Break-Ins

[Henry]

I received the following note from an individual that I know, however I am editing parts of it that would identify him, but it tells you pretty much what happened and his thoughts on it:

"I hear things, and think maybe its time to speak up.  My home was broken into on November 30th.  It was during the daytime, and items of some value were stolen.  Nobody was home.  The State Police came after a 911 call and we are still working on an inventory of the missing items for our insurance company. We have had no follow-up contact with the State Police, which leads me to conclude that they have no information for us.   It's a bad feeling!!  Like being violated, in a town where previously, and perhaps erroneously, we felt safe.

Prior to our break-in I had heard about a couple other break-ins here in town.   And I had paid little attention.  I also heard about Neighborhood watch discussions, but did not participate.  Since then I have learned about at least six more break-ins that have occurred in Fairfax since November 1st.  I would guess there are others about which I have not heard. 

All of this makes me wonder:

   1.  How many have there been?
   2.  What is being done?
   3.  Are there proven steps which homeowners can take to protect their property?
   4.  Does anyone have information which might lead law enforcement to solve these crimes?
   5.  Should Town officials or law enforcement be taking some steps to increase surveillance or protection of our properties?

I keep reading about break-ins in the paper, in Milton, Jericho and Underhill, for instance, and some of these sprees are being solved, so, this leads me to ask if there is a discreet way that you could post some of this on your forum to see if we could energize the townsfolk to be more alert, to perhaps provide some leads to law enforcement and maybe some suggestions to homeowners as to how to protect their homes. I have some concern that locked doors, loud dogs or even home security systems are of limited value for rural properties, invisible from the road and distant from law enforcement.   It is not comfortable knowing we live in a town where our homes and property are not safe."

[Chris Santee]

Contacting Henry was a great first step.
Check this site out for some info on reported crimes in Fairfax:
http://www.crimereports.com/

You'll be doing some clicking and dragging, but check it out !

Next, and I hate saying this, lock your homes and cars.
Even when you're home !
There was a home invasion recently, less than 20 miles away.

Keep a pen and piece of paper handy.
Write down anything, and I mean anything, suspicious.
Try to get details, car make and model, color, license plate,
write it all down.

Call Franklin County Sheriff's Department at 524-2121.
Check on your neighbors, that strange car in their driveway might be coming to your house next.

[Chris Santee]

The site appears to have Vermont State Police cases, so
I called the Sheriff at the above number.
The dispatcher said someone would get back to me today.

[Stand Alone Defense]

I drive around town a lot to check on the businesses and some of outlying neighborhoods(places the Sheriffs don't go). If anyone is having problems or would like me to drive their street when I ride around I would be happy to do so.  Send me and Email on here or give me a call and I will make it a point to keep an eye on your area of Fairfax.  I have added a couple neighborhoods this summer upon request from people that live here in town.  I do it free of charge to the town so it cost all you TAX payers nothing, I do it because I like helping my community out. 

[Chris Santee]

I just got a phone call from the Franklin County Sheriff's Department
and they were unaware of the website above, but,
we talked for quite some time and
I think we'll have some crime fighting tech tools after Christmas.

But for now, I'm off to the Cross Country Ski Meet at B.F.A.
The snow is making conditions excellent.

Remember, lock your doors,
Santa can find his way in !

[suze]

Thanks Chirs and Josh for the information and the offers of help.  What about a community meeting?  Can we organize neighborhood watches?  How does one define a neighborhood in Fairfax?  We always lock our doors, but we also live on a street where many or all of the neighors are at work during the day.  Frankly, it makes me very nervous too, having been a victim of theft prior to living here.  I feel for the author of the orginial post and for the others who have been violated.  I love this town and community and would enjoy seeing a rally of support and watch! 

[DrewCrash]

This topic continues, month after month, for well over a year now. I will say now what I said then, we need increased police coverage and/OR an improved patrol plan from the sheriff's department. I don't imagine the police will ever catch anyone, but it serves as a good deterrent and that deterrent is certainly something to look at.

Instead of sitting around and complaining on a bulletin board, I will participate and support in any thing that goes on to try and stop this problem from reoccurring constantly. There are too many smart people in a community to allow this continued problem from reoccurring.

