Last night I was at my mother-in-law's house for Easter weekend. At 1:45 AM, I get a call on my cell phone from ADT, my alarm monitoring company. They tell me that the interior motion detector has triggered the alarm, and they ask if they should call the police.

I say "yes" of course, since I am 200 miles away and the house should be empty. I hang up and tell the wife what's going on and try to think of what to do next, and what might be going on. A few minutes later, I get a call back from ADT telling me that the Houston Police Department has refused to answer the call because my alarm permit expired! Now it's time to panic! I call HPD myself, and get the same response. I beg, and mention that I never got any sort of bill from them. They basically tell me to go to hell.

So I jump in my truck and cover the 200 miles in the driving rain in 2 hours 45 minutes. While on the road, I manage to get our local constable office on the phone, and they agree to go check it out. He calls me back and says the alarm is going off, but he can't see any sign of entry.

When I get to the house, I can see that someone tried to come in a back door, but the alarm went off before they even got the door fully opened. Must have scared them off. ADT obviously has the zones messed up, as I don't see how the interior motion detector could have triggered this alarm.

Morals of this story/lessons learned are:

1. Make sure your alarm permit is still valid. Houston, for example, will not remind you when yours expires. As the office told me, "you don't get a letter when your driver's license expires, do you?".

2. Make sure all of the folks on your call list are still good. My mother's name was high on my list, but she passed away last month...

3. If you have a constable or some other sort of neighborhood patrol, put their name and number on your alarm call list if you can.

I got lucky this time, but am now on a mission to beef up my defense system for when I am not around.

Learn from me. You can't imagine the feeling of driving 200 miles at 90 MPH in the rain in the dark, wondering who is rummaging through your house while the cops are sitting at the Dunkin' Donuts, refusing to even drive by... :mad:

Morals of this story/lessons learned are:

1. Make sure your alarm permit is still valid. Houston, for example, will not remind you when yours expires. As the office told me, "you don't get a letter when your driver's license expires, do you?".


Well in California we do get a letter when your drivers license expires. I actually got mine 2 weeks ago, and my DL expires in May. :D

I know it's not the point, but just trying to make a little funny.

I can't even fathom what your telling us here, as the cops will chase a nickle crime thief at 100mph into the wall because they refuse to stop, but they won't check out an alarm you have installed? And we pay their pensions for 40+ years when they retire at 42!!!! Somethings Soooo wrong here.

Learn from me. You can't imagine the feeling of driving 200 miles at 90 MPH in the rain in the dark, wondering who is rummaging through your house while the cops are sitting at the Dunkin' Donuts, refusing to even drive by... :mad:

Was the alarm going off the whole time? I'm suprised your nieghbor's hadn't called the cops. I don't know you're situation, but here when My two nieghbors are out of town, I know there gone. And if they're alarm was going off in the middle of the night, I'd be calling them on they're cell phone. All while watching they're house from my deck with my Bushmaster.:D

Yes, the alarm was going off the whole time. But I don't have a big horn mounted outside. It's loud as hell inside the house, but you don't really hear it that good outside. I might add an external horn as part of my upgrade.

704EVER, I was thinking the same thing...

Maybe you should have called the constable BEFORE you left your Mother-in-laws house! They could have checked it and called you back. And I'm sure in Houston, the cops don't have much time to sit and eat donuts. They are probably chasing Pac Man Jones trying to find the Oilers training site.:cool: Just kidding on that, just hate to see cop-bashing. Don't blame your Doctor when you get sick, for not getting a letter you know!

http://i143.photobucket.com/albums/r130/headjimmiepig/Janchevelle.jpg

So had the door been left unlocked or did the potential thief break it open? Just curious.

I'm curious about something as well. Do you have those ADT signs posted around?

First off, you need the external siren. You can not imagine the difference in noise it makes to alert neighbors,and scare the thieves.I know someone that had a similiar incident recently. Local police dept. calls their cell phone to inform them that they are at the property to respond to an alarm, but can get past a fence, and gate, and refused to jump it or go around,and eventually left. At first they were just glad that the police showed up, but then realized if someone had been in the the home, and or assaulting the homeowners, and the police were in the driveway, but refused to jump a fence to check the security of the home, and left, when they could have prevented the crime, or ended it. This could have resulted in an ugly court battle. I see both sides of the argument. However, the police have been called to a possible crime scene.It is there job, and worthy of our taxdollars, to ensure a secure perimeter.If a bank robber locks the banks front door,during the crime, the police dont give up and drive away.;)

I'm curious about something as well. Do you have those ADT signs posted around?

I've heard you don't want to put those signs out. It just tells the criminals what type of system they are dealing with.

I didn't have the constable phone number on me. First instinct was to get into the truck and start driving. Thanks to my Blackberry, I was able to do a search (while driving) and figure out what precinct I was in and found a number for the constable.

