I was reading over some of the postings on the Town Square bulletin board associated with WauwatosaNOW.com. I am pleased to see some of the posters sharing information about crimes taking place in their neighborhood and what can be done to prevent future crimes. Based on what I read I would like to address some issues as to what is suspicious and when it is appropriate to call the police.
First of all “Suspicious” is not a stranger walking up our street. But that same stranger walking back and forth, hanging around, looking up and down driveways, looking into cars or looking into homes; now that is suspicious. A vehicle that is unknown to our neighborhood that drives up our street is not suspicious. But if that same vehicle is continually driving up and down the street, or through the alley or parked in the driveway of an unoccupied house; now that is suspicious. How about the movers, plumber or cable guy at your neighbor’s house while they are away on vacation? Suspicious? I would think so. Now of course, this small paragraph does not identify all the possible activities that can be suspicious; you will have to be the judge in most circumstances, trust your intuition.
If it is suspicious, it does warrant a call to the police department. That is an immediate call, do not hesitate. The sooner you call the sooner we can respond and hopefully contact the person or persons involved in the suspicious activity. As a police officer there is nothing more frustrating than receiving the call about suspicious activity 10 -20 minutes after it was observed. And worse than that is talking to the neighbors after a burglary or other such crime and finding out that a clearly suspicious person or vehicle was observed in the area, but that person did not want to bother the police.
I hope this post helps sort out some confusion. Alert neighbors are a great crime prevention tool. If we look out for each other our neighborhoods will continue to hold their value and charm as well as remain a safe place to live and raise a family.
As usual, questions or comments can be directed to me by clicking on the email link shown at the top of this blog.
