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Committee approves ‘Logan Alert’ bill after emotional presentation from sponsor
Summary
The House Public Safety Committee voted to pass HB 1155, a request bill the sponsor said was brought by a family to create a public alert named for Logan Harrell; the committee debated practical limits for an alert system and staffing needs before approving the bill 7–2.
Representative Cornwell, sponsor of House Bill 1155, told the House Public Safety Committee the measure is a request from a family in his district and asked the committee to refer to it as the “Logan Alert.”
The bill, Cornwell said, stems from the death of Logan Harrell after a high-speed pursuit that began in Missouri and ended in Rogers County. "They would like to refer to this as the Logan alert," Representative Cornwell said, describing the family’s goal of creating public awareness around similar incidents.
Members discussed the practical challenges of running a pursuit-alert system. One lawmaker with a law-enforcement background said he supported the bill’s aim but doubted the system’s practicality in a large city because of the high number of pursuits; committee members also raised the cost of staffing an alert system 24/7 to keep alerts ahead of moving pursuits. Vice Chair Turner asked whether anyone had begun discussions with potential vendors or agencies to operate such a system; Cornwell said the plan under consideration would limit alerts to longer pursuits and more densely populated areas to avoid excessive, low-value notifications.
After limited questioning, a motion of “do pass” was made and the committee recorded 7 ayes and 2 nays. The chair declared HB 1155 to have passed out of committee.
The committee record does not specify an implementing agency or an estimated fiscal cost for the alert system; staff and members noted additional planning would be required to define eligibility for alerts, staffing needs and whether existing dispatch centers could absorb the workload.