Door was locked (French doors). The wireless contact switch cover had been knocked off. I've done this myself trying to open that particular door. Someone obviously banged or pushed on it hard enough to knock the cover off, which triggers the alarm. Was still locked when I got there, but switch cover was on the floor...

I retract my cop-bashing. Just wish they could have spent the 50 cents to send me a bill for the alarm permit. Lord knows my property tax bill is high enough to cover it, and then some!

And yes, I have an ADT sign in my yard...

Of course, my main complaint is with the SOB who tried to break into my house. Wish I could have put some air holes in him with my Beretta 9mm. :mad:

We dont have that problem here in Canda. If you have a number of false alarms then the police will respond but will then send you a bill for their time. As part of most police departments policy, they HAVe to answer all alarm calls or 911 calls......it is a matter of safety. We dont have alarm permits here either. I dont know what they are about in the USA.

We dont have that problem here in Canda. If you have a number of false alarms then the police will respond but will then send you a bill for their time. As part of most police departments policy, they HAVe to answer all alarm calls or 911 calls......it is a matter of safety. We dont have alarm permits here either. I dont know what they are about in the USA.

We answer ALL alarms, but we are not Houston. 999 out of 1000 are false alarms, but it is the 1 that counts, that is why we answer ALL of them. Can't speak for Houston, but I'm sure it is night vs. day comparison to our small town.

Here in bemidji, mn all alarms get checked and most are false. Like 53chev said we have a three strikes rule. After 3 false alarms where the sheriff is called you get a bill that gets progressivly higher every time you have a false alarm for that year.

Gigem sorry to hear about your break in. Glad nothing was taken from your home.

This is the first I've ever heard about a permit for an alarm??? Thankfully I live relatively crime free area but still have ADT. I've set if off letting the dogs outside when I forgot to disarm the thing...ADT called within 30 seconds. I will say that if you have the magnetic contacts; MAKE SURE TO CHECK THEM ONCE IN A WHILE!!!! We were sound asleep (all four bedrooms are upstairs) and we had one of the magnetic switches fall off the patio door (the wife had done some cleaning earlier in the day) in the middle of the night. Well we do arm the system before we go to bed and the thing went off when that magnet fell off at about 2 AM. I don't have a gun but I do have a 9 iron and they have to come up those stairs to get to us so you get the picture. The two dogs sleep downstairs and they were not barking but I could hear them running around so I felt pretty safe going down to shut it off. Yes ADT called that time too, they are pretty fast.

I manage a store that has an alarm and monitored 24hrs. We have to renew our 'alarm permit' each year in order for the
local PD to come out when it's triggered, but this is a business.

I wouldn't expect a permit be required in a residential area, but maybe each city has different 'codes'/'fees'.

This is the first I've ever heard about a permit for an alarm??? .

Me too. If you don't have an alarm will they still come for free? Or are you SOL too? What the hell are you paying taxes for? My next call would be to the Mayor (but then I live in a town where he will actually answer the phone).

If it was a fire would the fire department just let it burn too?

Boggles the mind....

When I first joined TC last year, I did a search just to see what kind of cop bashing was on here. There was none that I can remember, now it is almost a weekly occurence. What gives?

Do you guys realize just how many alarms are set off any given day between businesses and residences? Especially in a big city, and as mentioned earlier 99% of them are false alarms.

First, in a city the size of Houston, do you really think the cops were sitting at Dunkin Doughnuts on a Saturday night? No, I'm guessing they were pretty busy. I know you took that back Fritz, but there is a lot of people that think that way.

Second, most cops don't live more than 5 - 10 years after they retire, so I don't know where that 40 years of pension comes from.

Third, it's all about liability now days. So no, the police are not going to jump fences and kick in doors just because the alarm went off and something MIGHT be going on inside. The city doesn't want to be sued and it's not going to back the officer for doing it, so the officer has everything to lose by trying to get into the house.

I don't know anything about these permits, so you got me there. It sounds like Houston is a little different, because I've never lived anywhere that didn't mail you something when your license expires.

If it was a fire would the fire department just let it burn too?

Boggles the mind....


Local FD - " uh, sorry, your fire permit isn't current so we can't come save your house. But your neighbors is, so if
theirs catches fire, call us back." :sad:

If you don't have an alarm will they still come for free?

If you don't have an alarm, how would the cops know they were supposed to come to your home?

I guess thats what bothers me..NOt knowing if they would come by- or know to come by..
Had some drunk kids in a pickup hit both my vehicles in my front yard .. tore the cars up pretty bad- the kids went on their way with three wheels .. I called the cops- ok it mightve been a busy nite..I MIGHT've thought about chasing the kids .. as they were just a few blocks away..Even told the dispatcher- that I SEE THEM..
Course IF I HAD chased them, they had another accident.. ID BE HELD LIABLE..

