Blue Alert

noun

variants or less commonly Blue alert

plural Blue Alerts also Blue alerts

US

: a widely publicized bulletin that alerts law enforcement agencies, the media, and the public to the ongoing search for a person suspected of killing, seriously wounding, or seeking to kill or seriously wound a law enforcement officer in connection with the officer's duties

A Blue Alert was issued … as officials searched for a man charged in connection with the death of a Houston-area police officer.

—Kaley Johnson

Blue Alerts can also be issued when a suspect poses an imminent and credible threat to law enforcement …

—U.S. Department of Justice

Blue alerts also are used when an officer goes missing while on duty and the circumstances around their disappearance cause concern for the officer's safety.

—Hannah Brock

compare amber alert, silver alert

Examples of Blue Alert in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The Blue Alert rattled devices just before 5 a.m. on Oct. 4 in an effort to find and arrest Seth Altman, 33, who is the subject of a manhunt over the shooting of Memphis Police Chief Rex Plant in the Texas Panhandle. —Louis Casiano, Fox News, 7 Oct. 2024

The Blue Alert program was created in 2008 and is designed to ensure that suspects are quickly apprehended. —Marley Malenfant, Austin American-Statesman, 4 Oct. 2024

When the Blue Alert for Altman went off in the early hours of Friday morning, Texans took to social media to post about it. —Saleen Martin, USA TODAY, 7 Oct. 2024

Texas authorities issued a Blue Alert early Friday morning, and a statewide manhunt has begun for a man suspected of injuring an officer, according to authorities. —Alex Driggars, USA TODAY, 4 Oct. 2024

Word History

Etymology

after amber alert, with blue alluding to the conventional color of police officers' uniforms

First Known Use

2005, in the meaning defined above