Crime In Our Neighborhood

All,

The recent burglaries and attempted B&Es on Forest Lane and nearby streets have shown us that we need to look a little harder at the concept of "people who don't belong" in our neighborhood.  It was reported that at least a couple of neighbors saw the two going up and down the streets allegedly looking for lawnmowing jobs (without so much as a lawnmower, on the morning of a school day), but didn't think to report them as potential criminals because they were both white and fairly clean cut looking (one reportedly had braces on his teeth).  The nagging suspicion was there for those folks, but they were swayed by their expectations that all criminals have a "look" about them.  While this may sometimes be the case, it isn't always so. 

I very strongly urge everyone to exercise heightened awareness when it comes to protecting our neighborhood.  We're already the victims of gang activity, muggings, shootings, armed robberies, vandalism, car theft, assaults and murder in the Camden neighborhood. 

We are the eyes and ears of our neighborhood.  We've all worked hard and put much of what we have into getting where we are.  We have to protect it, and in doing so,we extend that protection beyond our boundary streets.  Without being proactive in our approach to crime, and being complacent instead of vigilant, we're in for nothing but more trouble in both frequency and intensity.  Our police do everything they can to assist us, given their current resources, but without us to keep them aware, that service for which we pay becomes less than as useful as it has the potential of being. As our Chief of Police said to me this evening, "I don't want to hear about it (a crime) the next morning.  I want a call while the guy is still sitting on the front steps."

Please be vigilant.  If there are people on your street that you've never seen before, or who seem even the least bit suspicious to you in their manner or appearance, it's your responsibility to yourself and to us all to drop a dime on them.  Call the police, give them the information, just as soon as your suspicion is alerted.  Note the dress, age of the person(s), etc.  and get on the phone.  The very worst that can happen is that the police will stop the individual(s) and do an identity check, which is well within the law.  It may be that these persons are people that the police already know, that have committed crimes elsewhere, or could be linked to crimes that have yet to be reported on your street, just like on Forest Lane.

Lastly, I'd like each and every one of you to share my email address with your neighbors.  Ask them to email me and I'll put them on the crime report mailings and alerts, and ask them to pass my address on to their neighbors.  We can lick this.  It won't be easy or fast, but with more sharing of information and education of what is is we're up against, we can do it.

Our next Camden Neighborhood Association meeting is Thursday, October 28th.  We'll meet in the basement meeting room of Bethany Lutheran Church.  I hope to see you there.  Bring a neighbor.

Thanks for reading - I know it was a long one.

Tim

"The price of freedom is eternal vigilance."

 Thomas Jefferson