Oh, the guys came by at end of shift.. 4 hours later, since my son was fortunate to step out of the way when they blasted by...

love a cop as they are the only thing between you and the bad guys

Fritz, first Iam glad that the offenders did not get into your residence. They probably activated the interior sensor when kicking on the door. Ck with Houston and make sure the expiration date is reinstated. Not to scare you but from my experience they will come back. A few other things that you can do, leave a radio on inside the residence, or a TV. Have a few of your inside lights set on a timer. Install dead bolts with key on both sides. Put your weapons and jewelry in a strong safe. Mark your high end items, or write down all serial numbers and put in a safe place. The harder you make it for burglars, the better. Most of the time they know what they want prior to entering your residence. They grab the first pillowcase and put all your jewelry and money in the case, then hit the bathroom, and get the drugs, and there out. It only takes about 1 minute and they can rack up. Like you mentioned, hook up a siren outside your residence. I have been able to interview a few burglary suspects through the years, and each one has mentioned.
1. They don't like alarms
2. They will look for residences that do not have alarms
3. Darkened residence, or low lighting.
4. They will drive by and obtain the address, and then attempt to look up the number and call, prior to breaking in.
5. They will cut your phone lines, prior to entry. Make sure ADT has your alarm set to activate if this occurs.
6. They like quick and easy access to flee the area.
These are just a few of the answers, the bottom line is, make it as hard as you can, the statistics are against you.
Also as mentioned above our dept answers every alarm. If there are excessive activations we require a key holder to respond. That would be someone updated on your list with keys, and the capability to contact you in the event of a burglary, or fire.
One last thing, the dept I work for answered over 1000 false alarms last month. That is a small amount compared to Houston.
Sorry for the long post, but I hope this helps.

I got the trump.....

I found out AFTER I got an alarm installed, at a neighborhood watch meeting led by a real Salem Oregon police officer, that the Salem police will NOT respond to ANY residential security alarms, Period.

All my windows will be surrounded by noisy river rock on the ground below, and I will have a gauntlet similar to what McCauly Caulkin had set up in the movie "home alone".

Thanks for all of the replies... I will be talking to HPD today about my permit, and also to ADT to get an exterior siren.

And as far as false alarms go - I've had HPD respond to me once before on an alarm. About two years ago. We were out of town again. They came by and said "false alarm". When we got home a few hours later, a back window was busted out and you could see footprints all over the kitchen floor. Turns out the cops never got out of their patrol car. The one cop who came by (female, not that it matters) said that it was against protocol to get out and walk the perimeter since she didn't have a backup. I got this whole story when I called them back that night.

The other false alarms have been caught immediately, when ADT calls. HPD has never responded to a "real" false alarm at my house. I know they get a ton though...

I like cops, and I sure wouldn't want their job. Respect the hell out of what they do. Just had some bad experiences I guess.

Learn from my experiences folks... It could be you next... Be prepared...

Get yourself one of these... http://www.cctvspecialty.com/cosecasy.html. I think Costco has some real cheap versions as well (not the greatest picture, but adequate for home use).

Anyway, you can access the cameras from any high speed location, so no need to rush home. Plus, the DVR records continuously so if the creep is in and out quickly, you still have something for the police to investigate.

Hmmm... I wonder, if you had a camera system and told the police that you can "see" the burgler, if they would still tell you to bugger off if your permit had expired?

Kind Regards,
Bill

I can't even fathom what your telling us here, as the cops will chase a nickle crime thief at 100mph into the wall because they refuse to stop, but they won't check out an alarm you have installed? And we pay their pensions for 40+ years when they retire at 42!!!! Somethings Soooo wrong here.


Why do you blame policy on a Police Officer, they do not Make the policy... Politicians make the policies!!!! Maybe you should know how your government works before saying anything...

Automatic alarms are mostly a nuisance.... The majority are improperly installed and go off over the slightest breeze.... Automatic alarm calls went to the BOTTOM of the list and it could take us over an hour to get there... Unfortunately you'd have 100 other automatic alarms before yours to get to....

Bigger issue for me is ADT and their systems. I have one, I HAD faith in it until - 1. Cops dont really respond quickly to these issues and

2 (biggest) is that I watched a buddy walk into an ADT secured house and within that 15-30 second delay where the thing beeps prior to being disarmed - he walked over, ripped the unit out of the wall and boom - system was dead, no loud sirens, no loud alarm, no nothin. This was on his old home that he was moving out of and he did it when a discussion about home security came up over some beer. Security, huh? Watch this here - right out of the wall and killed the whole thing.

