Security measures designed to control property crime rate

By Sun Advocate

With the rising cost of home and motor vehicle insurance coverage, Carbon County residents are being urged to protect property.
Cletis Steele of the Utah Department of Corrections’ local adult probation and parole office contacted the Sun Advocate regarding the importance of citizens’ securing homes and automobiles.
Steele encouraged local residents to develop and follow a security checklist.
The state corrections officer advised local citizens to:
•Make certain that all windows in the house, including those in the basement and garage, have working locks.
People should use supplementary locks or screws in the frame.
Screws installed in the track above the sliding window frame will prevent the window from being lifted out of the track.
Residents should drill a pilot hole in the top track above each corner of the window frame and install a screw into the openings.
Screws should be adjusted so that the head barely clears the frame when it is moved back and forth.
Additionally, doors with glass windows or glass ornamentation may require double key deadbolt locks.
The double key deadlock prevents a burglar from breaking the glass and reaching inside to open the door.
•Make certain that doors have peepholes at heights that everyone in the household can use.
Adults and youth should avoid letting anyone into a home without determining who is at the door.
•Standard locks on garage doors are easily pried, allowing a burglar to access homes without detection.
Cane bolts and hasps provide excellent protection.
People should make certain each side of the the garage door is secured to prevent prying open a crawl space.
All doors leading to the garage into the house should be securely locked.
The more barriers provided by residents against a home invader, the better, indicated Steele.
A dead bolt lock can provide good protection. When people turn the key, the lock mechanism slides a strong metal bolt from the door into the frame.
When consumers buy a deadbolt lock, they should make sure that the bolt extends at least one inch from the edge of the door.
Many residential doors feature hollow-core construction and poor locks, which are easily forced or kicked open.
For additional protection, people need solid core doors and quality locks.
•Make sure that spare keys are kept with a trusted neighbor and not hidden under a doormat or planter.
•Make sure all sliding glass doors have a strong working lock. Installing dowels or pins will prevent doors from being shoved aside or lifted off the track.
•Make sure all exterior trees and plants are trimmed so that there is not a place for someone to hide.
•Make sure there are no dark areas around your house, garage or yard where a prowler could hide.
•Make sure your windows are visible to neighbors or to the street.
•Make sure that all entrances are illuminated by porch lights.
•Make sure motion-sensor lights are installed and aimed correctly
•Take steps to make certain that house numbers are clearly displayed so that law enforcement and emergency vehicles can quickly locate all residences in Carbon County.
•Make sure all gates, garages, and shed doors are locked when not in use.
•Make certain that all motor vehicles are locked at all times, whether the autos are parked near homes or at locations away from residences .
Auto burglary prevention, like home burglary prevention, is the act of taking away the criminals ability and/or opportunity to commit a crime.
The “move it or lose it” campaign used by city police in Tampa, Fla. reminds citizens that the simple act of placing valuables into the trunk of vehicles can significantly reduce the likelihood of being the victim of auto burglary.
One of the techniques focused on by law enforcement for auto theft prevention is called “natural surveillance.”
People should park vehicles in an area where the likelihood is greatest that others will view the auto with the greatest frequency.
Offenders do not like to commit criminal acts in plain view of witnesses. Criminals like seclusion.
“These simple suggestions can make the difference in whether or not your home or automobile is the target of a theft or burglary attempt,” concluded Steele.