Arizona Governor Katie Hobbs Signs “Emily’s Law” After Death of San Carlos Apache Teen Emily Pike

Arizona Governor Katie Hobbs Signs “Emily’s Law” After Death of San Carlos Apache Teen Emily Pike.

Governor Katie Hobbs on Tuesday signed “Emily’s Law,” a measure that establishes a new Turquoise Alert system aimed at helping locate missing Native Americans across the state.

The legislation comes in the wake of a tragedy that shook the San Carlos Apache Tribe and reverberated far beyond.

In late January, 14-year-old Emily Pike, a member of the San Carlos Apache Tribe, disappeared from a state-licensed group home in Mesa.

For more than a week, her absence went unreported to her family. By the time her mother was notified, critical hours had already been lost.

Several weeks later, Emily’s body was discovered in a desolate stretch of desert near Globe, over 100 miles from where she was last seen.

Emily’s death and the delay in recognizing she was missing, sparked outrage, grief, and renewed scrutiny of how Arizona responds when Indigenous children vanish.

The silence surrounding her disappearance struck a painful chord in tribal communities long accustomed to systemic indifference.

State lawmakers responded by passing a bill aimed at preventing future tragedies.

The measure, now known as Emily’s Law – won unanimous approval in both chambers and establishes a Turquoise Alert system to help locate missing Indigenous people across the state.

What Is the Turquoise Alert?

Modeled after AMBER and Silver Alerts, the Turquoise Alert will be activated when a Native American under the age of 65 is reported missing under suspicious or dangerous circumstances. The goal: to mobilize law enforcement and the public quickly, before precious time is lost.

Arizona is now one of several states to introduce an alert system specifically for missing Indigenous people.

Others, like New Mexico and North Dakota, have implemented similar systems named after culturally significant items or symbols.

Advocates say the name “Turquoise” was chosen for its spiritual and cultural resonance within Native communities.

A Law Rooted in Loss

For years, Indigenous leaders have called attention to the disproportionately high number of Native people who vanish with little media coverage or urgency from authorities.

According to the Urban Indian Health Institute, Arizona ranks among the top states for missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls.

Emily’s case laid bare just how broken the system can be. Not only did it take days before anyone notified her family she was missing, but advocates say the response lacked urgency from the start.

Governor Hobbs, flanked by tribal elders and lawmakers at the bill signing, said the new law is a commitment to do better. “Emily should be alive today,” she said. “This law is for her. And for every child like her who never got the attention they deserved.”

Scrutiny of Group Homes

The fallout from Emily’s death isn’t limited to the alert system. Lawmakers are also reviewing oversight of state-licensed group homes after reports that other Indigenous children in state care have also gone missing without immediate notification to families or authorities.

In the case of Emily Pike, the delay in reporting her disappearance may have cost investigators crucial time.

By the time her body was found, weeks had passed and with them, much of the evidence that might have led to her killer.

The FBI and the San Carlos Apache Tribe have each offered $75,000 rewards for information that leads to an arrest and conviction.

So far, no one has been charged in Emily’s death.

For Native families across Arizona, Emily’s Law is being seen as a small but meaningful victory, a sign that their voices are finally being heard.

“This bill doesn’t bring Emily back,” said one tribal advocate outside the Capitol, holding a photo of the teenager. “But maybe it brings the next child home.”

Arizona Governor Katie Hobbs Signs “Emily’s Law” After Death of San Carlos Apache Teen Emily Pike