I am switching to another company next week that installs a back up system / controller that is locked in a secure metal box and bolted to the floor in the closet and they also provide two small cameras for the exterior of the house and run the wires, etc to the TV / media center and they enclose all the wires for the system and your home phone in large metal sleeving (another EASY way to defeat these systems - just cut the wires on the outside of the house usually in that flimsy panel by the gas / electric use meters).

I used to work in the alarm industry for many years with residential and commercial systems. I often coordinated between cities and residents regarding these same complaints.

This was taken directly from one large suburb's ordinance's regarding alarms:

"....nothing herein stated should be construed as imposing or implying any duty upon the (city) Police or Fire Departments to respond to alarm dispatch requests....the number of false alarms to which the (city) Police and Fire Departments now respond had reached a level which places significant burden upon the time and resources of the city"

Each city or county writes their own rules for alarms. This city requires a registration only after the first response and it's $10. It does not need to be renewed. It also states that on responses 4,5, and 6 that there will be a $75 fee for each false alarm resonse and $50 cumulative fee for each additional false alarm. They even have a "panic" alarm false alarm fee schedule if $100 after the first and additional $100 for each after 3. This is not unusual, as several other cities I have looked into were all about the same.

There have been lots of good ideas, the signs may advertise what system you have, but they also advertise that you have one. Burglars won't want to spend time trying to defeat a system when there's other less risky opportunites eslewhere. They also have no idea wether you have the alarm for property protection, personal protection (rapists, etc), or for fire/smoke/water/etc alarm supervision. I know you can go buy the signs and stickers on ebay for pretty cheap if that's all you want.

I always find it ironic that people will put an alarm on the home, then say screw the garage (not car people, we all know better) even though the windows are less secure, and once in a closed garage, they now have tools to make breaking in easier and loading into a vehicle faster (not to mention stealing the vehicle easier).

I wouldnt wast my money on an alarm.
Put it into deadbolts, bars on windows etc.
There is no way the police can protect you anyway, unless they just happen
to come cruising by.
Thats why that logo on the fender always kills me.

... to serve and protect


They can't protect you .

I wouldnt wast my money on an alarm.
Put it into deadbolts, bars on windows etc.
There is no way the police can protect you anyway, unless they just happen
to come cruising by.
Thats why that logo on the fender always kills me.

... to serve and protect


They can't protect you .

So make your house into a jail so that the folks that take people to jail dont have to come to your jail and take anyone to jail.

Im with ya.

:thumbsup: :D

Since over 98 percent of the alarms are false, the whole system of alert and response takes on a carnival atmosphere. I know, I dispatched for years, for a major city in MI. Some properties had over 50 alarms per year...all false. The city tried to crack down, but record-keeping of alarms-per-property got muddled because of people moving all the time. You can't charge homeowner (or renter) B, because homeowner A's alarms went off so much before the other guy even owned the place. Then there were "connected" property owners who always managed to get a "break". Also, the "business community" saved on insurance rates by having alarm service, and they bought cheap systems. And, the silliness of the dispatch priority, put intrusion alarms above property-damage accidents. So, you'd send two cops to a false alarm before you'd send one cop to an accident where real people were on the scene asking for the police. During storms, it wasn't uncommon to have a couple hundred intrusion alarms in the city at the same time. Of course, the one that got dispatched last, was the real alarm, where no property owner had responded. Sadly, until the alarm systems can be made much more reliable, we're stuck with the problem.

So make your house into a jail so that the folks that take people to jail dont have to come to your jail and take anyone to jail.

Im with ya.

:thumbsup: :D

actually, I don't have any of that stuff.
I have 'other' deterents. ;)

Two highly trained Bijons that would lick any intruder to the bone
in seconds.
Mercy!
If there is anything left when I get there then Mr Smith & Mr Wesson take over.

Wow, that is poor! Houston PD should be ashamed of themselves. No matter what the problem. Are they not committed to solving crimes?? If the contract expired, then it expired, but it is still a crime, and one in progress.

The answer to # 1 is yes, the state of Texas DOES send you a reminder when your DL is about to expire.

Pasadena just started enforcing their permit ordinance last year so I had to get one. About a month after I renewed it this year I got a letter from my alarm co saying they would not bother to call the police unless they received a copy of a current alarm permit. It's not enough to keep it up to date, you have to let everyone know you did too.

Glad you dodged the bullet this time Fritz.

Wow, that is poor! Houston PD should be ashamed of themselves. No matter what the problem. Are they not committed to solving crimes?? If the contract expired, then it expired, but it is still a crime, and one in progress.

Talk to one of your local cops about the sheer number of automatic alarms and ask about their response... A cat stuck in a tree is a higher priority job...

Here is a twist for you. I had and inside alarm (vocal, "you have entered a protected area, the police have been called, leave immediately").

