PATRICK KENNEDY ALFORD

PATRICK KENNEDY ALFORD



Case Type: Endangered Missing
DOB: Nov 28, 2002 Sex: Male
Missing Date: Jan 22, 2010 Race: Biracial
Age Now: 7 Height: 4'8" (142 cm)
Missing City: BROOKLYN Weight: 65 lbs (29 kg)
Missing State : NY Hair Color: Black
Missing Country: United States Eye Color: Brown
Case Number: NCMC1139843
Circumstances: Patrick was last seen on January 22, 2010. He may be in or near Brooklyn, New York. Patrick was last seen wearing a red t-shirt, blue jeans, and blue and black Michael Jordan sneakers. He is biracial. Patrick is Black and Hispanic. He has a scar on his left eyelid.

NEW YORK (CBS) The search for 7-year-old missing Brooklyn Patrick Alford has grown dangerous.

Photo: Patrick Alford.

Police officers searching for the boy Sunday night found themselves in the middle of a "gang-related gunfight," according to the New York Daily News. An officer fired a single shot, but no one was hit. Three teens were arrested and two firearms were seized, according to the paper.

The shootout was just the latest drama in the 11-day search for the missing boy.

Last week, helicopters and police dogs searched nearby neighborhoods and swamps, but found nothing.

And Friday, Alford's biological mother, Jennifer Rodriguez, was jailed by a Staten Island family court judge who believes she is hiding the child from police, according to the the New York paper. She is being held in contempt of court.

Her son was placed with a foster family last month after the 23-year-old mother was arrested on theft charges.

Police say he had threatened to run away from the foster home because he wanted to be with Rodriguez. According to the New York paper, police believe the boy may have left on his own freewill and could be in danger.

The 7-year-old was last seen taking out the trash at his foster home Jan. 22, according to CBS affiliate WCBS. Alford is described as 4-foot-8 and 65 pounds, with a scar on his left eyebrow. He was last seen wearing a red t-shirt, blue jeans and black sneakers.

Anyone with information about the case is being asked to contact Crime Stoppers by calling 1-800-577-TIPS, by texting TIP577 to CRIMES, or by going to NYPDCrimeStoppers.com.

Judge throws mother of missing 7-year-old Patrick Alford in jail for allegedly hiding him
By Staten Island Advance
January 29, 2010, 11:50AM

Seven-year-old Patrick Alford has been missing since last Friday.STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- The mother of a 7-year-old boy who went missing from his Brooklyn foster home over the weekend was sent to jail yesterday by a Staten Island Family Court judge who insists she knows where the child is.


Earlier this week, police searched the Mariners Harbor area and kept tabs on a man who sources say is connected to Patrick Alford's mom, Jennifer Rodriguez. Judge Terrence McElrath insists she is hiding the child from cops and sent her to Rikers Island, the Daily News reported

Patrick was last seen about 9 p.m. last Friday, leaving the lobby of the Spring Creek development at 130 Vandalia Ave. in East New York. He had been placed with a foster mother in the apartment complex just three weeks prior. Ms. Rodriguez, 23, a former West Brighton resident, now lives in New Brighton.


She is being kept at Rikers on contempt charges until the boy turns up.

Blanca Toledo, 51, the woman's aunt, told the paper that she doesn't have the boy and has told that to police on several occasions.

The family is upset with her because she told the Administration for Children's Services about attempts Ms. Rodriguez allegedly made to "kidnap" the boy, the News reported. The boy stayed with Ms. Toledo before being place in foster care.

A tip that he might be with a relative in Baltimore also came up empty.

Patrick is described as 4 feet, 8 inches tall, 65 pounds, with a small scar over his left eyebrow. He was last seen wearing a red T-shirt, blue jeans and black sneakers.

Police are asking anyone with information on Patrick's whereabouts to call the NYPD's Crime Stoppers Hotline at 800-577-TIPS (8477). Tipsters can also visit www.nypdcrimestoppers.com, or send information via text message, by texting 274637 (CRIMES) and entering TIP577. All calls will be kept confidential, according to police officials.

http://shine.yahoo.com/channel/life/why-is-national-media-coverage-lacking-for-missing-biracial-child-patrick-kennedy-alford-969523

by Sandra Winn, on Mon Mar 1, 2010 3:52am PST



Type in the name of biracial, seven year-old Patrick Kennedy Alford, a foster child who has been missing since January, 22, 2010, into the search engines of National Media Outlets like MSNBC, FOX, CNN, and ABC and you'll soon realize that coverage by them is non-existent lacking--kudos to CBS News who ran a full feature story about Alford on their Crimesider blog (still would be nice to see it on the front page of their main news site though). Coverage on missing, white, seventeen year-old straight A student Chelsea King, on the other hand, abounds on nearly all of them.

The major news outlets have long been criticized for bringing national attention to missing white women and girls while neglecting boys and children of other ethnic groups. You may see something once in a while, but you can pretty much guarantee that there will be a missing caucasian female featured sometime through just about any given month on any or all of the major news sources-deemed by some as the MWW (Missing White Woman) of the Month.

It begs one to question, "Why is one child or persons life seen as more valuable and newsworthy than another?"

I searched online through the latest files at the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children this morning. Not all missing white children have been given national coverage; apparently if they are runaway teens or a family member is accused of abducting them it isn't newsworthy--just as it is for non-white children who are runaways or have been abducted by a family member. Yet, the media seems to have no problem posting photos and running stories about missing or runaway white brides, white wives or white mothers. What gives?

Perhaps Patrick Kennedy Alford's story didn't make the headlines because he is a foster child and his mother, 23 year-old Jennifer Rodriguez, is suspected of knowing his whereabouts. Also, there is speculation that Alford may have runaway from his foster parents because he was homesick for Rodriguez, who was jailed for theft. Still, he's seven-years old! Look at his bright eyes and warm smile, shouldn't his face be plastered on the front pages of national media outlets and given attention just like Chelsea King's photos are? Both stories are heartbreaking and I sincerely hope both are found.

In my opinion, regardless of sex or ethnicity, either news outlets should run at least one major headline on all missing children or not at all as new postings are made to the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children website. Doing otherwise puts them in the compromising position of deciding who's lives are seen as more valuable, and unfortunately, for the time being it seems missing white females are more important than anyone else.