Close and lock your doors.

[ancient-one]

I live in a seniors independent living community that has high wrought iron fencing with electronic gate locks. About a year ago someone got in and went through a bunch of unlocked cars and took some stuff.
My car is right outside my door and it is locked every time I get out of it. Needless to say so are my dwelling doors. I don't want to assist a thief.
If I go somewhere I look around before I unlock the car and also when I come back to my car. Fighting is out of the question and I don't want to go through the hassle that would result from shooting someone. I would not hesitate if necessary.

 

[tops]

One day while mowing the yard (2-3 acres) the UPS man left a package on the porch and I didn't see him deliver. I now lock the door and set the alarm any time I'm not in the house. Larry

 

[Valmet]

Agree wholeheartedly OP. Often the simplest things can be done to deter theft or violent crime. Common sense and situational awareness is over 90% of the battle IMO.

 

[fatcat3]

As a kid the key to the front door of my parents house was rusted into the lock. It was not uncommon to come home and find friend or family had stopped by and where still there having made coffee and waiting for my parents return. I live in the same area, VARY RURAL. I keep my door locked at all times. No crime to speak of but why make it easy? I did replace that lock some years ago. I think it's a shame that our world has turned as it has, maybe we need more Hug A Thug programs in our prisons.

 

[Daniel Howe]

I'm in a odd situation where I can not leave my doors locked. I can not walk for enough to get to them to unlock them and the medics have had occasion where they need to get in. In lieu of that I have several means of self defense within arms reach. I live alone so don't need to worry about loaded guns and such things laying around.

I have learned that a good stiff credit card will get you through most any locked door knob. Invest in a good dead bolt for your doors.

 

[gwpercle]

Not long ago here in Baton Rouge a lady runs into the 7-11 to grab something, car running , keys in ignition , door unlocked with her baby in back car seat !
Guess who's car gets boosted....Luckily when the guy realizes there is a baby in the back seat he dumps the car a few blocks away at a stop sign , leaves the door open and runs away , so it's found in minutes .
Could have been bad...
People need to be tested before allowing them to have children... you must have some common sense .
Her excuse " I only ran into the store for a minute "...yeah , that makes it all good !
Gary

 

[Rivoak01]

We used to have thieves walk through the neighborhood trying car doors and front doors. My neighbor was having a small family party when a guy just walked in his front door. Saw the crowd and just turned around and walked off like nothing happened.

I failed to lock my car parked on the street once, came out and it had been rifled through. They got about $4.00 in change. They left my good jumper cables thankfully.

I own a Ford F-150. I keep it locked whenever I am not in it. On those occasions when there are guns in the truck, rifles are kept locked up in a Hornady rapid AR locker that is chained down and anchored to the chassis under the back seat. Pistols are kept in a Console vault. Then the truck itself is always locked. I also refuse to park my truck in any isolated dark area at night. Never had a problem. If my truck alarm goes off at night, and I decide to confront a thief who is breaking into my truck, I don’t have to worry about someone using my own gun against me.






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[Rivoak01]

In my city, the thug behavior du jour is kids, probably 14 to 20, that walk down the street around 1 to 2 am looking for open car doors. Then when they find them (no shortage), rifling through the car. People post multiple surveillance videos of it pretty much every day on Ring and Next Door.

It’s probably more common in “good” neighborhoods than bad.

I am sure discriminating thrives steal from good neighborhoods, or they don’t steal at all. After all, in some neighborhoods, all the good stuff has already been taken.


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[vipermd]

In Houston, Texas, you can now be charged with Capital Murder and receive a bond of $6000.00. The commiecrats are taking over!!

For what? Be Safe,

 

[vipermd]

I lock my house at night if I’m home.

Does that mean you leave it unlocked when your not home?? Be Safe,

 

[Kanewpadle]

I'm in a odd situation where I can not leave my doors locked. I can not walk for enough to get to them to unlock them and the medics have had occasion where they need to get in. In lieu of that I have several means of self defense within arms reach. I live alone so don't need to worry about loaded guns and such things laying around.

I have learned that a good stiff credit card will get you through most any locked door knob. Invest in a good dead bolt for your doors.