I had an external speaker installed (also have ADT). I also had the yearly maintenance agreement. Everything seemed fine.

Turned out that the two speakers were too much of a load for the system and if the alarm went off (which it did) the alarm blow the internal circuit breaker and stopped working.

ADT never tested both speakers at once and it was like that for 5 years. I took them to court as I had paid both the monitoring fee and the maintenance fee.

Because I never really had a working system after the external speaker was installed, I won and got back 5 years of monitoring fees and the maintenance fees up to the max of small claims ($5,000.00). So if you have an external speaker installed make sure they test both speakers and that the system can handle both of them.:waving:

When I first joined TC last year, I did a search just to see what kind of cop bashing was on here. There was none that I can remember, now it is almost a weekly occurence. What gives?

Second, most cops don't live more than 5 - 10 years after they retire, so I don't know where that 40 years of pension comes from.


where did you get this stat? Your telling me that most cops don't live past 60? I would love to here where you came up with this? If cops are in that bad of shape when they retire, you might have just proven the doughnut theory to be true. Seriously where did you get this from?

where did you get this stat? Your telling me that most cops don't live past 60? I would love to here where you came up with this? If cops are in that bad of shape when they retire, you might have just proven the doughnut theory to be true. Seriously where did you get this from?


Donut theory???? Has to do with the stress of dealing with morons all day...

The cop bashing threads around here are getting out of hand... If you think you can do a better job, take the test, get hired, pass the academy and do it... If not shut your trap....

Why do you blame policy on a Police Officer, they do not Make the policy... Politicians make the policies!!!! Maybe you should know how your government works before saying anything...
..

Exactly the point I was making. Someone sets policy the police and fire departments and their men carry it out.

Here they respond to alarms, if its a false one you get a fine. Intent is to make installers responsible for making sure they are installed and work when they should and owners responsible for maintenance and proper operation.

From the responses it seems like the alarm companies are giving home owners a false sense of security, so as said, check with your city's policy before installing one. I'm sticking with the big barking and snarling dog method and make sure there are lots of other affluent looking houses in the neighborhood.

I have a good alarm story. I used to live in a high crime town and I had an alarm. Late one night, I disabled the alarm by entering my code. but I accidently punched one digit higher on the last number. My code was 4242, but I punched in 4243. This sets a silent alarm. It supposed to be used when an intruder comes into your home and forces you to shut the alarm off. I didn't realize I punched in the wrong code so I went about my business. Under a normal false alarm, the alarm company calls the house, but when this silent alarm is set they just automatically call the police. Well about 5-10 minutes later I see someone walking around my backyard with a flashlight. I throw open the patio door and like a nut start screaming and swearing at the guy. Turns out its a police officer. I probably came damn close to being shot. Lucky I didn't have a cell phone or anything in my hand. They had sent about 5-6 cops and had the house surrounded. I certainly can't complain about the response, but I think I may have used up one of my 9 lives on that day. How ironic would have that been? I get an alarm to protect myself and it ends up killing me.

I dont know about all these cop bashing posts some people are mentioning. I have seen several instances where cops were acting as if they were above the law. Raiding A house I was renting because the previous renter had a warrant out and stormed in to my house when he didnt believe that not only did I not know anyone by such name on the warrant, but I just moved in with another friend of mine and there certainly isnt anyone by that name on this rental lease. This was a nice neighborhood. Guy didnt buy any such thing I told him at the door and stormed in past me claiming probable cause because of this bozo on a warrant.:sad:

They also really cared about the car I had stolen in 03 too.:sad:

I know cops have a lot on thier minds and deal with a lot on the job. But the way law enforcement has gone the last 15 years is totally dissapointing. And even way out of line IMO.

When you are a law abiding citizen and your rights get violated. How would you feel about law enforcement?

I dont know about all these cop bashing posts some people are mentioning. I have seen several instances where cops were acting as if they were above the law. Raiding A house I was renting because the previous renter had a warrant out and stormed in to my house when he didnt believe that not only did I not know anyone by such name on the warrant, but I just moved in with another friend of mine and there certainly isnt anyone by that name on this rental lease. This was a nice neighborhood. Guy didnt buy any such thing I told him at the door and stormed in past me claiming probable cause because of this bozo on a warrant.:sad:

They also really cared about the car I had stolen in 03 too.:sad:

I know cops have a lot on thier minds and deal with a lot on the job. But the way law enforcement has gone the last 15 years is totally dissapointing. And even way out of line IMO.

When you are a law abiding citizen and your rights get violated. How would you feel about law enforcement?

Do you know how many cars are stolen a day??? Where i worked we lost an average of about 50 a week! Not only that, it's nothing more than a traffic ticket when you catch them... Been there....

