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Local advocates pushing for Ashanti's Alert notification system in New York

Ashanti's Alert is a notification system for adults, 19-64, who might be in danger or missing. There is a push to have it enacted in New York State.

BUFFALO, N.Y. — Ashanti's Alert is a notification system for adults who might be in danger or missing. Unlike the Amber Alert which covers people up to age 18 and the Silver Alert for those over 65, Ashanti's Alert is for those in between.

The alert is named after Ashanti Billie. She was a 19-year-old college student abducted in Virginia and later found dead in North Carolina.  

Her parents pushed for this alert system. It was signed into law by President Donald Trump in 2018. Not all states, including New York, have the system in place - because they can choose not to have it and funding seems to be part of the issue.

Local advocates say it may have helped in recent cases, like when Buffalo woman Tiara Lott went missing and was eventually found dead. There was no alert for her disappearance.

"We're fighting to bring it to New York, Western New York and Buffalo, but really all over because lives can be saved everywhere," said local community activist Dominique Calhoun.

Meltony Billie, father of Ashanti said, "It's unfair to anybody to not get the visibility of one's life when they come up missing. Someone has to speak and that's what the Ashanti's alert is, that voice."

Billie added, "No one understands it until it hits your door, but when it hits your door it's a driving force."

Senator Tim Kennedy's office tells 2 On Your Side's Claudine Ewing that they are now in the process of setting up a meeting with local groups pushing for Ashanti's Alert. 

There is also a petition on Change.org.

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