I was ROBBED!

[catesta]

Two words, Joe: Big fuckin' dog.

Okay, three words. The guy broke in while you were at work? That's fucked up. No instruments missing, right?

If you haven't done this, do it now: Catalog the serial numbers of everything you own. Instruments, electronics, computer, etc. Get insurance on your instruments, too (Corey Christiansen knows a great musical instrument company that has saved his ass a few times... send him an email or I can give you his phone number).

And seriously, get yourself a big dog. Like a doberman. My sister can help you train him/her so he/she is the most benevolent creature you've ever met, until somebody tries to fuck with you or break into your house. Then it's "go time". I am seriously considering one for myself, since this neighborhood is getting a bit scary.

First off, Joe that sucks this happened again. You have my sympathy.

A dog is one of the best security systems a person can have. We raised German Shepherds back in the day and they're not only smart but are very protective.

A question to Jim A. You made a comment about the neighborhood getting scary. What is changing?

New people, more kids, more rentals in the area.....????

[Joe G]

"Boxers are good, too. A friend of my wife's in Zimbabwe had a boxer"

good idea - Tyson can bite their ears off -

Yeah, but he'd be way more maintainence than a dog.

[Jim Alfredson]

A question to Jim A. You made a comment about the neighborhood getting scary. What is changing?

New people, more kids, more rentals in the area.....????

It's no secret that Michigan's economy is hurting bad. Lansing isn't doing much better. Homes are sitting on the market for years, empty. There has been an increase in crimes here that is very worrying. More murders, robberies (people jacking pizza delivery guys at gunpoint), etc. Almost every morning I see footprints around my cars that are not mine or my wife's. Since we live right next to an alley there is all sorts of shit that goes down. Luckily I haven't seen a drug deal go down in some time. I remember once my wife was holding newborn Zora and these guys were doing a deal right in front of our living room window in the alley.

I think as the economy gets worse and people get more desperate, the robberies and break-ins are just going to increase further.

[catesta]

That's a shame. I didn't realize Lansing had a crime problem but after your post I did a little research and saw that the City is ranked higher than average.

[Big Al]

Totally agree with the big fuckin' dog idea. Bummed that his happened to you again, and agree that this has to be someone who either knows you and/or knows your patterns. Scary to say the least.

[Noj]

I feel terrible for you, Joe. I hate thieves.

[Joe G]

Totally agree with the big fuckin' dog idea. Bummed that his happened to you again, and agree that this has to be someone who either knows you and/or knows your patterns. Scary to say the least.

I did go out and follow the tracks in the snow last night. They led to the house next door to mine, where the back door was smashed and wide open. That house has been vacant for a couple of years, which really sucks because it's falling apart. It would be much better to have some responsible and trustworthy neighbors there, obviously. From there, they led to the street (I could clearly pick them out - he was running, and actually made two trips, believe it or not) on down to the apartment complex that sits just to the north of where I'm at. Once they crossed onto the grounds, the tracks became hard to follow among the dozens of other sets of footprints. So yeah - this guy could potentially be able to see my house from his bedroom window!

[Dan Gould]

Totally agree with the big fuckin' dog idea. Bummed that his happened to you again, and agree that this has to be someone who either knows you and/or knows your patterns. Scary to say the least.

I did go out and follow the tracks in the snow last night. They led to the house next door to mine, where the back door was smashed and wide open. That house has been vacant for a couple of years, which really sucks because it's falling apart. It would be much better to have some responsible and trustworthy neighbors there, obviously. From there, they led to the street (I could clearly pick them out - he was running, and actually made two trips, believe it or not) on down to the apartment complex that sits just to the north of where I'm at. Once they crossed onto the grounds, the tracks became hard to follow among the dozens of other sets of footprints. So yeah - this guy could potentially be able to see my house from his bedroom window!

I trust that you've shared this info with the cops. I don't know if you want to consider this, but if the guy is watching your front door, is it possible to try to fool him into believing that you have left, catch him in the act? If you stood at the apartment complex, how many units have a view of your house?

