Local News and Crime

I've been spending more time in Los Angeles over the past few months. Getting back to watching their local news at night has been alarming. The first fifteen minutes of the news are spent talking about robberies, rapes, car chases, gang activity, and murders. True. Since I've lived in the San Diego area for over seven years now, I've been lulled into a false sense of security. Occasionally we'll hear about something in our area, but back in the big city it's a big part of the news.

I became aware of this a few weeks ago while watching local news and hearing about a girl that had been attacked at night while walking her dog. Since my sister just moved to Hollywood from Pittsburgh, the story caught my attention. I would not walk my dog alone at night in Westwood (where my mother lives) much less Hollywood. My sister thinks it's perfectly safe, but I am trying to tell her it's not. You cannot walk alone in Los Angeles even in the very best neighborhoods.

My mom lives near UCLA, a very nice area of Los Angeles. She is aware of the crime reports in the area, most of which don't hit the newspapers. Hardly a week goes by that there's not an incident near campus of attempted rape or assault. It's hard to believe. Just last week a few young girls were ringing doorbells in the area asking to use the phone, then coming in and tying up the homeowners and robbing them! I told my mother not to open the door, day or night, for anyone she didn't know. So please, Madeleine (that's my sister), recognize that you are living in a dangerous area and take the proper precautions.

Not that San Diego is without crime. It isn't, and it's getting worse all the time. Gang activity in Solana Beach and Encinitas is something new, and gang taggings are popping up where I never saw any before. I've heard about people leaving their garage doors open 6-8 inches so their cats can come in and out, thieves crawling under the garage and into the house. I remember when I lived in Del Mar and used to walk with the dog up to Crest. There were some off the road trails that looked inviting, but I always thought they were too isolated. The bottom line is that we all have to take precautions, regardless of where we live. We've had two horrific murders here in the past year and have learned from that that no one or no place is safe. It's sad to think that you can no longer go for an afternoon jog in the park without worrying about your safety. Just as we have a new way of looking at the safety of our country since 9-11, we must also have new ways of looking at our personal safety.