Q&A

I have been wanting to do a Q&A post on this blog for quite some time.  Just some basic questions answered by someone who could give us great insight into keeping our homes & family safe.  I asked a great police officer & my friend, Lt. W. Merritt - who is with the West Valley Police Department.  He actually was key in helping me organize the Summit Neighborhood Watch!

• Why is an organized Neighborhood Watch helpful to the Police?

A common misconception among the public is that there are enough police officers on the streets at any given time to patrol every neighborhood. Unfortunately, this is not the case. For instance, West Valley PD has anywhere from 8-20 officers on at a time. That is quite a bit of area to cover with that small amount of manpower. Then add the calls for service that require an officer or two to respond. It isn't uncommon to have no one available to answer a new call, let alone have time to be proactive and patrol a neighborhood. We need the citizens to be our eyes during those times we can't be there. Additionally, residents in a neighborhood often recognize suspicious behavior before anyone else because they know what cars belong, which people live in the area, and what simply doesn't look right. An organized neighborhood watch is one of the best ways to do this. It doesn't require much time or effort, but it sure sends a message to those who try to victimize you or your neighbors. We have success stories all the time regarding neighborhood watch members preventing burglaries, graffiti, and sometimes even drug sales.

• What is a role of a NW resident?

The role of a neighborhood watch resident can be as much or as little as you want. In West Valley we have several residents who are retired, stay-at-home moms, and businessmen. They get together on a routine basis to "patrol" through their neighborhood looking for suspicious behavior. But involvement in a neighborhood watch can be as simple as keeping your eyes and ears open to the things going on around you. It doesn't require any special training, a large time commitment, or special knowledge. Just pay attention to what appears to be out of the ordinary and then don't be afraid to report it to your Neighborhood Watch block captain, or to the police.

• What qualifies as something “suspicious”?

Police officers are often asked, "How do I know if something isn't right?" or "When should I report something to the police?" I have heard several answers to those questions, but the best one is this: If you think something is suspicious, it is. If you see or hear something that just doesn't sit right with you, there is probably a reason for that. It never hurts to call the police to have them check something out. Sometimes what appears to be abnormal or out of place has a perfectly logical explanation. But sometimes it doesn't. A lot of "big cases" and "big arrests" start with a phone call from a concerned citizen and it isn't uncommon at all for them to feel foolish for even making the report. If something seems suspicious to you, it warrants a police response. After all, better safe than sorry!

• What should I do if I see something suspicious?

The best thing to do is call the police or report the behavior to your Neighborhood Watch Block Captain if it isn't urgent. We encourage people to keep their distance and not get involved since we never know how dangerous or volatile a situation can turn out to be. Rarely is it worth risking your safety. Instead, be a good witness. Try to gather as much information, i.e. vehicle descriptions and license plates, suspects descriptions, etc., as possible. That is what will help us find the suspects and investigate the situation.

• When should I call 911 vs the Non-Emergency 801-840-4000?

We have a non-emergency phone number that may be used in lieu of 911 that is open to the public 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. When should you call it instead of 911? When you need to report a crime that is no longer in progress and doesn't require an immediate response. For instance, you notice someone sprayed graffiti on a nearby wall. Call the non-emergency phone number. But, let's say you come home and find your neighbor's garage door open with a suspicious vehicle backed up in the driveway. Your neighbors are on vacation and no one should be in their home. Call 911. Call 911 even if the suspects leave seconds after you discover them.

If you are ever in doubt, do not be afraid to call 911. No one has ever been reprimanded for calling 911 instead of the non-emergency number....that is, except for the person who calls 911 to report the light burned out in their refrigerator. And yes, we did get that phone call once.  :-)

• Please explain why it takes an officer to respond – sometimes long after a call has been made.

Like I mentioned before, a common misconception is that there are enough police officers on duty at any given moment to patrol every neighborhood in the city or to immediately respond to a call for service. Sometimes this is the case. Unfortunately, however, it often is not. So when a call is received, it goes through a sort of triage at the dispatching center. It goes without saying that the residential burglary in progress will get answered first over the shoplifter at Wal-Mart.

Something else to consider is that many calls require at least two officers to respond. So if we have 12 officers on duty in the city, it wouldn't take much for them to all be tied up. Please do not ever think that your call isn't important to us. Sometimes we can't get to you right away because there are higher priority calls needing to be answered first. If you ever want to see how this works, come on a ride along with one of our officers. Renee accompanied me one night several years ago and I remember her saying that she had a better understanding for how the police work.

*Ride along post HERE.

• As our kids are go to school, some walk or ride their bikes. What are some tips to keep our children safe?

The absolute best deterrent to someone who wants to harm your child is to be involved. Make it known to your children and to everyone else out there that you are involved, you are aware, and you are paying attention. If you cannot walk your children to school (most parents can't) then teach them how to walk or ride safely. Make sure they know at least two different routes to and from the school and home. Try to have them travel in numbers instead of alone. Finally, it's helpful to have them walk or ride on the sidewalk opposite the flow of vehicle traffic. A vehicle cannot follow behind your child if they have to cross over into oncoming traffic.

There's no need to scare your children into thinking something bad will happen to them as they walk to and from school, but to ignore that possibility and not talk to your children about it to create a plan is doing them a disservice.

• What are the top 5 things people can do to prevent crimes in their home?

Alarm systems are a great way to protect your homes and all inside. But they are not always a plausible option for some. So here are some other things that anyone can do:

1. Make sure you keep bushes and trees trimmed back and don't allow them to cover your windows. Burglars love to hide behind overgrown foliage and feel more secure to take their time in breaking into your home.

2. Don't "advertise" large purchases by leaving the boxes out in the front yard on trash day. This is especially important during the Christmas Season. That huge box your large screen TV came in is an invitation to some to pay your house a visit later in the week when no one is there.

3. Don't tell the whole world you're leaving out of town. Be careful what you put on social media. For instance, updating your Facebook page to say, "Can't wait to leave for Vegas tomorrow! A whole week of playing and relaxation!" Yes, most of your friends will actually watch over your house, but you might have that one friend whose son sees your post. He may have other ideas for your property.

4. Be sure to stop you mail and newspapers when you are out of town. Nothing says "I'm not home" like a pile of newspapers on the front porch or an overflowing mailbox.

5. Be sure to have secure locks, doors, and windows. All doors leading into your home should be solid and have dead bolts. Windows need to be kept locked when not opened. It's amazing what a burglar can do with just a small, unlocked window.

6. I know this question asked for 5 things, but I'll just add one more: Make sure your address is displayed in a conspicuous place on your house. Faded or non-existent numbers only delay our response. Please make them large and easy to find.

Hollywood loves to glamorize police work and the way we operate. This creates a lot of misunderstanding and unreasonable expectations (as much as we want to, we can't pull a fingerprint off the surface of water or solve a murder in 43 minutes). If you are interested in knowing a bit more about what you can do as a citizen, a ride along is a perfect way to do that. Renee can give you that information.


A great big THANK YOU to Lt. Merritt for this advice!  Let's all take that extra moment & make sure our garage doors are closed (our neighbor's too), our porch lights are on & we're looking out for each other!