#200867 - 04/23/10 11:03 PM
Re: Alarm worked
[Re: Arney]
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Addict
Registered: 06/10/08
Posts: 601
Loc: Southern Cal
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I'd be a little more circumspect with the hoping/wondering/wishing that there's a repeat performance when the truck is in the shop.
Could be construed as lying in wait and Google is not your friend when it comes to civil suits and comments made on the web.
Just a thought. Glad you're ok.
_________________________
JohnE
"and all the lousy little poets
comin round
tryin' to sound like Charlie Manson"
The Future/Leonard Cohen
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#200889 - 04/24/10 10:48 AM
Re: Alarm worked
[Re: Art_in_FL]
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Enthusiast
Registered: 12/06/06
Posts: 390
Loc: CT
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Cops have training, well most don't really have that much, but they do have insurance and a very nice health plan if injured or killed on the job.
Their ability to have backup on hand, flood a neighborhood with patrol cars, and get help if it goes south covers a lot of sins. It is pretty amazing how many police, sheriffs, highway patrol, military police, you name it, can show up on a 'shots fired', 'officer need assistance', 'officer down' call.
In one case officers from no less than five agencies showed up. Inside of ten minutes they had a small army. Kind of a letdown when the guy walked out and laid down on the ground and all those pretty guns got put away unfired.
Wearing body armor also helps.
My biggest worry clearing the house would be a lack of backup, criminals can get very creative under pressure and hide in places you might not have considered, and, because you never know when cops will show up, what happens if cops come in while you're slicing the pie. Cop sees an armed man sighting down a gun taking aim at a friend and ...
A cop who doesn't make his intentions clear, or a command you didn't hear, a frightened and jumpy rookie who gets the 'order to drop gun' and 'shoot at center of mass of non-compliant suspect holding gun' backwards.
A neighbor, or concerned workman, reports 'a burglar with a gun just went in' lines up poorly with you walking out with a gun and things can go sideways fast.
Easiest way to make a doorway more secure, from B&E and hurricane, is to rearrange the door so it opens out. Hinges will need non-removable pins and/or hinge plates that mate. Replacing the door with a commercial duty metal one is good but simply skinning both sides with plywood and/or sheet metal can make all but bombproof.
Taking the door frame out, planing the framing a quarter inch and installing 3-1/4" by 1/4" aluminum plates top to bottom with 3" screws 6" OC spreads impact loads and gives mounting screws a solid grip. The Door frame is reinstalled with 3" screws by pre-drilling into the aluminum. Latches and deadbolts have holes drilled through the aluminum. Between the stops and aluminum you have a door that can't be kicked or pried open. Even a battering ram takes time to get through because they have to break the structural framing to defeat it.
Windows get high impact film and/or Plexiglas screwed to the casing. Bars are cheap and effective. Cactus and thorn bush plantings under windows can do a lot to discourage intruders.
With all this just make sure that you have a way out, and some way for emergency services to get in, in case of fire or other emergency.
The best thing you can do is to be an observant and articulate witness. If you know the cops are on the way, wait outside and observe--don't go inside and pollute the crime scene...that could very well be construed as hunting.
_________________________
Improvise,
Utilize,
Realize.
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#200893 - 04/24/10 01:08 PM
Re: Alarm worked
[Re: UncleGoo]
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Old Hand
Registered: 06/03/09
Posts: 982
Loc: Norway
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Glad you came out of it O.K.
I wouldn't expect those particular burglars back anytime soon. They were smart enough to run when they tripped the alarm. That makes them smart enough to realize that
a) Both you and your neighbors are now in a state of raised awareness,
b) They'll probably just trip the alarm next time, too.
It doesn't exactly require above average intelligence to reach these conclusions. Most likely they're seeking easier targets elsewhere.
That being said, upgrading house security is always a good idea. There are other burglars out there. Or they may come back in 6 months, testing a different point of entry and hoping you didn't upgrade your system.
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#200923 - 04/24/10 09:32 PM
Re: Alarm worked
[Re: Art_in_FL]
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Geezer in Chief
Geezer
Registered: 08/26/06
Posts: 7705
Loc: southern Cal
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Cops have training, well most don't really have that much, but they do have insurance and a very nice health plan if injured or killed on the job.
