STREET SMARTS-Hints and Strategies
The key to avoid becoming a crime victim is to avoid looking like an easy target. A few general tips:
• Always look as though you know where you are going (even if you don't). How you carry yourself is crucial. Look confident in where you are going, how you walk and what you are doing.
• Walk quickly and confidently -- petty criminals prey on the unwary, the wide-eyed and the slow-moving.
• Be aware of who is around you at all times and stay in well-lighted, populated areas.
• Should someone attempt to verbally harass you, just keeping on walking. Responding to this kind of behavior could escalate the situation.
• If a motorist bothers you while you are walking turn around and walk in the opposite direction of the car. Do this as often as necessary and they should get discouraged.
• Always carry some form of identification. A label in your clothing will be sufficient if you are not carrying a wallet or handbag. Name and address labels should always be sewn inside the clothing of your children.
• Don't feel compelled to stop for someone who wants a light or spare change -- it is better to be brusque than to be bruised.
• Remain alert and aware at all times, don't look lost in thought. Don't wear headphones.
• When walking to your car or on your way home, keep your keys in your hand until you are safely inside for added protection.
• If someone drops you off at home by auto, ask the driver to wait until you are safely inside.
• Be discreet with valuables such expensive cameras and jewelry.
• Gentlemen: keep your wallet in your front pants pocket rather than a jacket pocket or back pocket. Ladies: hold your purse handle tightly and keep it close to your body; if using a bag with a shoulder strap, bring the strap diagonally across the front of your body.
• If you are using a backpack, make sure your valuables are not in pockets easily accessible to those behind or beside you.
• Keep pocketbooks on your lap when dining out, not dangling over the back of a chair. Avoid placing pocketbooks on hooks on the back of a fitting room or bathroom door, where someone can easily reach over and removed them.
• Don't tempt anyone by carrying lots of cash or using large bills -- use travellers checks, credit cards, or visit the ATM more frequently
• Be careful at ATM machines -- if you feel uncomfortable, go somewhere else.
• Don't keep your wallet in the back pocket of your pants or in a backpack. Moving the wallet to the front pocket of your pants will reduce your chance of being pick-pocketed.
• Be aware of your wallet or purse in commotions Pick pockets often use helpers to create a disturbance nearby.
• Follow the example of New Yorkers who always carry "mugging money" -- $20 or so that they surrender immediately (don't annoy a would-be-mugger by not having any money with you).
If Someone Tries to Rob You
• Don't resist. Give up your property—don't give up your life.
• Report the crime to the police. Try to describe the attacker accurately. Your actions can help prevent others from becoming victims.
• Self defense measures are most effective when applied as preventive steps—avoiding the crime in the first place.
These measures include running away, hiding, screaming, and raising an alarm—remember, more people will respond to someone yelling "Fire" than they will to "Help!"”
Safety in Your Vehicle
• The crime of “carjacking” – which is stealing a car by force – captures headlines across the country. Statistically speaking, however, your chances of being a victim of carjacking are very slim, and taking preventive measures can reduce that risk even more.
• If the carjacker threatens you with a gun or other weapon, give up your car. Don’t argue. Your life is definitely worth more than a car.
• Get away from the area as quickly as possible.
• Try to remember what the carjacker looked like—sex, race, age, hair and eye color, special features, clothes.
• Report the crime immediately to the police.