Submitted by Brian Espin #37430, LAPD Senior Lead Officer (Pacific Palisades)
Last week was a little busier than I wanted it to be. A few of the crimes could have been prevented if vehicles and residents were better secured. FYI, The few violent crimes the Palisades has experienced are from people visiting the area, not Palisadians. This includes the victims and suspects.
I apologize for the lengthy bullet points, but it’s something that we all need to be reminded of.
- With the Holidays here, everyone is excited to show off their new “toys”. Lets keep them secured and well protected. Do not leave shopping items in your car. Usually this time of year we see more vehicle break-ins. Especially at the shopping malls and major stores. Our criminals are watching for people putting their new “toys” in the car.
- The increase in follow home robberies in the City has put some concern in the residents of the Palisades. From my estimation, most of the follow home robberies are due to the victims usually displaying some sort of wealth (i.e. jewelry, flashy clothing, displaying money out in the open). Be mindful of your surroundings.
- With the numerous Holiday parties we will all be attending, DO NOT DRINK AND DRIVE. Use ride sharing entities to your advantage. Its financially beneficial to pay $20-$100 rather than thousands of dollars for a DUI.
- When calling 911 or the non-emergency line, please be patient and know your location and a detailed description of the incident your are calling about. Our (LAPD) Dispatchers are very good at determining the nature of response.
- I encourage everyone to get a security system that will give you instant notification if someone is on your property. This helps us (LAPD), if you can see that someone is in your house and can give a good description of the suspects. It will bump our response up to a priority call instead of a non-priority (alarm only).
- If you have security cameras on your property, it is helpful for an investigation to have one or more cameras angled towards the street or sidewalk. Investigators can back track areas where people are seen coming from based on video footage. Hopefully with other cameras showing vehicles or other suspects, investigators can obtain valuable information.
- Please continue to secure (lock) your house and vehicles. Let’s make it harder for these criminals to get our stuff.
- Be mindful if you are traveling in and around our local schools. I have had a few complaints regarding speeding and erratic maneuvering when parents and kids are dropping off or trying to park.
- Remember to be aware of your surroundings. We can deter most crimes when we acknowledge the people around us. Most criminals do not want to be notice.
When traveling to the popular areas of the Palisades or just parking on your street, do not leave valuables in your vehicle or especially out in the open on the seats.
