How to stay crime-free while traveling

A lot of us are going to be on the road over the next few weeks, so it's a good time to go over crime-prevention tips for travelers. Michael Right, vice president of public affairs for AAA Missouri, had a few pieces of advice.

1. Obey the traffic laws, especially the speed limit. This is especially true if you're traveling out-of-state. Your license plate is going to mark you as an out-of-towner, which could make less-scrupulous LEOs target you for a ticket.

2. Choose a hotel with good security. AAA has a rating system for hotels on its site, and there are a handful of other sites that offer similar reviews. Better ratings usually mean better security. By-the-hour establishments in bad parts of town -- avoid 'em. If you stay at a motel, try to find one with interior corridors, rather than ones that open directly to the outdoors. Parking garages tend to offer more security than surface parking lots.

3. When you check in, don't let the desk clerk broadcast your room number. You never know who's hanging out in the lobby.

4. Double-check the locks after you get into the room. Make sure they work. Make sure that doors to the patio or attached rooms are locked.

5. Don't travel with valuables unless it's necessary. You might leave home with a Rolex and come back with a Timex. Consider shipping gifts through the mail, especially if you're flying. And don't leave valuables inside your car in plain sight. Put laptops, phones, etc., in your trunk. (If you've been reading CSKC for more than a day, you already know this.)

Want less crime? Invest in education, KCPD chief says

Chief Corwin has a post on his blog about a recent visit to the Harlem Children's Zone, a nationally recognized program that provides early education, health care and other services to poor families. It basically tracks kids from early childhood to adulthood -- and it's got a great track record. Kansas City would like to tackle something similar here in the 64127 zip code, and is competing for federal money to do so.

Children’s education and public safety have for too long been in their own separate silos. They are, in fact, extremely interrelated. If we can spend our resources on educating kids, we don’t have to go arresting and locking up kids.

KCPD offers to do security surveys

Basically, an officer will come to your house and look the place over to see where bad guys might break in -- checking for things like weak locks, shrubs that double as hiding places, etc. Chief Corwin's blog has more information about the free service here and how you can request a visit.

Hat Tip: Saw this via Tony's Kansas City!

Would you ever track your kids with electronic devices?

Best Buy has started selling a device called "Little Buddy" -- it's a tracker, basically, that can be put in your kid's lunchbox, bookbag or coat. (Or perhaps implanted in them via surgery -- the story doesn't say.) Parents can then go online and see where they are. There's also a feature where parents can set an "acceptable area" for the kid. If the child leaves that area, the parents get an alert via text message, the Star-Tribune reports.

Fact: Crime happens everywhere

Nick Sloan has a post at the Kansas City Kansan reminding everybody of a central fact: Crime can and does happen everywhere. He's talking mostly about WyCo, because that's his coverage area, but it's true for the whole metropolitan area, too. There might be some neighborhoods where crime is more common, but when I was a night reporter, I visited every single corner of the city, from Sugar Creek to Troost to some very nice JoCo suburbs.

Maybe that seems obvious, but you'd be surprised how many people let down their guards because they think, well, it's Independence/Overland Park/Liberty, I'm outside the grocery store, what could happen? They don't have situational awareness, and that gives bad guys a giant opening.

KCPD offers women's safety seminars

They've got classes scheduled for Nov. 14 and Dec. 12 at the police academy. (Which is located next to the Shoal Creek patrol station.) Admission is $25, and classes will run from 8 a.m. to noon each day. They're planning to offer more sessions next year, too. More information is available at Chief Corwin's blog.

How do we fix Prospect Avenue?

This week, volunteers and Kansas City police are canvassing Prospect Avenue, from 21st to 29th, and inviting people there to a special event on Friday, where they can get a free meal, HIV testing and other free services. Some guests will also be offered a chance to go to rehab. They're calling it "Beyond The Cuffs." The goal is to connect social services to people in high-risk lifestyles, whether they're prostitutes, drug addicts or homeless. (As I understand it, it's an invite-only operation -- they're not publicizing where the event itself will be.)

Capt. Jeff Emery at East Patrol says this is the first time they've tried something like this, but the Prospect corridor has been an ongoing focus for KCPD, which wants to clear up drug sales and loitering in the area. I know they've had mounted patrols in the area, as a special-enforcement tool.

Advice on avoiding sexual assaults

The Rape, Abuse and Incest National Network has information here about sexual assault and some general advice on preventing it -- or if you've already been a victim, what to do next. A lot of there information is geared toward women getting attacked outside the home, but they do have some information on securing your home. It's on my mind right now because of those assaults near Waldo, but it's good information for any time, really.

The economics behind crime prevention

Long prison sentences aren't enough to deter criminals, an economist at Cornell University argues. But crime rates WOULD drop if criminals faced an almost-certain likelihood of getting caught and then being swiftly punished. Most criminals are fairly impulsive, so they don't think about long-term consequences. They need immediate punishment to be deterred.

Wouldn't that mean we'd have to spend much more on police and other law enforcement? Not necessarily ...

It's National Crime Prevention Month!

