The bad news is that over the past couple of months there have been some troubling events, of which the community should be aware. First, there have been some home burglaries. These have been occurring during the day when people are at work. The manner of entry is not sophisticated, but is effective. The burglars are going to the rear of homes and breaking out a window to gain access. The second class of event is automobile burglaries. These have shown a little more sophistication, in that the burglars are selecting the vehicles they want to break into, tagging the vehicle with post-it notes and then returning later to commit the burglary. It may even be that one or more people are doing the tagging and others are coming by later to commit the actual burglary.

The good news is that the police is aware of the situations and are taking proactive steps to prevent the criminal acts and apprehending the criminals.

There are steps, however, that we can take to lessen the chance that we will be targets of these crimes. In the case of the home burglaries what is needed is hardening of the target. This can be accomplished with some simple actions. First, make sure your alarm system is working and then follow through and actually set it when you are going to be away. You should also contact your alarm company to determine if there are upgrades you can acquire that will help make your home more secure. Another very simple action is putting locks on all gates that access the backyard. This will cause the burglars to either climb the fence or break it. Either of these actions by a thief increases the chances of someone noticing the activity and will generally cause them to move to a softer target. As for the car burglaries the most important action is to remove all valuables from the vehicle before leaving it unattended. Criminals are looking for something that is valuable and can be taken quickly. Such items may be computers, Ipods, GPS devices, etc. Another action to take is to park cars in the garage, or at least in the drive, as close to the house as possible. Entering a car on the street is much less risky than when doing so in the drive. Also you can install additional lighting outside and put motion detectors on all outdoor lighting.

Also, in cases of the car burglaries, if you notice a post-it note on your car or a neighbor’s and it appears that it is not a legitimate note, left by a friend or neighbor, notify the police.

Lastly everyone is encouraged to take notice of things happening in your own immediate neighborhoods. You are in the position to best be aware of who does and does not belong in your community. If you see something suspicious, report it!

By taking positive action ourselves, we can help ensure that these crimes are not committed in our neighborhood and we can help each other be more safe and secure.