Co-Worker's House Robbed

[Faitmaker]

Unfortunately, I don't believe this was reported in the news, so I did not put it in the Good, Bad, Ugly forum.

My extremely liberal gun-hating co-worker was alerted by his House Alarm Monitoring service (not sure which one) that he had an alarm going off at his house and the police were alerted. He left immediately for home, across town, and made it in about 10 minutes. He waited, correctly, for the police to arrive before entering the home. After 35 minutes from the alarm companies call, the police arrive to make sure the house was empty and take a report. He had a lot of things in plan sight of his windows and they were all stolen (acoustic guitar, tv, laptops, etc). I posed the question to him about "what if he was home". The burglars may have been armed. They may not have even robbed him at all. Things could have went a dozen different ways. My point to him was that it took 35 minutes for the police to arrive to a burglary in progress. I used that to make my point of why I carry. The police may or may not be there to protect me.

For the record, this is not a slight on the Dayton Police Dept. I do not know why it took so long to respond. It takes roughly 10 minutes to get to the farthest point of anywhere in Dayton, but I don't know if they were tied up with something else. The point is, they may be tied up with something else when it comes to my own situation.

He still said he would not own a gun.... <sigh> I just don't understand the mindset... I can't. And this will be the problem until the end of time. Conservatives and Liberals minds just don't meet. We live in different realities.

[DefensiveCarry.com]

[Rugergirl]

Different realities, or a lack of reality?
If he had been home, or if his wife and kids had been home without him, things could have been a lot worse. But there are those who just don't understand, until something bad happens.
Sadly and worse are those who don't survive.
The reason we sheepdogs exist, I guess.

[retsupt99]

You can lead a horse to water...

[archer51]

Your co-worker definitely qualifies as not one of the sharpest knives in the drawer.

As to police response time, as you said there could be many reasons for it. Anything from traffic accidents to shift change over. Also if I remember correctly (told this by several LEO) alarm company calls for residential alarms going off is one of the lowest priority call. The majority of alarm calls are false alarms and are handled when an officer is available.

[chrise2004]

some people just will live in complete denial until something life threatening (which i hope never happens) happens to himself or a loved one. Sad he won't even protect the ones he cares for...

[dukalmighty]

He walks around in Condition clear he is so far from white that there is no color code,those alarm company commersials are a joke,too bad you can't sue them for false advertising,but then again it never shows how long it takes for LEO to show up.
Ask him how he likes buying stuff for other people to enjoy,don't show off what you got in plain view

[Janq]

Exact same thing happened to my neighbor as next door adjacent to us on our right. Happened this past May.

Only they were broken into at night as in the middle of the night while they slept.
They both are late 60s and the husband is very frail withered and dying of cancer.

Up to then we were the only house on our cul de sac that would leave exterior lights activated. Otherwise it's outer space dark here.
They were home invaded via a garage access door left unlocked and the secondary house entry door via the garage was unlocked as well.
The wife woke up the next morning to find her purse, two laptops, and various AV equipment in their living room disappeared.

She came by my place to let us know of this and commented that we always have our lights on at night, and actually asked "Why"!?!
I'd told her I'm not from here (ultra-liberal rural new England college town) and grew up in DC and MD where stuff occurs hourly, and to anybody even cops.

A week later they had huge sodium type lamps installed on the exterior of their house. My wife was pissed but I told her give it a month, they'll go away as the interest wains and they don't develop a habit. It only took 3 weeks before they fell back out of habit with darkness 7 out of 7 days.
The following month they went to the pound and got themself a 100 lb. Rottweiler which neither of them can barely physically control and restrain.

I'd bet anything their house is unlocked right now.
As for the dog; A box of biscuits, a can of pepper spray, or a cheap .22LR and it's functionally neutralized.

My other neighbors left of us and across the street both made comments to me indicating fatalism.
If they want your stuff they'll just come in and take it. Nothing that can be done. Get an 'alarm system'.
Yeah, uh huh.

They too are mid to late 60s as well. And had indicated they were going to have a light system installed as well.
It's September and Tuesday night when I went out to place the trash can out side it was pitch dark black on the block with exception of my house.

Different views of and toward reality.

- Janq

[PastorPack]

Most LEO's I talk to say that alarm calls are a nuisance and bottom of the priority list.

[2ndsupporter]

He may change his mind and take your advise when it truely happens to him, although by then it's too late!!

[ccw9mm]

My point to him was that it took 35 minutes for the police to arrive to a burglary in progress. I used that to make my point of why I carry. The police may or may not be there to protect me.

Police may or may not be there?

On the instant of intrusion into a home with a monitored alarm, the police aren't there. They CAN'T be there in time, unless they're clairvoyant. If the resident were there, it would be a home invasion with all the dynamics that such time pressures bring.

They might come quickly after being notified, sure. They might even come in 35mins, as this example shows.

But the fact remains: one must survive until the cavalry comes, if one is to survive; else one is relying on the good nature and morals of the criminals in order to survive.

[SIXTO]

For the record, this is not a slight on the Dayton Police Dept. I do not know why it took so long to respond. It takes roughly 10 minutes to get to the farthest point of anywhere in Dayton, but I don't know if they were tied up with something else. The point is, they may be tied up with something else when it comes to my own situation.

I work a lot with Dayton PD. They are far understaffed for the call volume they work. Much of Dayton is a hole, keeping resources busy and away from the people who actually pay the bills. they also have a horrible moral problem, mainly for the reason I stated above, and that their administration does everything but support them.

Also, this wasn't a burglary in progress. It was an alarm drop. Alarm drops are bottom of the priority list, mainly because most businesses and people who use them tend to abuse them; by not learning to use them properly and creating false alarms 99% of the time they go off.

[WHEC724]

Faitmaker - Don't let it bother you that your co-worker still doesn't want a gun. I'm of the belief that not everybody should be armed. In fact, I'm terrified at the thought of some people being armed. I'm not a big fan of the derogatory use of the term 'sheep', but sometimes it really applies. Putting a lethal tool in the hoof of a dumb animal, just isn't always a good idea.

[Faitmaker]

Faitmaker - Don't let it bother you that your co-worker still doesn't want a gun. I'm of the belief that not everybody should be armed. In fact, I'm terrified at the thought of some people being armed. I'm not a big fan of the derogatory use of the term 'sheep', but sometimes it really applies. Putting a lethal tool in the hoof of a dumb animal, just isn't always a good idea.

Oh, it's not really that. I understand what you are saying and even agree. It's that it hasn't changed *anything* in his though process. He's still as Liberal. He's still as gun-hating. He's still of the mind "take my taxes. We should be helping more". He even made the comment to me that had it been *my* house.... they would have had my guns, unlike his where they only have a guitar and some electronics. <sigh> Nothing has changed that I can see.

You can own guns and be secure.