[Niko]

I trust that you've shared this info with the cops. I don't know if you want to consider this, but if the guy is watching your front door, is it possible to try to fool him into believing that you have left, catch him in the act? If you stood at the apartment complex, how many units have a view of your house?

given it is the same person, the last time he came was over three months ago, so that would involve quite some waiting... also if i got it right, the thing with the house next door doesn't really sound like a person who knows the area too well...?

I did go out and follow the tracks in the snow last night. They led to the house next door to mine, where the back door was smashed and wide open.

[Dan Gould]

I trust that you've shared this info with the cops. I don't know if you want to consider this, but if the guy is watching your front door, is it possible to try to fool him into believing that you have left, catch him in the act? If you stood at the apartment complex, how many units have a view of your house?

given it is the same person, the last time he came was over three months ago, so that would involve quite some waiting... also if i got it right, the thing with the house next door doesn't really sound like a person who knows the area too well...?

I did go out and follow the tracks in the snow last night. They led to the house next door to mine, where the back door was smashed and wide open.

Well at minimum the cops need to come and dust for prints, especially at the house next door.

[randissimo]

Totally agree with the big fuckin' dog idea. Bummed that his happened to you again, and agree that this has to be someone who either knows you and/or knows your patterns. Scary to say the least.

I did go out and follow the tracks in the snow last night. They led to the house next door to mine, where the back door was smashed and wide open. That house has been vacant for a couple of years, which really sucks because it's falling apart. It would be much better to have some responsible and trustworthy neighbors there, obviously. From there, they led to the street (I could clearly pick them out - he was running, and actually made two trips, believe it or not) on down to the apartment complex that sits just to the north of where I'm at. Once they crossed onto the grounds, the tracks became hard to follow among the dozens of other sets of footprints. So yeah - this guy could potentially be able to see my house from his bedroom window!

The thief probably lives in the apartment complex..

[robviti]

I don't know if you want to consider this, but if the guy is watching your front door, is it possible to try to fool him into believing that you have left, catch him in the act?

sorry dan, but i think that is bad and possibly dangerous advice.

joe,

i'm really sorry about what you're going through. keep in mind that if you own and train a dog for the purposes we've discussed, you could face a serious legal liability under some circumstances. i'm not saying you shouldn't get one, just check it out beforehand.

for now and at the very least, you might want to go to the store (hardware?) and get some "this property is protected by the "acme" security company" stickers to put on the windows. it's cheap, and it's a deterrent for some thieves.

it's quite possible that this was the same thief as before, since repeat break-ins are fairly common. it's also very likely that he's broken into other houses in your area as well. perhaps you and some other victims could get together with the community police officer and come up with some ways to deter/catch this guy. i hope it's just a (short) matter of time before the police arrest the guy. good luck.

[7/4]

Well at minimum the cops need to come and dust for prints, especially at the house next door.

Someone's been watching too much TV.

[papsrus]

Yes, as far as the dog thing goes, definitely find out what your legal liability is, just to be sure. And seriously, check with your homeowner's insurance company. Some will jack up your rates if you have a "dangerous" breed. All in all, a security system (a loud one) is going to be the best deterrent. A thief is going to vamoose as soon as the alarms starts screaming.

And he won't come back.

And you'll likely get a break on your insurance.

But, I like the idea of getting a dog, separate from any security concerns.

[robviti]

Well at minimum the cops need to come and dust for prints, especially at the house next door.

Someone's been watching too much TV.

not really. when my office was broken into a few years ago, they attempted to steal my executive stereo, but left it at the back door (beating a hasty retreat, ADHD, i dunno). the detectives dusted it for prints, got some good ones, and took the stereo as evidence pending analysis of the prints. that's the good news. the bad news is it took me several months to get my stereo back from the police, and that was through another therapist who had friends on the job. funny thing is, they still hadn't received the results from the crime lab! oh yeah, and the stereo was covered with the black dust from the fingerprinting!