Maybe you should have a remote HORN installed at Dunkin' Donuts..............

where did you get this stat? Your telling me that most cops don't live past 60? I would love to here where you came up with this? If cops are in that bad of shape when they retire, you might have just proven the doughnut theory to be true. Seriously where did you get this from?

Mike, I can't tell you where the stat is from, just that I've heard it over and over. It is very true though, I always hear the old timers telling stories about guys that retired not too long ago and they've passed away now.

In a way this has to do with what kind of shape the guys are in when they retire, but it's not from the donut theory. It has to do with doing 20 some years on one of the most stressful jobs around. Also one thought is that some get so attached to the job and being a cop, that when they retire they kind of lose who they are. I can't say if this is true, but it's a theory that's out there.

Chris, how were your rights violated? They weren't, and your house was not raided. If it was raided, you wouldn't have had a chance to open the door and talk to the cops first. They don't go looking for people that didn't show to traffic court, this guy was probably wanted for something serious. For that reason and your address being the last known for this guy, they had reason to go in and look around.

About the stolen car, Allen is right it's far too common and they don't do anything to the bad guys if they're caught anyway.

The problem in the last 15 years has nothing to do with the cops. It has to do with the courts, lawmakers, and policy makers. The courts don't do anything to the bad guys for anything but the worst of crimes; jails are to full, people had bad childhoods, they can be reformed without jail, blah blah blah. Everyone watches TV, so they think they know their rights and the law and will make a complaint in a second. Society is all about hanging a cop by the you know whats for anything now days, so honestly a cop is almost better off sitting back and doing nothing. The departments and cities won't even back cops on justified shootings a lot of the time now days. My feeling is that at some point the citizens will get sick of all this crap and go back to saying let the cops be the cops, but until then it's the way it is.

I'll be the first to admit that some cops are complete a-holes, and I'll laugh right along with you at a donut joke. I'm actually a really cool cop, I mean really I drive a Chevelle, how bad can I be? Sorry for the long post, just trying to stop all the cop bashing lately. Also, when I say guys or his, this is just a general comment, I'm not saying all cops are male. See, that's me covering myself so I don't get a complaint.;)

............. Raiding A house I was renting because the previous renter had a warrant out and stormed in to my house when he didnt believe that not only did I not know anyone by such name on the warrant, but I just moved in with another friend of mine and there certainly isnt anyone by that name on this rental lease. This was a nice neighborhood. Guy didnt buy any such thing I told him at the door and stormed in past me claiming probable cause because of this bozo on a warrant.:sad:



On the other hand would we want police that would go to a place where their information indicated a wanted person was at and when met by him at the door and he said "oh I'm not him" say "oh well OK then, have a good day" ?

Maybe you should have a remote HORN installed at Dunkin' Donuts..............

You forgot the smiley Dave :D
---

There are good and bad in every group of whatever but that has nothing to do with a city's policy of answering alarm calls.

Back to the issue......

False alarms are not the police's responsibility to fix. They respond or don't depending on department policy and workload.

The real responsibility is to the homeowner and alarm installer/supplier. The homeowner obviously has to know how the alarm works and what can set false alarms. They also need to report any problems (like bad contacts) to the alarm company and get them fixed. The system provider has to show the user how it all works and make sure the system is in good repair.

I would think that once installed, an alarm company would want you to have zero problems, since they will still continue to collect the monitoring fees for years to come if you're happy. They would also want to come back at the end of your contract to make sure it's all OK, or upgrade you to new equipment when you re-sign.

As for dogs, they can be bribed or otherwise disposed of. Easily. If I really wanted in, I would let them out to run free while I was inside.

The best monitoring is a phone dialer that calls your cellphone and a trustworthy neighbor to be able to check on your home if you are away.... Unless 911 gets a human voice telling them you're being burglarized there will be no quick response if there is any response at all....

Seeing what's happening to Cops these days trying to do their job in good faith I don't understand how any respond to crimes in progress anymore. The only thing you are doing by trying to stop a crime in progress is setting yourself up for a civil suit or jail time... Show up after the perp has left and take a report, that's the extent of the job now....

The only thing you are doing by trying to stop a crime in progress is setting yourself up for a civil suit or jail time... Show up after the perp has left and take a report, that's the extent of the job now....

Indeed. This is what scared away from the job and why I left the academy. Sue the city, sue the officer personally and wipe them out, etc. Hell, Oakland PD has more IA investigators than they do homicide, places like SF and such - the DA is not on the cops side, more like these watch groups that scrutinize the department at every turn. Moral is crap, cops cant do their jobs or out of fear of being not only fired but jailed and financially ruined - screw that. I would love to do the job as I think it should be, as perhaps it used to be but in todays political climate and the whole "criminals have more rights than the officers or the victims" - nope. I didnt sign up and work my arse off at the academy to become the equivalent of a damn mall security guard with a car full of gadgets.

