for "America's Missing Broadcast Emergency Response." The system has been credited with the return of 53 missing or abducted children, according to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children in Alexandria, Va.
The summer of 2002 was known for the spate of high-profile cases including Smart; Danielle van Dam, who was found murdered in February in California after being taken from her home; and Samantha Runnion, also taken from in front of her Stanton, Calif., home and found dead a day later on a road some 50 miles away. Maris and Brooks were also kidnapped at gunpoint last summer.