Edited January 23, 2008 by jazzshrink

[7/4]

Well at minimum the cops need to come and dust for prints, especially at the house next door.

Someone's been watching too much TV.

not really.

Around here, this wouldn't be much of a priority. I've seen the local law enforcement at work.

Anyways...the guitars are safe Joe?

Edited January 23, 2008 by 7/4

[randissimo]

Totally agree with the big fuckin' dog idea. Bummed that his happened to you again, and agree that this has to be someone who either knows you and/or knows your patterns. Scary to say the least.

I did go out and follow the tracks in the snow last night. They led to the house next door to mine, where the back door was smashed and wide open. That house has been vacant for a couple of years, which really sucks because it's falling apart. It would be much better to have some responsible and trustworthy neighbors there, obviously. From there, they led to the street (I could clearly pick them out - he was running, and actually made two trips, believe it or not) on down to the apartment complex that sits just to the north of where I'm at. Once they crossed onto the grounds, the tracks became hard to follow among the dozens of other sets of footprints. So yeah - this guy could potentially be able to see my house from his bedroom window!

The thief probably lives in the apartment complex..

First off you should notify the police if you haven't about the tracks and the police should then notify the bldg manager to check out the residents of the apartment bldg on their computers for priors..

Edited January 23, 2008 by randissimo

[catesta]

I don't know if you want to consider this, but if the guy is watching your front door, is it possible to try to fool him into believing that you have left, catch him in the act?

sorry dan, but i think that is bad and possibly dangerous advice.

joe,

i'm really sorry about what you're going through. keep in mind that if you own and train a dog for the purposes we've discussed, you could face a serious legal liability under some circumstances. i'm not saying you shouldn't get one, just check it out beforehand.

for now and at the very least, you might want to go to the store (hardware?) and get some "this property is protected by the "acme" security company" stickers to put on the windows. it's cheap, and it's a deterrent for some thieves.

it's quite possible that this was the same thief as before, since repeat break-ins are fairly common. it's also very likely that he's broken into other houses in your area as well. perhaps you and some other victims could get together with the community police officer and come up with some ways to deter/catch this guy. i hope it's just a (short) matter of time before the police arrest the guy. good luck.

Those security stickers area good idea and to go one step further it is very inexpensive to install several motion detectors in your house especially if you can do the installation yourself. When the system is tripped it can be programmed to call your cell phone or if you prefer you can use a monitoring service to dispatch the police.

I have Optex equipment throughout my offices and equipment yards.

Look here... Home Security

Edited January 23, 2008 by catesta

[papsrus]

Where's Chuck Norris when you need him ...

[7/4]

Where's Chuck Norris when you need him ...

Off campaigning for Huckabee.

[Joe G]

BTW 7/4 - once again, the guitars, amps, and the rest of that stuff went untouched.

Thanks everybody for the sympathy and suggestions. I'll probably have to go with some kind of security system in the near future.

[Big Al]

Where's Chuck Norris when you need him ...

Off campaigning for Huckabee.

Hey, it's Chuck Norris: he can do a roundhouse kick from wherever he's standing and still hit his target from thousands of miles away!

[7/4]

BTW 7/4 - once again, the guitars, amps, and the rest of that stuff went untouched.

That's good. Some how I missed that bit. All zoned out from all the strange shit I've been listening to this week.

[Chuck Nessa]

BTW 7/4 - once again, the guitars, amps, and the rest of that stuff went untouched.

That's good. Some how I missed that bit. All zoned out from all the strange shit I've been listening to this week.

Dave Koz?

[7/4]

BTW 7/4 - once again, the guitars, amps, and the rest of that stuff went untouched.

That's good. Some how I missed that bit. All zoned out from all the strange shit I've been listening to this week.

Dave Koz?

Nah....a day of Xenakis. Not eating well doesn't help...