At least as a civilian I can still grab and beat the hell out of a gang banger if I catch em selling dope or tagging walls by my house and get a slap on the wrist for teaching them a lesson. As a cop - civil rights violation, sue the city, lose my job, get sued personally (not that I would as an officer but i'll be damned if I can put up with some smart mouth gangster threatening me and talking trash or having to simply "subdue" if attacked rather than crushing them). Nah - i'll take the 48 hours in jail instead and be home with a smile.

NYC just finally fired a Judge who let a criminal out the back door so that the cops waiting outside to arrest him couldn't... This is the same judge who dropped the charges against a guy who wrestled a cops gun from him and shot him with it...

The PC Police have castrated the Real Police... Prepare to be able to defend yourself and secure your property, the police can't do it anymore....

It's a sad day when our federal Government gives an Illegal Drug Smuggler amnesty to testify about 2 agents and the prosecutor withholds evidence that would clear them...

Or a Perp is trying to run a cop over and they open fire on him only to be indicted....

F the permit! You think they would respond just to catch the guy B&E'ing to get him off the street. What a bunch of losers.

F the permit! You think they would respond just to catch the guy B&E'ing to get him off the street. What a bunch of losers.

Go back and carefully read the posts about automatic alarms, you missed a whole bunch of content...

F the permit! You think they would respond just to catch the guy B&E'ing to get him off the street. What a bunch of losers.
I have to agree. If the permit was not filed give me a ticket for not filing it, but don't let the bad guy go because the permit was not filed. Doing it this way punishes the good guy and lets the bad guy get way.:waving:

Go back and carefully read the posts about automatic alarms, you missed a whole bunch of content...

Allen, sounds like he missed the boat!:yes:

I have to agree. If the permit was not filed give me a ticket for not filing it, but don't let the bad guy go because the permit was not filed. Doing it this way punishes the good guy and lets the bad guy get way.:waving:

99999 out of 100000 automatic alarms are bogus calls... Cops DO NOT rush to them... Like I said, you'll be lucky if you get a response in less than an hour if any at all..... If you alarm goes off too many times, they stop responding altogether or fine you....

Here's the straight scoop on this deal. Your best security measures are a big dog that barks a lot, or that nosey 60 or 70 year old neighbor lady that watches everything in the neighborhood. If she calls in and says there's someone trying to get into that house and I don't know them, there will be at least 4 cars hustling to get there.

Now if it is just another ADT silent, the cop will be like I got it and cancel my cover, I'll let you know when I get there, and that will be after they finish breakfast or whatever.

You all ever watch that show on Discovery about the burglars and security, I don't know the name of it. Those guys go big time; opening garage doors, loading up vans, and cleaning out complete houses, and they do that in a hurry. Now think of the small time crook cleaning out a bedroom or whatever. They can do that in probably 2 or 3 minutes.

According to an earlier post, it takes thirty seconds before the alarm even goes off; then your alarm comapany is going to call your house to make sure it's not a false alarm, then if no one answers they're going to call dispatch, it's going to take dispatch who knows how many minutes to finish eating their cheetos and get the call out, then the officer is going to finish eating breakfast and get there 30 to 45 minutes after the alarm actually went off. You could be out pretty much everything worth any value by that time.

You are better off getting the stickers to put in your window, because they do help, and spending all that money you put into an alarm system on your Chevelle or El Camino.

Sorry to put it so bluntly, but like Allen said, unless an actual human is saying, hey I see this happening, it's not a priority call.

About the stolen car, Allen is right it's far too common and they don't do anything to the bad guys if they're caught anyway.

Sadly, I know this is exactly true. Just had another familys car stolen 2 weeks ago.

On the other hand would we want police that would go to a place where their information indicated a wanted person was at and when met by him at the door and he said "oh I'm not him" say "oh well OK then, have a good day" ?

Dean, when they started banging on the door telling us its the police with an arrest warrant. I was at the door real quick, to find out just what the deal was. He was quite adamint(sp) in his intentions showing me the warrant and telling he was here for persons name here with a warrant for his arrest. Not one of those episodes of cops where they break your door down and rush in with guns. Just knocked on the door.

But anyways, we MOST certainly didnt just say. "Sorry, thats not me". You can bet me and the roommate were already out with our IDs to show him that neither of us were the one he was looking for.

I told him if thats not enough I got plenty of more proof if you want. He wouldnt let me go to the bedroom by myself to get more Identification which is totally understandable. So I brought him to my bedroom and grabbed a paycheck stub with my name and addy on it, several items of mail with my name and address on it, even my social security card.

After that my roomate showed him the same thing in his room. Nothing to hide and we were totally coperative. Even showed him a signed copy of the lease.

