Quote:
Originally Posted by redwitch
There is definitely one known instance where the cameras caught the thieves. This was a few years ago -- a snowbird's home was emptied of all of its contents in, I believe, Sunset Pointe. A camera caught a truck entering the village with empty back. It left filled to the brims. Apparently, it was very easy for the sheriff to track down the thieves and recover almost all items.
As to the "keystone cops," I will admit that I'm not a fan of Neighborhood Watch. It seems they rarely do what we think of as their job -- patrolling neighborhoods, noticing things out of the ordinary, telling folks their garage door is open after 10:00 pm, but I imagine they are a minor deterrent for criminals.
As to the gates, I would prefer they stay since they do help slow down traffic and at least give golf carts a chance to cross streets. Also, I love the gate keepers. More than once I've stopped and gotten directions from them, especially in new areas. I almost always have a map on me but I seem to forget my glasses more often than not.
I've lived here over eight years and travel from one end of TV to the other weekly. This has been the case since my first six months here. There has never been a year where I didn't hear of a burglary or some other felonious crime (I'm not counting DUIs, etc.). It seems as if more of these types of crimes occur during the winter months.
The cops will either catch these thieves or they'll move on to another venue. Depends how professional they are. The smart ones only hit an area for a certain amount of time and then go on to a new area.
TV is not perfect but it is very, very good.
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Excellent post and accurate observations, especially your last sentence. The crime levels here are low compared to national averages. After taking basic precautions (lock your doors, harden the "target" etc) the real deterrent is having neighbors who a) pay attention b) take notes or photos or unusual cars / people in the neighborhood and c) when appropriate, contact the Sheriff to alert.
In other words, once potential thieves get the word that the Village of XYZ has alert residents who pay attention, they will move on to a village whose residents do not.