Neighborhood Watch

You look out for your neighbors, you call the police when you see something that looks wrong, and you have joined your Neighborhood Watch. Good for you. Now contemplate your limitations. You are not the police. Think now about how you will handle situations in your neighborhood.

Some of my long term part time jobs are doing property inspections for mortgage companies and the occasional insurance company.

The mortgage company wants to know what is happening with the property they finance. For those folks who make their payments on time, a photograph, once or twice a year, of the front of the property is sufficient.

When people fall behind on their payments, monthly visits are common.

The requirements for the photographs they want are, at a minimum, as follows.

  A street sign showing I was on the correct street.

A house number showing I was at the correct property.

          A picture of the front of the property.

         A picture of the neighborhood, i.e., a view along the street showing other homes in the neighborhood.

Some inspections require more, especially when the property is abandoned, or the lender wants to know if the property is occupied.

I have lost tract of the number of times I’ve been challenged by a local resident, or even the property occupant, with the demand, often in a belligerent tone, “What are you doing”.  The answer now, having dealt with this too many times, is, “I am about my lawful business” and saying no more.  I’ve found, trying to be “civil”, simply leads to more questions. I’m not a diplomat, and I’m not wasting my time with chest puffers and self important blowhards. In fact, what I am doing from a public street or sidewalk is none of their business. I do refrain from saying, “Look asshole, if you paid your damn mortgage on time, I wouldn’t be here”.

The point here is this. If it is not your property, the activity seems suspicious, you don’t see clear evidence of a crime being committed, and you are not a sworn or reserve police officer, keep you distance. Call 911 and be prepared to be a good witness. You are neither trained to handle crime nor are you empowered by law.

Just to show I’m not totally stupid, I have a small sheet printed up with my name, picture, picture of my vehicle(s), and license plate number(s). When I’m in an area with several locations to visit, or an area I am in regularly, I make a visit to the local police office and drop off one of my information sheets. I have extras to give to any officer who stops me as I make my rounds.

“Yes, we know who he is and what he is doing.  No laws are being broken. Thank you, though, for calling us”, is a whole lot easier on everyone.

So folks, use your head, and don’t become the next George Zimmerman.

You Are Willfully Ignorant

Story about a couple who were stranded in their Jeep. What the story doesn't tell is this: They couldn't get it into four wheel drive!

http://www.oregonlive.com/clark-county/index.ssf/2011/02/couple_who_went_missing_from_vancouver_tell_tale_of_surviving_days_in_the_snow.html

Just how stupid do you need to be? Turn off a paved road onto a dirt road. Encounter snow, then more snow. Continue on in two wheel drive.

Reminds me of a story many years ago in LOOK magazine. Man, wife and daughter, flying in mountains in winter, crashed their single engine airplane. Father decided to walk out for help. He was never found. Mother and daughter kept a diary. When the wreckage was located, the diary was recovered. They wrote the diary on the pages of an Airman's Information Manual directly over the section giving information on what to do if you crash.

I am glad the couple is safe.

Stupid is as Stupid Does - A Car Story

Is there a “Stupid” scale? Two local brothers are master repossession agents. They also do bail enforcement and are meticulous in doing their work “by the book”.

One of their repossessions had been hard to find. They were paying me to do some sleuthing to help them out. I found the debtor’s new job location and the brothers visited the employee parking lot mid morning. They got the car and, per procedure, called the local dispatch number with their information. About thirty minutes later, the brother, Boyd, driving the repossession, was pulled over and then two more police cars pulled up. Boyd realized they were doing a felony stop. He totally cooperated.

Seems the debtor had seen the car drive away. He called 911 and said he was car jacked at gun point.

Slowly the facts came out. The call to dispatch. The repossession documents. The pat down with no weapon found. When asked if he minded if the car was searched, Boyd readily agreed. A revolver was found under the drivers seat. Oops! Soon the trunk was opened and more guns were found. It wasn’t long before some were linked to recent burglaries. Drugs were found.

The car was impounded and it took Boyd a few days to get it released. Two officers drove to the debtors job site to “get a statement”. The debtor was waiting. His first words, “When do I get my car back”? Not sure of the answer, if any, but the hand cuffs and seat in the back of the police car probably was a definitive answer.

Just how stupid are you to have the police out looking for your “dirty” car?

Waste and Stupidity; Government Style (But I Repeat Myself)

Went to the Aurora, CO, Social Security Office this morning. Pleasant experience as these things go; in and out in forty minutes with task accomplished. While waiting, noticed these two hard working individuals.

Folks, every service window in this place is made of 6" clear plastic. All doors are hardened to bank standards. The building is ten blocks from a police station. Why are two armed guards needed? What is the cost? Is this standard in every Social Security office in the country?

If an armed presence is needed in these offices, why not draw from the existing staff? Extra pay, a good training program, and ARMED! Should save a lot of money.

I'm no security expert. Just as a mental exercise I formulated an assault plan. First, take out the two guards pinned in a corner sitting on their asses. Next, using a ladder brought for the purpose, lift out one of the ceiling panels and drop over the "armoured" wall.

Consider the two guards. Want to put me in hell? Make me do that kind of "work". At some level, they must understand how useless and unneeded they are.

Behavior Modification

Friends and family know about my cavalier attitude towards speed limits, traffic signals, stop signs and road conditions while going about my daily business. Take this device in the picture. The street is industrial with no sidewalks, blind driveways, or retail businesses. 35 mph should be the speed limit which is my usual velocity. Today I decided to "be legal". A good thing as local P.D. had a radar unit working the street.

My last encounter with our outstanding officers ended with me beating a stop sign ticket (for once I really was innocent). Our City Attorney said, words to effect, "That is all right, we'll get you next time"!

I willingly concede my driving behavior has been modified. My attitude? Not so much.

Lose Lips Sink Ships

Overheard a group this morning in a small town convenience store coffee bar area. They were discussing many subjects and all of us in the seating area could clearly hear their conversations. One person seemed to be in law enforcement or an allied field. This person was explaining, in great detail, the local gang situation to include gang names, the areas they claimed as turf, the type of crimes they are committing, etc. Sensitive information; not public knowledge.

The group may well have a need to know this information but I, and the other coffee drinkers, have no need to know. There was enough detail being discussed to provide useful information to the criminals being discussed. My inclination was to go over to the person talking and say, "STFU".

What I did do was take a cell phone picture of the talker. This will be sent to a relative who holds a LEO supervisory position in that county. I imagine someone will receive some intense counseling next week.