Do you know your neighbors? Is your neighborhood safe? Are you doing enough to keep your home secure? How about if you all get together and leave your porch light on, lock up your home and meet your neighbors and local law enforcement this Tuesday for National Night Out Against Crime.
The San Diego Sheriff’s Department is inviting everyone to its free Night Out against Crime events throughout the county. The point is to let criminals know your neighborhood is organized and your community is fighting back.
“An informed and connected community is a safe community,” said Sheriff Bill Gore. “There’s nothing criminals like more than a neighborhood full of strangers.”
Neighbors who know each other watch out for each other. They have some sense of their neighborhood’s normal activities. They would be more likely to recognize an unfamiliar person or vehicle at a house when no one was home. Neighbors can check up on each other.
The Night Out community events are also a great opportunity to meet the deputies who patrol your neighborhood, learn about the many services the Sheriff’s Department provides, and chat up a sheriff’s crime prevention specialist for safety tips. Sheriff Gore will mingle with residents and talk to them about any concerns at the Night Out event in Santee.
Activities vary by location and may include barbecues, picnics, walks, displays from the Sheriff’s Bomb/Arson, Dive Unit, and Off‐Road Enforcement Team (ORET), a “Don’t Run Around, Stay Found” puppet presentation, patrol car or fire truck displays, station tours, free gun locks, child fingerprinting, prescription drug drop off containers, giveaways, hot dogs, refreshments, and face painting and games for kids.
For a full list of events near you, go to www.sdsheriff.net. Look for the Night Out Against Crime logo on the left side of the homepage and click on a community to see a flier.
· Alpine
· Crest
· Poway
· Santee
· Vista
If you can’t make it to this event, you can still leave your porch light on as a show of solidarity –and reach out to a neighbor and local deputy at a more convenient time.