In one case officers from no less than five agencies showed up. Inside of ten minutes they had a small army. Kind of a letdown when the guy walked out and laid down on the ground and all those pretty guns got put away unfired.
Wearing body armor also helps.
At one point in my career I received Federal law enforcement training just north of you in Georgia. Going in, I thought it would be fairly soft. learning to say "Boy, yo in a heap o' trouble" and Advanced Doughnut Tactics. I learned far more about the US Constitution, pivotal Supreme Court decisions, and pertinent case law than I ever did in any of my academic courses. The exams were frequent and rigorous - solid college level stuff. We had plenty of practical training, as well - hand to hand combat (beginning level), crime scene investigation, pursuit driving, and lots of range time (pistol and shotgun). My understanding was that if you later survived a shootout, it was the practice to send your firearms instructor a nice bottle of wine. I never had to do that which is a good thing, because I am a lousy judge of good wine. The case you cite sounds like it came right out of my training. Go into the situation with overwhelming force, so that Mr. Scum Bag won't even think of resistance, will walk out, lay down, and all those pretty guns remain unfired. That way everyone goes home at night to their spouse and kids and Mr. Scum Bag has nice quarters at the gray bar hotel. This strategy also saves on body bags, ammunition, cleaning supplies, and paperwork. The three month's of training I received was not cheap, but it enabled me to do a better job in my assignments - In my opinion the taxpayer benefited. My understanding is that the training is now more rigorous than in my day (1978) with a lot more PT, among other things. Toward the end of my career, I was almost annually donating unused annual leave time to widows of deceased rangers who had died in the line of duty. I remember vividly giving in a situation at Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument where the AK-47 slug from a pot smuggler's firearm had found the side seam on the ranger's body armor, killing him. I don't think the compensation package can ever completely replace the lost person. For those persons who clear dwellings solo, best wishes and good luck. You have seen too many Hollywood movies. "High Noon" is a great flick, but it is definitely not a training film. It is far better for all concerned to wait and gain and maintain control of the scene. This is just one experience, at one institution, but from my discussions, it is fairly representative of LE training. It is rigorous preparation for demanding work.
Edited by hikermor (04/25/10 08:21 PM)
_________________________
Geezer in Chief
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#200957 - 04/25/10 03:26 PM
Re: Alarm worked
[Re: JohnN]
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Addict
Registered: 12/25/03
Posts: 410
Loc: Jupiter, FL
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It is off-topic, but I'm curious. Is it possible to put information on-file with the fire department about things like this? I keep such information in my residential Knox Box. For those unfamiliar with the Knox Box, its a solid steel key box that only the local fire department has a key to (you don't even have the key) where you store the key to your house and important information. That way, if the fire department is called to your house, they can get in quickly without having to damage your door.
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#200988 - 04/26/10 04:33 AM
Re: Alarm worked
[Re: celler]
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Old Hand
Registered: 02/11/10
Posts: 778
Loc: Los Angeles, CA
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A Friend of mine installed a CCTV system with Cameras strategically placed & an Internet site to record the scene& any movements,24hrs. a day.It paid off about a month later,when he Identified a neighbor attempting to break-in his back door!Along with the local Police,Neighborhood Watch,& local Newspaper,this guy was caught,his very protective family,Moved away & 2/3 of the neighborhood has, Now installed similar systems.He said the hardest thing to do was calling the police,as He so Badly wanted to Chop this guys hands off!His set-up cost was about $1400.00 total,2yrs. ago.Another tip is, If you have Vinyl or Aluminum windows/frames you can silicone magnets along the bottom inside.Many thieves are known to run magnets around windows,to check for Alarm systems,this could be a decent deterrent,& cheap too!Make sure you install a Lock on your Breaker panel,& Fortify the access screen/panel if your place is not complete slab foundation,many homes have been invaded from underneath,as sound does not carry to well there.Game cameras inside the house,work well,when hidden & you have a clue at the very least,of which is ALOT to go on.I bid you Good Luck with everything,& Am glad you are Free to write about all this.
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