Is that a Drug House

Is That A Drug House?
If we are going to stop crime and drugs from taking over our neighborhoods, we must all work together as a team. Without your help and assistance, local law enforcement officers face many restrictions. Your involvement is the key to stopping crime.

Do you have a drug house in your neighborhood?
Drug houses don't just happen in other neighborhoods. There are drug houses in all types of neighborhoods. There are four things that make a drug house:

Product
Buyer
Seller
Location
Most neighborhoods have very little control over Product, Buyer, or Seller. Drug dealers look for locations where neighbors do not communicate and isolate themselves. This makes it easy to intimidate those neighbors that do notice drug activity. Drug dealers like neighborhoods that say "It can't happen here". Money is a key element for the drug dealer. If they establish a drug house in a neighborhood where kids and adults have money to buy drugs, business will thrive.

What are the warning signs of drug activity in the neighborhood?
Do any of these sound familiar?

Excessive foot traffic to and from a house or property
Loitering in or around a house
Frequent and unusual traffic patterns such as Stop-Enter-Leave
Threats of intimidation connected to a residence
Open exchange of drugs and money
Gang activity in the neighborhood
Graffiti on structures in the area
Prevention is the best way to stop drug houses
You can reduce the chance that a drug house moves into your neighborhood. Get to know your neighbors. Meet and know your Police Officers. As problems develop in the neighborhood, work with law enforcement to resolve them quickly.

What should you do if there is a drug house in your neighborhood?
One of the tools of the drug dealer is intimidation. There are safety in numbers.

log all activity connected to the suspected drug house
Talk to a Shawnee Police Officer and give the information to him.
Speak with property owners about problems that the tenants are causing for the neighbors. If you are having problems, the property owner is probably having problems too.
Report all problems to the appropriate agency. Police, Fire, Public Works are just some of the agencies that you may call with problems.

Are you Suspicious?

Suspicious Persons
Obviously, not every stranger who comes into our neighborhood is a criminal. The following circumstances should be called in and investigated — possible crime in process.
Going door to door in a residential area, especially if one or more goes to rear of residence or loiters in front of an UNOCCUPIED HOUSE. (Burglary)
Forcing entrance or entering an unoccupied house. (Burglary, Theft ,or Trespassing)
Running, especially if carrying something of value or carrying property at an unusual time. (Fleeing the scene of a crime)
Heavy traffic to and from a house, particularly if it occurs on a daily basis. (Drug dealing, vice, or fence operation)
Offering items of resale at a very low price. (trying to sell stolen property)
Loitering or driving through a neighborhood several times or appearing as a person with a wrong address. (Burglary)

Suspicious Vehicles
Vehicles in the following situations may be involved in crimes and should be reported to the police.
Slow moving, without lights, following aimless course in any location. (Burglary)
Parked or occupied, containing one or more persons, especially at an unusual hour or place. (Burglary lookouts)
Parked by an unoccupied residence, being loaded with valuables. (Burglary)
A vehicle containing weapons. (Criminal activity)
Someone, especially a female or juvenile, being forced into a vehicle. (Kidnapping, assault, or attempted rape)
Persons detaching mechanical parts or accessories from a vehicle. (Theft or vandalism)
Objects being thrown from a vehicle. (Disposing of contraband)

Crime committed

Wednesday a vehicle at 1007 Overland Ct. was broken into. A set of golf clubs among other items were stolen.
This is a good reason that the WNW should set up the Operation ID program. The program is easy to start. The WNW should purchase engravers that interested members can borrow to engrave their property.
What is Operation

Identification?

Operation Identification is a citizen’s burglary prevention program for use in homes and businesses. The Operation ID program involves the marking of property with an identifying number as a means of discouraging burglary and theft.

WHAT MAKES OPERATION ID SO EFFECTIVE?

Marked property is difficult for a criminal to dispose of or sell. It can be traced to the rightful owner with relative ease. Additionally, if the intruder is caught with marked property, it is solid evidence of possession of stolen goods.

The Operation ID program has three parts:
FIRST, mark your valuables with your DRIVER'S LICENSE NUMBER prefaced by "OK" for Oklahoma and followed by "DL" for Driver's License"

Example:

OK1234567DL

So your property can be easily traced and identified as yours. The Driver's License Number should be engraved on an area that cannot be easily removed and which is NOT easily seen, preferably adjacent to the manufacturer's model or serial number.

Second, after marking, photographing, or videotaping your property, make a list of your valuables. Keep a copy of the list in a safe place. If you should become a victim, you will be able to describe the stolen property to the police from the list.

Third, display a decal which tells would-be thieves that your property has been marked. By displaying an Operation ID sticker you are disclosing that your property has been marked and will be difficult for a criminal to sell or pawn. Often the presence of the sticker alone is enough to deter a intruder.

MARK THESE POSSESSIONS

The items listed below are those most commonly stolen from homes and business:

Television sets, Stereo equipment, Radios
Guns
Game systems
Car radio/CD players
DVD, VCR players
Vacuum cleaners, and other household appliances
Fax machine
Cell phones
Scooters
Cameras
Binoculars
Hubcaps, Mag wheels
Lawn mowers
CB radios
Bicycles
Camcorders
Golf clubs
Electric shaver
Tools (hand and power)
Watches, clocks
Musical instruments
Kitchen appliances (Microwave, toaster, etc.)
Computer equipment (CPU, Monitor, keyboard, etc)
Computer printer

UNMARKABLE PROPERTY

If the property is unmarkable, such as antiques, jewelry, silver, artwork, etc., you should inventory, photograph or videotape, and store those records in a safe deposit box.

INVENTORYING

When inventorying and marking property, use a systematic approach. Take one room at a time, as the property is marked or photographed, enter it on your inventory list. Keep a copy of the list in a safe place. If you should subsequently become a burglary victim, you will be able to quickly describe the stolen property from this list. This will be of great help to police in their attempt to recover the stolen possessions.

Volunteer

Westside Neighborhood Watch Needs Volunteers:
The WNW program is an opportunity to promote mutual understanding between citizens and law enforcement. Join our fight against crime by joining the WNW. You are the extra eyes and ears of Law Enforcement. We will teach you how to observe and report suspicious activity. Through our mutual communication, we can make our community a better and safer place to live.
The best crime prevention device is a good neighborhood. The security steps you and your neighbors take as a group are just as important as the things you do individually.
The WNW operates on the concept that effective crime prevention requires cooperation with law enforcement. WNW is “neighbors looking out for the welfare of our neighbors.” It is a coalition of citizens who are concerned about the neighborhood where they live and are willing to become involved in the betterment of their community.
It is only by working together that we can truly be effective in our fight against crime. The WNW can do a lot to prevent crime, both through intense patrol efforts and educational programs.
However, all this can be ineffectual if you do not do your part to deny the criminal the opportunity to commit a crime.
Volunteer at the next Westside Neighborhood Watch meeting.

Law enforcement and the neighborhood watch

The benefit of open communication with local law enforcement and the neighborhood watch is this.
They can train the watch group members including and not limited to emergency preparedness, emergency response, basic crime prevention techniques, residential security, personal safety, Neighborhood crime statistics, Crime alert bulletins,gang activity.
A criminal's worst enemies are concerned and active citizens and an equally concerned and effective police department. When the two work together the opportunity for criminal's to commit a crime is decreased.