America's Most Wanted Wants You to Choose Your Favorite Hero

2011 AMW All-Star Contest Now Open

America's Most Wanted, television's top crime-fighting show, is once again asking the public to give special recognition to police officers, firefighters, EMTs and other first-responders who dedicate their lives to protect and serve.

The seventh annual AMW All-Star Contest, sponsored by Sprint, kicks off today, February 2nd, with the opening of nominations. Any first-responder is eligible for nomination, and the process is simple: Go to AMW.com to fill out a short online form naming a first-responder and explain what makes this person an All-Star.

Voters will select eight weekly finalists, and each finalist will be profiled on America's Most Wanted (Saturdays, 9:00-10:00 PM ET/PT on FOX). Through online votes, the public will choose the grand-prize winner. In May, AMW Host John Walsh will present the 2011 AMW All-Star with a check for $10,000 at a ceremony in Washington DC and the winner will receive a trip to the NASCAR SPRINT Cup Series™ All-Star Challenge at the Charlotte Motor Speedway in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Nominations are open at AMW.com until noon (ET) on April 2, 2011. Members of the public may vote for their favorite first responder once a day, every day. Finalist voting runs through midnight April 10th. Grand-prize winner voting will run April 21st through May 9th.

Last year, voters selected Winston-Salem, North Carolina Officer Daniel Clark, as their AMW All-Star. When Officer Clark and his partner responded to a holdup alarm at a business, they quickly realized it was a domestic dispute. As they approached the suspect he fled down into a nearby ravine. When the officers approached the top of the ravine, the suspect turned and opened fire hitting both officers. Officer Clark, who was shot twice – including one shot to the head – quickly returned fire, stopping the suspect. Sadly, Officer Clark's partner died.

As in previous years, thousands of police officers, firefighters, EMTs and other first responders are expected to be nominated. Each nominee is a hero, but only one will become the 2011 AMW All-Star.