January 3, 2007

ValleyViewpoints

Nancy Pyle talks about crime and avoiding it

Dear Almaden Valley residents,
Based on the most recent Morgan-Quitno rankings of large metropolitan cities in the United States, San Jose now ranks as the third safest city among large cities in the United States. The primary reason for our number-three ranking is that property crimes, including burglaries, auto thefts and auto burglaries are on the rise in many areas of the city.

Due to the vigilance of the San Jose Police Department and Almaden Valley residents, crime has remained fairly stable over the past year in Almaden Valley. The only crime that has increased significantly is vehicular burglary. Thankfully, all property crimes have decreased in the past few months.

All crime in our community is unacceptable, so we must continue to be watchful, as there is great opportunity for thieves and other criminals to take advantage of people during the hectic holiday season.

Each of the following crime statistics relate to the police district where Almaden Valley is located, District Adam, which is bordered roughly by Highway 87 on the east, Branham Lane on the north, Camden Avenue on the west and the city limits to the south.

Statistics comparing September 2007 with October 2007:

- Auto theft – down 30 percent (26 reported in September, 18 reported in October)
- Residential burglary – down 50 percent (28 reported in September, 14 reported in October)
- Vehicular burglary – down 50 percent (18 reported in September, nine reported in October)

Statistics comparing November 2006 with November 2007:
- Auto theft - down 8 percent
- Residential burglary - down 3 percent
- Vehicular burglary - up 116 percent

Gang crime is nearly non existent in Almaden Valley. There was no reported gang-related activity in the last 30 days in police District Adam.

There are simple things residents can do to avoid becoming a crime victim. Begin by assessing the vulnerability of your residence by standing across the street and looking at your shrubbery, lighting and windows. It is very important to “harden the target” or make your home more difficult to enter.

If there are dark places where a criminal could hide, eliminate them by trimming shrubbery, installing motion sensor lights and securing windows. If you have the means, an alarm system is a good investment. Residential burglaries occur most often between 9 a.m. and 2 p.m. during weekdays, and entry is often made through an unlocked side garage door or an unlocked rear window. So, remember to keep your doors and windows locked, even if you only leave the house for a short period of time.

As far as auto thefts and auto burglaries go, many of the same “harden the target” principles apply. Never leave you car warming up in your driveway, as we know from interviewing many auto thieves that they will walk up and down streets during the week day morning hours looking for residents who do just that. It saves the thief the trouble of having to break into the car and defeat the ignition, (not that it poses a problem to the experienced car thief).

One of the best deterrents to having your car stolen is to install a “club type” device, which will deter some thieves, as they have to have the tools to cut the steering wheel to drive the car away. A car alarm is also an option, but those too can be defeated. And above all, keep your car locked at all times, even when parked in your driveway.

If you leave a purse, wallet, laptop, iPod, or digital camera in your car you are inviting a thief to break in and steal those items. It takes an experienced thief only a few seconds to break the window, enter and remove your valuables and disappear into the night. The likelihood of ever recovering those items is between slim and none. Now some of you might argue that if you put the items in the trunk, the thief will never know that they are there, but how can you be sure? Most cars today have a convenience feature that allows one to open the trunk from the interior of the car.

Mail thefts have become quite common in our city. The criminals know if they get the right information, the value of property and services that they can fraudulently obtain is sometimes limitless. For the victim, the nightmare has only begun. Your credit can potentially be ruined and the time involved to clear up the mess can run into hours and hours.

How can you avoid this? One good method is to install a locking mailbox or have a mail slot installed so that your mail drops directly into your residence. If you want to take it to the next level, then a post office box should be considered.

As far as personal protection goes, ladies when you go out to walk your dogs or take your toddlers out in a stroller, don’t bring your purse. A brazen thief knows that you will protect your children or pet and all they need to do is grab your purse and run to a waiting vehicle and be out of the area before you can even call the police from your cell phone, which you should always bring with you in case of any emergency. When you are shopping, don’t leave your cart unattended with your purse in it. It only takes a thief a second to grab your purse and exit the store with your money, your credit cards and more important, your identity.

Another recent issue is the proliferation of door-to-door solicitors. Most of these folks are NOT legitimate; they are criminals trying to separate you from your money. They will use a variety of causes—I’m trying to raise money for my team so we can go to play in a tournament across the country, etc., in order to get you to donate.

Whatever you do, don’t give them a check. A good criminal can “wash” the check and then change the name and amounts, so that your check for $20 now is for $200, or more and it has your real signature on it. These are the types of people that you should be calling the police department about, but they believe that you are not savvy enough to figure that it is a scam before you have been taken.

All residents are encouraged to call 9-1-1 (or (408) 277–8911 from a cell phone) or 3-1-1 for suspicious people and cars that they do not recognize in their neighborhoods. You do not have to wait until they commit a crime, because then it is typically too late. You know your neighborhood better than many of us do because many of you have lived there for 20 or more years. If someone doesn’t look right then call the police — if the person is legitimate, the police will find that out and no harm done. If they are not, then perhaps you have prevented a crime from occurring in your neighborhood.

Looking to the future, both the city council and the police department are placing a top priority on the creation of the new Southern Police Substation. Once the substation is up and running, police will be able to spend more time patrolling Almaden Valley neighborhoods and less time commuting to and from downtown. Construction is expected to be complete in late 2009.

For more information about crime in your neighborhood, visit SJPD’s Web site (www.sjpd.org) to view the new online crime report mapping software. The mapping software can be accessed from the main page of the police department’s Web site under “calls for service maps” and displays criminal activity reports by address block.
Both Capt. David Cavallaro and the Council District 10 office look forward to hearing from residents regarding crime and other issues in their neighborhoods and encourage you to call.

Best regards,
Councilmember Nancy Pyle
(408) 535-4910
District10@sanjoseca.gov

Capt. David Cavallaro
(408) 277-5530
David.Cavallaro@sanjoseca.gov

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