Crime Prevention Tips

Protect Yourself

In a dangerous situation, it is important to consider your own safety first. There are several things that you can do to help keep yourself safe.

• Always be alert and aware of your surroundings at all times.
• Always walk in well-lit areas and walk assertively.
• Avoid dark sidewalks and areas.
• Always trust your instincts; if someone or something makes you uneasy, leave immediately.
• Avoid walking close to recessed doorways when walking down the sidewalk at night.
• If someone in a vehicle stops to ask for directions, answer from a distance. If the vehicle follows you, turn around and walk in the opposite direction- the vehicle will have to reverse directions in order to keep you in sight.
• Do not fill your arms with packages, always keep an arm and one hand free whenever possible.
• Travel with a companion or in groups when out of town or in unfamiliar neighborhoods and settings.
• At home keep doors and windows locked at all times. Do not hide a spare key outside for a criminal to find.
• Do not open the door to a stranger.
• If you are attacked- talk with the attacker to show sympathy, deal with him/her as a person; force the attacker to see you as a person and not an object.
• Pretend to faint or vomit. If anything you do or say makes the attacker more violent - stop doing it!
• Last resort- physical resistance. Struggle/fight back. Vulnerable areas to strike are the groin, eyes, Adam's apple, nose…Pulling back on the little finger and kicking the shins can also be effective. Do not try to defeat the attacker- just break free and run! Scream/make noise. When using this option yell "FIRE" instead of help.
• If someone tries to rob you, do not resist. It is more important to give up your property than your life. Report the crime immediately to the police. Try to describe the attacker as accurately as possible; your actions could prevent a subsequent crime.