I just found this out, but we'll try to have some special posts later this month on crime prevention, such as this handy checklist from the Missouri Highway Patrol.

To celebrate, I plotted a major diamond heist over my lunch break -- then decided not to go through with it. I've successfully prevented a crime.

Study: Chocolate turns kids into criminals

A U.K. researcher is arguing that feeding chocolate and candy to kids on a daily basis will ultimately lead to them becoming criminals as adults. The theory is the kids become accustomed to instant gratification, which leads to problems with impulse control later in life.

COMBAT to spend $800K on election

COMBAT is the Jackson County sales tax that funds a slew of anti-drug programs. It's set to expire in 2011, but county leaders have put the measure on the Nov. 3 ballot. (Even though, Dave Helling notes, it would've been cheaper to have the vote next year.) The county executive, Mike Sanders, says they'll spend about $800,000 in surplus COMBAT money to pay for the election itself.

Could nurses help fight crime? Should they?

Newsweek reports on a program where nurses visit teenage mothers who've just had their first kid and give them coaching for the first two years of the kiddo's life. The goal was to save money on health-care, welfare and drug use, but they also found that it cut arrest rates in half for those kids when they became teenagers. There's been some talk of adding it to the health-care reform package, but there are some Republicans who worry about having a government influence that early in the home. (Not all Republicans, though: Kit Bond and Tom Ridge are interested in it.)

City of 54K has more surveillance cameras than Boston, SF

The AP has a story here about Lancaster, Pa., which has a network of 165 surveillance cameras that are monitored by a local nonprofit, which employs trained "monitors." The local police chief says he doesn't have the manpower to monitor the cameras' feeds. It's not clear if the cameras have reduced crime.

A modest proposal: "Bait houses"

You know how some police departments use "bait cars" to catch car thieves? Well, in St. Louis County, they're talking about "bait houses" -- vacant houses outfitted with furniture and hidden cameras, designed to catch burglars in the act.

Big Brother moves into Shirley's Honey Hole?

Shirley's is a bar in Baltimore that, to keep its doors open after a public-nuisance rap, agree to install a surveillance camera indoors that feeds images to the police, the Sun reports. From the paper's crime blog:

That's a key difference and it's perfectly legal because the owner consented. But a  key question, I think, is how much consent did the owner Shirley Barner really give if she accepted the terms as part of a plea deal to save her business?

And what's stopping the city from making cameras-linked-to cops a part of other plea deals with other problem bars? And why stop there. Make it a condition for a liquor license, or zoning improvements, or just about anything else?

"CEASEFIRE" anti-violence event set for Saturday

The rally is slated to start at 4 p.m. Sept. 12 at 3300 Indiana. The Rev. John Birmingham is scheduled to speak, and Mayor Funkhouser is slated to put in a guest appearance. They'll be giving away school supplies to the first 100 kids who arrive with a parent.

Personal safety forums planned for KU, K-State

These are a little different, though -- the Kansas AG's office is participating, and a big focus of the forums is warning people about the serial rapist who has attacked 13 women in Lawrence and Manhattan since 2001.

TX designs actual light saber for self-defense

It defends you by burning the attacker's eyes as opposed to carving him into bits, but I still want one.

NJ city considers curfew for adults

Because there have been so many shootings there, officials in Paterson, N.J., are considering an all-ages curfew that would run from midnight to 7 a.m. You could be out -- you just couldn't be "loitering." The ACLU is already licking its chops.

Ad Hoc plans forum on KC gangs

The Ad Hoc Group Against Crime will host a forum on Kansas City's neighborhood gangs at 7 p.m. Tuesday / August 11 at the group's headquarters, 3116 Prospect Ave. The police gang unit will speak, and the general public is invited. The presentation will include advice on recognizing gang involvement.

Aim4Peace gets a lifeline

The Pitch's Plog notes that Aim4Peace, an anti-violence group that tries to prevent murders, will receive a $300K grant, giving the organization another six months' worth of operating funds. The group had lost most of its funding during this year's municipal budget cuts. Organizers say they're trying to get over a rough start, though it's hard to gauge their effectiveness.

FBI plans to go national with "Bandit Tracker"

In four states -- Texas, Illinois, Indiana and Arkansas -- the FBI has created a series of sites that track bank robbers, complete with photos and nicknames of the culprits. They've been extremely popular, and the bureau plans to take the project national soon. (Example of one site here.)

Did Iraq lead to veterans committing crime back home?

Since returning from Iraq, 10 soldiers from a unit based in Fort Carson, Colo, have been charged with murder, manslaughter or attempted murder. Recently, a report from Army officials says the soldiers, who fought in Iraq's most violent areas, didn't get the mental-health care they needed -- and that might have played a role in their crimes back home.

The Gazette of Colorado Springs has interviewed some of the soldiers and is publishing a remarkable series of articles about their experiences, both in Iraq and after the war. These are not short pieces, but they're absolutely worth reading.

Hat Tip: Many thanks, Golfer!

Senior citizens learn "cane fu"

USA Today has a piece about a new form of self-defense for seniors: using their canes to thwart attacks and beat down anyone who tries to start trouble.