More Than 60K Sign Petition To Create 'Lily Alert' After Girl's Death

CHIPPEWA FALLS, WI — More than 60,000 people have signed a petition to a state legislator calling for the creation of a new emergency alert system for missing children, after a 10-year-old girl's body was found in Chippewa Falls on Monday.

Iliana "Lily" Peters went missing when walking home from her aunt's house on Sunday night, the Chippewa Falls Police Department said. Her body was found in a wooded area near a walking trail around 9:15 a.m. Monday, and police arrested a teenager in connection with her death.

A "Lily Alert" would create an emergency alert system for missing children when their disappearance doesn't meet the criteria for an Amber alert, petition organizer Eric Henry said on the petition's webpage.

"We need something more," Henry said. "Any parent would agree that when a child is missing even for a short amount of time and they need help, then help should be sent."

The community rallied to start a group to search for the missing child, Henry said. The alert system would have fewer regulations for a quicker response time, he added.

For an Amber alert to be sent out, law enforcement has to confirm that the child was abducted, the child must be at risk of serious injury or death, there must be an adequate description of the child and the child must be under 17, according to guidelines from the U.S. Department of Justice.

The petition had reached 63,357 signatures toward its 75,000 signature goal as of 3:09 p.m. Thursday, the petition website showed. The petition will be sent to State Senator Kathy Bernier.

Police said Peters knew the teen accused of killing her. The 14-year-old boy was arrested Tuesday and faces charges of first-degree intentional homicide, first-degree sexual assault, and first-degree sexual assault of a child under age 13 resulting in great bodily harm.

See Also: Boy Sexually Assaulted Lily Peters, 10, After Killing Her: Prosecutor