PCRC Reviews Community Crime Prevention, Fundraising Events

The PCRC held their meeting as usual on the last Thursday of the month in April. (April 24th, 2012)

There was a review of several ongoing and upcoming events and activities starting with the mention of Officer Appreciation Day. Although not an event open to the general public, the Pikesville PCRC takes great pride in arranging a day to show their appreciation for the hard work and sacrifice of the officers in their precinct.

There are also local businesses who help to sponsor this event. The food this year will be provided by Andy Nelson and Oriental Trading is helping out with "grab bags" for the kids in attendance.  Ortho Maryland will also be there with a table and giveaways in addition to the "Police Explorers" who will be available to help with set up and clean up. It is a wonderful reminder that there are still people and entities that care about their neighborhoods! A heartfelt "Thank You" goes out to all who are helping with this event!

There was also a reminder that the yearly 5050 raffle has begun and at 6 tickets for $5.00, it's definitely worth a try! The raffle tickets can be purchased at the monthly meetings or by emailing the President, Jerry D'Antoni. (j.dantoni@verizon.net) The drawing will be held in September.

Additionally, there was discussion about the upcoming Annual Bull & Oyster Roast to be held on September 22, 2012, at the Parkville American Legion. Tickets are $35.00 and can be purchased, as with the raffle tickets, by emailing Jerry D'Antoni. (j.dantoni@verizon.net) 

Finally there was the nominating of this year's officers for the Pikesville PCRC and voting will take place at the May meeting. The floor was then given to Officer Luke Matthews to share what he learned at the convention he attended regarding community crime prevention.  

Officer Matthews began by relating that there were 20 different agencies represented at the convention and that Baltimore County officers actually implement the tactics and training that are taught at this convention.  He explained what the definition "Crime Prevention" actually is and went on to explain the goal of crime prevention and what the three elements needed for a crime to occur are: 

1. Desire or motivation on the part of the criminal
2. The skills and tools needed to commit the crime
3. Opportunity

Further, Office Matthews explained that the ultimate goal of crime prevention is to reduce the risk of being a victim. In order to accomplish this, it is important to remove opportunities for a criminal to take advantage of you or your property. You are attempting to present an unattractive target to the criminal. This effort at removing opportunities is often referred to as "target hardening." Target hardening can be as complex as installing a high tech alarm system or be something as simple as locking your door which in the Precinct 4 area has been a recurring issue as residents are forgetting to lock their car doors and the doors to their homes. This has resulted in multiple crimes of opportunity in this area with residents not taking the time to report these crimes. PLEASE REPORT IT IF IT HAPPENS TO YOU!

Officer Matthews also gave specific examples of how to make a crime too difficult, too visible and not "worth it" to the criminal. He discussed crime prevention through "environmental design" and being sure to have a "secure" entry door and reminded everyone that they could get a free Security Survey done by calling their local police precinct. 

All in all, an extremely informative talk! Thanks to Officer Luke Matthews for taking the time to come and speak! As a reminder, the next meeting will be held on May 22th, 2012 at and voting for officers will take place at this meeting. Remember, we can all make a difference just by being more alert and reporting what we see.

Hope to see everyone at the upcoming meeting!

Note: The original version of this blog listed the incorrect date for the May PCRC meeting. It has been corrected.