high_on_rock Posted February 12, 2007 Share Posted February 12, 2007 With the recent gear recovery highlighted above in the climbing section, I become curious as to the response of local law enforcement. I am over here in Spokane, and the criminal justice system is so overwhelmed that unless you are currently being killed, raped, or driving 34 in a 30 mph zone, you will not get police response for anything. Gear theft, car theft, or even identity theft; will not get any attention. My question is what is the situation in King county? If someone were to get the information on the Exit 38 thieves, would the sheriffs even do anything? I would be willing to sit in the woods with a bait-car for a couple days with a camera, if it would do any good. So I ask this question in all seriousness: What is the current state of response in King County to theft crimes? Serious responses only please, this is not spray. Eric Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
catbirdseat Posted February 12, 2007 Share Posted February 12, 2007 Speed limits are pretty much the only laws that are consistently enforced in the state of Washington. That's about all I know. Well that and you have to be convicted about 7 times of car theft before you'll do any serious prison time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RedNose Posted February 12, 2007 Share Posted February 12, 2007 No one who ACTUALLY knows the answer to this question is in their right mind going to list response times to various codes. So good luck with that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris Posted February 12, 2007 Share Posted February 12, 2007 Last year, one of our cars was broken into and some clothes stolen while we were trail running near Sedro-Wooley in Skagit County. The Sheriff responded in about 30 minutes. From conversations I've had with Bellingham Police, crimes that have physical victims, or potential physical victims (domestic disturbance, assault, DUI, etc.) have a priority over property crimes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kevbone Posted February 12, 2007 Share Posted February 12, 2007 Speed limits are pretty much the only laws that are consistently enforced in the state of Washington. Good point...I think its because its one of the only "sure thing" as far as incoming money for the state/County. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Knottygirl Posted February 12, 2007 Share Posted February 12, 2007 Sometimes I work at a youth center and we had to call the police on an irate parent who was physically threatening a couple of girls who were in a fight with his daughter. The police didn't show up for three hours! The whole time the girls were too scared to walk home because of this crazy guy! Not to mention the youth center is sponsored by the police (oh and the cop shop is like 5 blocks away!) WTF!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tvashtarkatena Posted February 12, 2007 Share Posted February 12, 2007 With regard to the recovered stolen climbing gear thread, the cops came about an hour after my initial call. I didn't expect anything faster; it wasn't an emergency. They called me again once they'd actually dispatched a car. Once there, they looked up the gear owner's name for a previous case number. They missed it the first time, but found it later, investigated the house, checked out the lady who sold me the gear (no rap sheet), then checked out her absent 'roommate' (big rap sheet). They then called me back. They've now linked my case number to the original victim's. Overall, a decent response and due diligence. To see how it turns out, follow the 'stolen gear recovered' thread. It could be a while, of course. One lesson here is personal responsibility. Law enforcement probably isn't going to stake out a remote parking lot; and if you think about it, given their other priorities, would you want them to? Personal, car, and home security, practically speaking, is the citizen's responsibility, much like climbing safety. Call 911 for sure, but you can't always depend on a rapid response for any situation. Having said that, when you witness any crime, file a report. Nothing may seem to happen, but those reports go into a statistical database that helps determine future law enforcement coverage for your area. In the very best case, you might actually get your gear back and be able to help nab the shitheel who took it...if you've marked your gear so that's it's traceable to you by a stranger, that is. As for exit 38, if one thief was found hanging upside down from a tree near the parking lot, missing his skin and balls, that might just send an effective message. