"Yellow Alert," A Hit-And-Run Notification System Proposed for Los Angeles, Fuels Concerns About Potential Misuse

Assemblyman Marc Gato, D-Los Angeles has proposed a bill to the State Legislature that would set up an Amber Alert like notification device for hit-and-run cases.

The 'Yellow Alert' proposed in AB 47 is similar to Colorado's Medina Alert, which was implemented into law last March. Text messages would be sent out as well as electronic signage notifications that would describe the make and model of the vehicle.

From 2007 to 2011 the LAPD reports that only 20 percent of hit-and-run cases were ever resolved.

Assemblyman Gato released a statement on Tuesday confirming his reasons behind AB 47. "I can't turn on the news without seeing yet another victim in yet another neighborhood. I think its time we say enough is enough."

Since March, Denver, CO has used their Medina Alert system 17 times resulting in 13 solved cases. Denver is serving as a case study for cities and states around the nation.

Hit-and-run cases often occur in the early hours of the morning and at high rates of speed. Both of these attributes make apprehending suspects a difficult task without the public's help.

Gato says, "The public is almost always needed to catch those who leave fellow citizens dying on the side of the road, and AB 47 will allow us to do so promptly, before the perpetrator can get away and cover up the evidence."

While Gato's AB 47 is proposed for the entire state of California, local city governments are busy introducing their own versions of the bill.

Los Angeles City Councilman Mitch Englander proposed one such bill, which asked the LAPD to look into the logistics of introducing such a program into Los Angeles.

Englander told reporters, "We need to utilize the technology we have in place today - whether it's an Amber Alert-type system, whether it's reverse 91 or a blast of text messages."

Fellow City Councilman Gil Cedillo wants to make sure that the system isn't used to wrongfully target undocumented immigrants, who may flee the scene to avoid deportation.

Cedillo told NBC reporters, "I know that in too many instances, people flee a fender bender because they know that the penalty is not simply going to be a ticket, but in fact it's going to be the separation of a family."

The earliest Los Angeles could see the implementation of the 'Yellow Alert' would be early next year. There are still feasibility and logistical issues that could cause delays in the project.