February 26, 2010

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Fairwood Area Safety Updates
for February

Fairwood's Deputy Sam Shirley shares some news and trends that should be of concern to all our neighbors.

January Crime Re-cap
Residential burglaries dropped to four from twelve.  There was also a significant drop in reported vandalisms, down to one from nine.  Car prowls increased slightly, but we are still under our average. 

Overall, it was not a bad month.

Fairwood Burglars Arrested
Arrests were made in two separate burglaries.  The first occurred in the Greens.  Three burglars were driving around overnight looking for open garage doors.  They found an open garage and went in.  An alert neighbor happened to be awake and saw the suspicious activity.  911 was called and the burglars were quickly arrested by King County Sheriff’s Deputies. 

The second event occurred in an apartment complex.  An alert neighbor saw a burglar enter an apartment and they called the police.  The suspect was caught leaving the area on foot.  All of the stolen property was recovered. 

These arrests drive home the necessity of citizen involvement in making your neighborhood safer.  If there is not a block watch in your neighborhood, consider starting one. 

Join or Start a Block Watch in your neighborhood
Neighborhood Watch, Block Watch, Town Watch,
Building Watch, Crime Watch
Whatever the name, it’s one of the most effective and least costly ways to prevent crime and reduce fear. Neighborhood Watch fights the isolation that crime both creates and feeds upon. It forges bonds among area residents, helps reduce burglaries and robberies, and improves relations between police and the communities they serve. 

If you are interested in starting a neighborhood watch please contact me (Sam Shirley) at the Fairwood Storefront Office.  The number is (206) 296-3846.   

Citizen’s Academy

Citizen's Police Academy

The Maple Valley Police, Covington Police and King County Sheriff Departments invite you to this year's Citizens' Academy. The departments have collaborated and designed a program to increase the understanding between citizens and their police department through education.

It is our hope that by the completion of the Academy, graduates will have gained a better understanding of the law enforcement role in the criminal justice system, and an appreciation for the many challenges facing law enforcement in today's complex society.

The Academy is held on Thursday evenings from March through May/June at the Lake Wilderness Lodge in Maple Valley. The class size is limited and will be filled on a first come, first served basis. There is no cost for this great experience. 

Applicants must be 18 years old, live in King County and have no prior felony convictions. All applicants must pass a criminal history background check.  Check this website in early February for application and scheduled class dates.

Please call (425) 413-5158 if you have any questions.

Sex Offender Website – OffenderWatch®
Provided below is a link to the King County Sheriff’s Office Sex Offender website.
http://www.sheriffalerts.com/cap_main.php?office=54473

Block watch Captains List
I am currently attempting to establish a list of Blockwatch Captains in the Fairwood area.  If you are a Blockwatch Captain, or know one, please email me with the information at Samuel.shirley@kingcounty.gov 

Washington Statewide Victim Information & Notification Service
The Washington Statewide Victim Information & Notification Service will tell you if an offender is in custody and will give you other important custody information.  This service will also let you leave a phone number where you want to be called automatically when that offender is released, transferred, escapes or dies.

You can register for this service from a touch-tone phone at 1-877-846-3492 or go to www.vinelink.com and follow the directions.