Everyone deserves to live in a neighborhood where they feel safe. Too often crime and vandalism rob people of their sense of security. The police cannot fight crime effectively without the help of people who live and work in the neighborhood. To effectively fight crime, everyone has to participate. Everyone has to educate themselves about the types of activities that accompany crime as well as how and where to report them.
Everyone needs to be aware of their surroundings and what normally happens there. Anything out of the ordinary such as strangers going door to door or waiting outside a house or business — especially if no one is home or the business is closed. Also keep an eye on abandoned cars or people sitting in parked cars, cars driving at a slow speed or without lights or a repetitive route, broken windows, strange sounds, people frequently visiting a residence late at night, sales of anything from vehicles as these are suspicious activities.
When you observe suspicious activity, what do you do? All too frequently many people choose to ignore the problem. They close their windows and blinds. They fence in the backyard. They ignore crime and other problems in the neighborhood. In effect, they send the message to criminals that no one cares about the neighborhood and therefore crime is acceptable. Crimes continue and problems increase. So, when you see suspicious activity perhaps a better question is, what should you do?
Report all suspicious activities. If no one reports them, they will continue. In an emergency always call 911. You can remain anonymous. Remember; when you call 911 do not hang up until you are told to do so.
You can help the police more effectively stop crime if you are aware of the type of information that is most useful to them. Provide all the information that you can. Describe the activities in detail. For example, where are the activities taking place? Give the address. If you don’t know it, describe the location, the house, the intersection, etc. with as much detail as possible. To report ongoing activities include when they happen (days of the week, hours of the day, etc.). Describe the people that you see including sex, race, color and length of hair, age, weight and approximate height, the type of clothing they wear, names or nicknames of the people involved. Describe vehicles. Include color, number of doors, make, and plate number if possible.
If there is no immediate danger you can report activities at 816-234-5000 (police non-emergency number). You can get involved with your neighborhood association, other community groups or attend a Northeast Community Action Network meeting any Wednesday at noon at 6612 Independence Avenue. You can call this group and the Northeast Mobile Crime Watch at 816-483-6754. For more information about which groups are in the area, consult the Almanac in this paper or call the City of Kansas City at 311.