I believe he only wanted to see me and my friends proof in the our bedrooms just so he could enter the place further and "look around". I dont think he had anymore intrest in our ID. Just wanted a reason to search and got a reason when I told him I have more proof. Neither of us had anything to hide.

Donut theory???? Has to do with the stress of dealing with morons all day...

The cop bashing threads around here are getting out of hand... If you think you can do a better job, take the test, get hired, pass the academy and do it... If not shut your trap....
I never said I could do a better job, I ask someone where I got that stat from. Plus, I went to school, got an education, so I can do what I like to do. If you don't like the job I would suggest you do the same. If someone on the internet asks a question and you respond the way you did, I am sure I will be reading about you in the newspapers soon enough.
ever thought about stress management? might help?

You all ever watch that show on Discovery about the burglars and security, I don't know the name of it. Those guys go big time; opening garage doors, loading up vans, and cleaning out complete houses, and they do that in a hurry. Now think of the small time crook cleaning out a bedroom or whatever. They can do that in probably 2 or 3 minutes.

That show is called "It Takes a Thief". It's a decent show, and actually lets the homeowners see the burglary as it happens via CCTV. I will say it's a little dramatized and played for the camera some, but basically how it goes down. More than anything, it shows the process a burglar goes through in entry points and how fast everything happens. They're in the house for 10 minutes, and that's because they have to make it overwhelming to the homeowner by hitting every room and taking a large value of stuff.

The show lost me when they began putting in too many high-tech gadgets instead of focusing on the basics of prevention. It still doesn't matter what happens once an alarm goes off. You have to prevent your home from being invaded. Make them go somewhere else, don't make it an easy target. I forget who it was, but a few months ago I forwarded my teaching notes to a TC member (I teach a community ed class on this very subject-home security without alarms) here. There's loads of things you can do aside from trying to catch them like different landscaping techniques, building materials options, lighting, etc.

I see the cop-bashing has continued here. I just returned home from a 2 day Anti-Terrorism conference. I went to the training to learn about Domestic Terrorism, and received training in Domestic and International Terrorism. I attended the conference to further my training. After 18 years on the job, I continue to educate myself because I want to do a good job. And yes, I do Serve and Protect on a daily basis. I'm sure everyone I have dealt with in the last 18 years is not happy with my job performance. But I do what I think is right. I feel good about the job I have done. Don't Judge the police profession by one incident or by one police officer (or a few for that matter). We are all different. We are not all the same because we do the same job and wear similar uniforms. Just like any profession, we are all different. If you want to say something negative about a police officer, be sure you can do that. It is unfair to say "Cops" are like this or that, or "Cops" do this or that. Judge the individual, not the profession. By the way, I can "retire" in 2 years with a half-pay pension. I wont be able to live on that. I will be 43 years old. I will either stay with the job or find another line of work and still collect my half-pay. I don't want to be responding to bar-fights when I am 60. Among other things. Now I'm going to go out and enjoy my '68!:yes:

http://i143.photobucket.com/albums/r130/headjimmiepig/Janchevelle.jpg
http://i143.photobucket.com/albums/r130/headjimmiepig/motor1.jpg

I never said I could do a better job, I ask someone where I got that stat from. Plus, I went to school, got an education, so I can do what I like to do. If you don't like the job I would suggest you do the same. If someone on the internet asks a question and you respond the way you did, I am sure I will be reading about you in the newspapers soon enough.
ever thought about stress management? might help?

Read about me in the Newspaper? If you paid more attention you'd know I am not a cop, got a much better job these days... And I do have an education and can do whatever I want to...

where did you get this stat? Your telling me that most cops don't live past 60? I would love to here where you came up with this? If cops are in that bad of shape when they retire, you might have just proven the doughnut theory to be true. Seriously where did you get this from?

Mike, I got some numbers for you now. I'm in a training class all this week and today was all about PTSD and stress. It is not so much a stat but a study I guess.

Because cops are costantly dealing with different stresses over a twenty year career, as in stuff that most people never have to deal with or see, they have very high levels of cortisol (sp?). Cortisol is the bodies slow drip hormone/chemical reaction to stress. Everyone gets it at times from job change/loss, moving, getting a scratch on your Chevelle;) , or other major stressors, but this is only once every so many years for most. It is almost constant for cops and they actually get used to it, so they don't even realize it is happening. For this reason the average life expectancy for a cop is 58 years.

Now this study can only come from cops that have retired to this point obviously and there are ways to combat this, like exercise, healthy eating, and just living good basically. Admittedly the older generations of cops weren't always in the best of shape being from lack of exercise, smoking, drinking a lot, eating donuts:D , lack of knowledge, or whatever. Hopefully the newer generations of cops can change this and we can collect on those pensions for a while longer.