Sorry about your situation Dan. My dad bolted a key box on the wall next to the front door. There is a key inside the box and the paramedics have the combination. Maybe you could make the same arrangements?

 

[mikerjf]

I was sitting quietly in my car, doors unlocked, and a nice elderly lady opened the passenger door and got in. I said “hi!” and had to laugh at the confused look on her face. Then her husband knocked on the window and said “Next car, hon...”

Their identical car was in front of me.

 

[max503]

I live in a very nice neighborhood. A while back the neighbor foiled some thieves who were going through parked cars, checking for unlocked doors.

 

[gonerydin]

Does that mean you leave it unlocked when your not home?? Be Safe,

Yes. Will do. Thank you.


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[mmb617]

I don't lock my car doors when parked as I don't want the windows broken. I don't leave anything valuable in them. I drive old vehicles so probably not prime targets anyways.

I always lock my house doors at night but don't have them locked during the day when I'm home. I have two dogs that aren't about to let anybody come to the door without sounding an alarm so I'm not concerned that someone's going to get the drop on me.

I don't worry much about someone breaking into the house at night either as the dogs would know and I'm well armed. One of the dogs sleeps in the bedroom and the other usually sleeps in the dining room. It would be impossible to get by both of them without me hearing the commotion.

I don't live in a high crime area but there have been instances of home invasion once in a while. These usually involve drug users and their dealers but I realize anybody could be a target if for no other reason than mistaken identity. That's where my dogs and guns come into play. If someone were breaking down my door while the dogs were going crazy they could expect to be fired upon as soon as the door was breached.

 

[jim lock]

Being on the alert is ALWAYS important. Have friends in a high end neighborhood and considered safe. They pulled in garage and two thugs walked in and took them hostage, forced them to turn off alarm and ransacked house of all valuables, ducted taped them, loaded up their car and took off. Never caught... We can never be to careful.
Jim

 

[loknload]

My home and my vehicles when not in the garage are always locked. We live in a pretty good area but in today’s society I won’t take a chance. Kind of rural and kinda off the beaten path.
Some years ago I had a brand new lawn mower stolen from my shed while on vacation. Pulled up behind at night, must of known how to pick shed locks because the door wasn’t forced? I know the shed was locked when I left but those locks are a dime a dozen and easy picks. Now the door has a heavy hasp and a good pad lock as well. I really missed that mower too.
Several years ago a friend of mine who lives about a mile a way, his home was forced into while he was in the bathroom. He couldn’t get to his shotgun fast enough and he was face to face with one of the intruders. They got away and were never caught.
Just don’t take a chance..

 

[Smoke]

I don't live in a high crime area but there have been instances of home invasion once in a while. These usually involve drug users and their dealers but I realize anybody could be a target if for no other reason than mistaken identity. That's where my dogs and guns come into play. If someone were breaking down my door while the dogs were going crazy they could expect to be fired upon as soon as the door was breached.

Wouldn't it be better if they never got through the door in the first place?

 

[fredj338]

If I locked my doors I wouldn't be able to get back in...lost the key years ago. As for the dog thing...just being in a moving vehicle is a far greater risk. Killed by an inflating air bag, fluffy the projectile going through the windshield...all come to mind when I think of an even a minor collision.

There are dog restraint systems for car rides. A lock smith can reset those locks for you & get you new keys for about $75. I have more than $75 worth of stuff ion my house so seems like a fair trade off.

 

[Doug M.]

No place is as safe as it was, and it probably wasn't as safe as most thought anyway. We just have different and more assertive reporting (not better, just different).

Here is another related but different point to consider. I notice above that one or two folks reported insurance issues that were addressed by showing that place entered had been locked. Consider the reports/discussions that have come up here from various sources of mistaken identity shootings resulting from someone going into the wrong house, etc. If steps intended and useful for discouraging bad actors also prevent this fact pattern, that's a victory. Drunk neighbor comes home and goes into the wrong house, because it's easy, and gets understandably shot because of that ... ugly. May be treated as a criminal matter, may be a nasty civil problem, will have a terrible impact on neighborhood relations, lots of other bad stuff. Why not do things that reduce the risk of any such outcome? I just don't get it.