note from…

Neighbors, videos, and connecting with each other.  The police want to know, as do we all.

 June 23, 2019

Summer is here… And although we are currently considerably down in crime, we certainly want to keep it that way. But the biggest challenge to that reduction is happening NOW.  Historically, summertime results in a spike period for criminal activity, not just for our Brentwood, but throughout the City.  Windows are left open more often, vacations and getaways are happening, kids are out of school (including the bad ones), and the longer, warmer, lazy days of summer seem to go hand in hand with an increased degree of complacency.

So, while crime is, in fact, down (please know that I give all the credit to the Brentwood folks that are paying attention, reporting suspicious activity, forwarding information and images to me/detectives, who are hosting Neighborhood Watch meetings, and who are staying connected in the OWNERSHIP of their neighborhood) we still need to stay vigilant with our home and vehicle security, especially now. 

Recently, the well-connected and cohesive neighbors of Shetland Lane, experienced a car theft. The surveillance video was forwarded to me and, in turn, I forwarded it onto the Auto Detective supervisor who was very grateful. But as I watched the video, like I’ve watched hundreds of comparable videos over the years, it still managed to illicit in me a degree of wonder and awe at the audacity and brazenness of the thieves.  And then a thought occurred to me, we really should be sharing these videos with each other, among the community—to bring it home, to make folks really believe and fully understand that while they’re asleep in their beds, or at work during the day, burglars and thieves are always, always, out there, at their jobs, doing what they do best.  For this reason, I encourage this practice of sharing, not just with me, but with one another. 

To watch a hooded suspect scale your (or your neighbor’s) fence and then to rummage through your belongings is eye opening and unsettling experience, to say the least.  It WILL make you live your life a bit differently.  It WILL make you more precautious and careful about securing your homes and to never leave anything visible behind in your car. And this is a lesson you don’t want your family to have to learn the hard way. 

All the best,  Maria Gray, LAPD