[Les Nessman]

Having being employed by a law enforcement agency and investigating these crimes, when I ask for description about property I'm given a very vague description.  So with that, any electronics, jewelery, etc... please write down a serial number and/or take a picture of your possession and keep it in a safe place.  The more descriptors the police have, the more identifiable your property becomes.  Secondly, I suggest that if some of the items taken are electronics or jewelery, call around to some stores that buy and sell this stuff to see if they've taken anything that may fit the description of items taken.  Most of these items taken are either exchanged for drugs or exchanged for cash to buy drugs.    Lastly, if you come home and find forced entry into your home, I recommend that you do not touch anything and try to preserve anything of evidentiary value.  Don't move things around if they were moved from their original place.   Be mindful that it's snowing and any footprints in the snow could be the bad guys, so be mindful where you step.  Keep an eye on each other!

[Mummy]

Trail Camera's aren't just for hunters!

All it takes is a 6-volt battery and then you can down load onto a computer.  By the way ... you can place these Trail Camera's ANYWHERE outside!   Just like BIG BROTHER!

[Thor]

For all; previously we were discussing the usefulness of Neighborhood Watch on another thread. It can be an extremely valuable tool and deterent. Additionally, signage can help, so having those Neighborhood Watch signs up throughout can be of some benefit. And there is a "program" I used to use when I did vulnerability assessments on critical infrastructure and other sites. The acronym is CPTED; Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design. It can be used very easily on personal dwellings as well as the bigger sites. And as Josh has offered to do more drive arounds, I would certainly be willing to stop by peoples homes and give them some ideas on how to protect it better. But overall, we need to just have increased situational awareness of everyone in the community. If your driving to work or home from work, pay attention to your surroundings. You would be surprised at how much you recognize as being the norm, and if your locked on, you will recognize when something is "not right". Having your cell phone handy to call someone or even call your own number and leave a voice mail with all the details of people or situations that are questionable; A - H, meaning A = age, B = build, C = Clothing, colors and styles, D = distinguishing marks, E = elevation (height), F = face (beard, scars, etc...), G = gait (walk with a limp, running, etc...), H = hair (color, length, style, etc...) As simple as remembering your ABC's. Same kind of acronym for vehicles. Anyway, I am running on here. Also, using a little human intelligence, ears to the ground, asking your children if they know or have heard anything and so on. Letting folks know when your going to be away is great, but what if they mention it to someone and so on. When you are leaving town, consider Operational Security (OPSEC). Don't post it on facebook, don't tell everyone. Just tell the folks that you want to look after your home and ensure they aren't going to talk about it. Anyway. We can beat these "bad guys". Actually, I would literally like to beat these crooks, but I think you all know what I mean. If we pull together, compare notes, help each other out, we can be a deterent and send these sh_t bags down the road to some other place that is a "soft target". Or better yet, send them up the river.

[Chris Santee]

Wow, you folks are great.
A few years back Doug Webb suggested using the map of Fairfax to define neighborhoods for a watch.
We did, it worked, peace was restored.
Here's a link: http://www.vtgrandpa.com/fxtown/E911%20Legal_2008.pdf

Good news here, those tracks mentioned tend to slow burglaries, springtime brings more break-ins.
Tire tracks on a long driveway with freshly fallen snow work the same way.

As for having a town meeting, I think we are.
We're getting great input here and we're mostly relaxed at home reading.

Drew's got a point with increased coverage, but how much do we want to spend ?
We just might be able to be effective here, at no cost.

And one last note for the night, a strong suspect has just moved from town.

Merry Christmas !

[Mike Raburn]

You da man, Man!

I drive around town a lot to check on the businesses and some of outlying neighborhoods(places the Sheriffs don't go). If anyone is having problems or would like me to drive their street when I ride around I would be happy to do so.  Send me and Email on here or give me a call and I will make it a point to keep an eye on your area of Fairfax.  I have added a couple neighborhoods this summer upon request from people that live here in town.  I do it free of charge to the town so it cost all you TAX payers nothing, I do it because I like helping my community out. 

[suze]

Thanks for the neighborhood link, Chris.  Very helpful!

[slpott]

I know a man that would love to be the new Doc Holiday in town. Very cheap too.

[trussell]

Thanks Chris.  Zone 4 ROCKS!!!!!