URGENT CRIME WATCH COMMITTEE AREA ALERT
from the
MEADOWS
NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION
972-282-8073
THIS IS
NOT ADVERTISING OR JUNK
MAIL! PLEASE READ THE INFORMATION THAT
FOLLOWS:
Due to the number
of reports of criminal activities in and around local residences in recent months, the Meadows Neighborhood Association is fully
activating the Crime Watch Committee (“CW”). (URGENT CRIME WARINGS: see next page, “Criminal Activities Reports”)
WHO WE ARE: The Crime Watch Committee is composed of
volunteer residents from each block, and two volunteer co-coordinators, Julie
Montillaro and me, Joanne Aronoff.
WHAT WE DO: The
primary purpose of CW is to promote neighborhood safety through a crime prevention
information and communication system within the Meadows neighborhood. CW works for ALL residents, whether or
not the household subscribes to any security services of First Watch.
HOW WE FUNCTION:
1. We maintain close contact with area residents, the Dallas Police North
Central Patrol Division
(we are designated as Crime Watch Area 1061),
First Watch, and adjacent neighborhoods.
2.
We now have a telephone alert system with a number (972 -282 -8073, The Meadows NA main number,
OR DIRECT TO CRIME WATCH: 972- 282-8068) . Call to hear Crime Watch bulletins with
updated information about local security issues. When URGENT CRIME ALERTS are needed, signs,
similar to “for sale” signs, will be posted at major entry ways to the
neighborhood. The phone number to access
the alerts is printed on the signs, which are purple, green and
white. Voice mail is always active,
so you can call any time to leave a message regarding questions or issues of
neighborhood security. Your call will be
acknowledged by a CW coordinator. We
suggest you call now to listen to the current message and familiarize yourself
with the system.
3.
Residents are now able to contact
CW directly by email at meadowswatch@swbell.net as well as through the Neighborhood
Association website shown at the top of this page. Please note that the site is in the process
of being updated.
4. A Neighborhood
Crime Watch newsletter will be distributed door-to-door and by email about
every two months. Please WATCH for it and READ it. Because we are just getting the CW system
fully activated, news updates may come to you more frequently for a short
time. They will contain further information
on how to use the system and how to stay in touch with the committee. Postal regulations prohibit us from putting
your newsletter in your outdoor mailbox, so it will be attached to your doorway
or tucked under the edge of your door mat or dropped in your mail slot. If you wish to receive your bulletins via
email, and have not already provided your email address to the neighborhood
association, please do so at www.themeadowsna.org
or by direct email to meadowswatch@swbell.net.
* * *
* * *
YOU CAN HELP! CW NEEDS PEOPLE POWER! Residents are already volunteering to be
part of Crime Watch, but, as yet, NOT EVERY BLOCK IS COVERED. We
need residents from a couple of households on each block who are willing and
able to do just two things: (1)
help distribute the newsletter on their respective blocks every couple of months and (2) provide input
to the co-coordinators regarding block concerns or questions having to do with
neighborhood security.
It’s NOT necessary that volunteers are
subscribers to either First Watch Alarm Monitoring or Patrol Services. NEIGHBORHOOD CRIME WATCH OPERATES IN BEHALF
OF ALL
NEIGHBORS. Volunteers can refer residents interested in
information about First Watch to me. I’ll
be happy to provide answers to questions and, if they wish, put them in touch with our First Watch
neighborhood liaison, Bud Angwin, a very personable, professional,
knowledgeable gentleman.
IF
YOU LIVE WITHIN 2 or 3 HOUSES OF THE INTERSECTIONS OF
NEED MORE INFO BEFORE DECIDING TO VOLUNTEER? FEEL FREE TO CALL ME AT 214-739-3279.
To
all volunteers, we express a BIG THANK YOU! You
are each an integral part of the success of the Crime Watch communication
system. Your efforts will help to
maintain the safety of the homes and people in our neighborhood, as well as to
enhance the property values by preserving the desirability of the area to
prospective buyers.
* *
* * *
*
CRIMINAL ACTIVITIES REPORTS: In the future, these news bulletins will
provide area crime statistics in a chart format, showing the date, block/street
and type of incident. For now, we can
provide the following list of Area 1061 criminal activities, reported by the
police and local residents in the first half of 2006: (1) residential and vehicular break-in with
theft of personal property.; (2) vehicle theft; (3) theft of property from
driveways, yards, garages; (4) trespassing by suspects attempting to avoid
police apprehension; (5)
attempted residential access based on fraudulent purposes;
(6)
vandalism; (7) DRIVEWAY ROBBERY……….CONTINUE READING:
WARNING: On
Friday, June 30 at about 1:00 a.m. a Meadows resident, driving home alone, was robbed in her
driveway.
It
was reported that she thought she had been followed to her residence. A similar incident
was recently reported in a nearby neighborhood, but, in that instance, the
victim KNEW she was being followed and tried to park and get inside her
home. She was hit in the face with a gun
and robbed. Reports of the same type are becoming more
frequent. If you think you are being followed,
drive to the nearest busy, well-lighted area.
Use your cell phone to call the
police, when it’s safe to stop your car.
No phone? Honk your car horn repeatedly and shout for
help. Familiarize yourself with area
24-hour supermarkets with big, well-lighted parking lots. First Watch Patrol subscribers can
call the office 20-30 minutes in advance (214-630-9300) and arrange for an
officer to meet them and escort them to
their residence door. MORE THINGS YOU
CAN DO TO PROTECT YOUR HOUSEHOLD:
Ø
Keep
garage doors closed, even if you’re out in the yard. If possible, use a locking mechanism at
night or when you’re away. Park inside
if possible. If not, be sure to remove
all valuable items from your vehicle, including garage door openers, toll tags,
CD’s, etc. Be sure the vehicle is
locked and the alarm system engaged if possible.
Ø
Don’t
leave yard and garden equipment, bikes, strollers, toys, etc. unattended in
open areas, even for a short time. Theft
of these items increases greatly in the summer.
Ø
Put
some interior light, a radio or TV on timers to make your home seem occupied
when on vacation, or even when away for the day or
evening. Have someone open draperies in
the day and close them in the evenings, get the paper in the morning and the
mail later in the day and remove all advertising materials from the front door.
Ø
Put
the porch lights and yard lights on timers.
Outdoor lights that are on all day announce to the world that you’re
away. Timer
devices can be screwed into light bulb sockets or wired into switches and are
readily available at hardware stores.
Ø
Put
locks on yard gates or manually operated gates to alleys.
Ø
Drive
cautiously in alleys and area streets as there are many walkers, joggers,
bicyclers, pets, children, landscapers, repair technicians and others who can
move into your path unexpectedly.
Ø
Carry
credit/debit/ATM cards, cash, ID’s in a front pocket, not in purses or
easy-to-pick pockets. Do NOT wear
expensive-looking jewelry or clothing to do routine errands….you could be
inviting somebody to follow you home. Do
errands in daylight whenever possible.
Watch for suspicious persons or vehicles in parking areas, but walk with
an air of confidence and determination.
Criminals seek out those who look easiest to target.
CRIME
PREVENTION RESOURCES: The
Neighborhood Association and the Crime Watch Committee have on-line information
“flyers” that you can download. These
contain tips that you can use to improve the security of your home, vehicles
and personal property, as well as household residents, whether they are at home or
elsewhere. You can contact me by phone,
at meadowswatch@swbell.net or go to www.themeadowsna.org to obtain these. Also, the Dallas Police Department has links
at its website to find more information.
Have a safe and happy
summer! Questions? Comments? Need more info about volunteering? Call
me at 214-739-3279 or email meadowswatch@swbell.net.
Jo
Aronoff