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bstach Posted February 12, 2007 Share Posted February 12, 2007 Then you'd be known as the mysterious "Exit 38 Vigilante" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tvashtarkatena Posted February 12, 2007 Share Posted February 12, 2007 Perhaps it would be enough to hang him upside down from a tree stripped of his clothing, with the number "38" spray painted across his chest, surrounded by selection of idle pinata sticks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jmace Posted February 13, 2007 Share Posted February 13, 2007 In Vancouver, they just ran a story that says you can get a Pizza faster than you can get the police from 911, I beleive it was about 35 minutes for a life threatining situation, while the pizza takes 28 or its free (dominoes I think) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tvashtarkatena Posted February 13, 2007 Share Posted February 13, 2007 (edited) Perhaps Dominoes should offer an "I'm being mugged" promo discount. Unless, of course, you're being mugged in a donut shop. Edited February 13, 2007 by tvashtarkatena Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dechristo Posted February 13, 2007 Share Posted February 13, 2007 Perhaps Dominoes should offer an "I'm being mugged" promo discount. they deliver a piece-ah loaded with 38special toppings Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
grandpa Posted April 1, 2007 Share Posted April 1, 2007 A question from an "outsider"... does Washington state authorize concealed weapons (we do - North Dakota)? My guess is that if so, this would cause a drastic drop in this kind of problem. I read on many of these forums about the apparent prevalent problem of vehicle breakins and general thievery at trailheads, and think that a short barrel .357 in the vest ought to be standard gear. What say ye? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
catbirdseat Posted April 1, 2007 Share Posted April 1, 2007 You think concealed weapons would have an impact on car breakins at trailheads? Dream on! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
grandpa Posted April 1, 2007 Share Posted April 1, 2007 Well, I guess I'd have to answer that if it were me doing the breaking in, having to concern myself about the owner, or anyone else coming along with the tools to stop me dead in my tracks would cause me to re-think the whole idea. However, perhaps we're talking about a completely different type of person here. I understand that there are many low-life druggies out there, and they don't think, just do. That was your point, I take it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
archenemy Posted April 2, 2007 Share Posted April 2, 2007 Washington does issue Concealed Weapons permits. It is easy to obtain one and can be done online. There is no correlation between this and lower crime rates. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
needtoclimb Posted April 2, 2007 Share Posted April 2, 2007 Well, I guess I'd have to answer that if it were me doing the breaking in, having to concern myself about the owner, or anyone else coming along with the tools to stop me dead in my tracks would cause me to re-think the whole idea. However, perhaps we're talking about a completely different type of person here. I understand that there are many low-life druggies out there, and they don't think, just do. That was your point, I take it? I am confused at your logic. Isn't the reason car prowls are so prevelant at trailheads is because the theives know the people are away from their cars for an extened period of time? How would you carrying a gun while four miles away from your car deter any thieves? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
archenemy Posted April 2, 2007 Share Posted April 2, 2007 Well, you'd have to be a pretty good shot; but it might work... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
catbirdseat Posted April 2, 2007 Share Posted April 2, 2007 Well, I guess I'd have to answer that if it were me doing the breaking in, having to concern myself about the owner, or anyone else coming along with the tools to stop me dead in my tracks would cause me to re-think the whole idea. However, perhaps we're talking about a completely different type of person here. I understand that there are many low-life druggies out there, and they don't think, just do. That was your point, I take it? These guys rely on stealth and guile. They are very quick and avoid confrontation. They hang out and wait until no one is in sight to do their dirty work. No one is willing to waste their time staking out a parking lot. On the other hand, if I saw someone just hanging out when I approached, I'd be very reluctant to park and leave my car. I heard a story last year about someone who did that last year. The guys followed him to make sure he was walking to the Far Side then turned back and hit his car. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cj001f Posted April 2, 2007 Share Posted April 2, 2007 Why don't you just sit in the back of your pickup with an M-16 and make sure none of the rest of us have our cars broken into? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joblo7 Posted April 2, 2007 Share Posted April 2, 2007 guns as solution..........hummmmmmmm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
grandpa Posted April 3, 2007 Share Posted April 3, 2007 [ How would you carrying a gun while four miles away from your car deter any thieves? I guess the point is they don't know if you're 4 miles away or 4 seconds away from the car. Anyway, I was just wondering. We don't seem to have that problem here (admitedly, not many mountains and trailheads), and we do have concealed carry laws. One day I'll be "out there" more often than I am now, and am deciding on how to conduct business. That's it..... grandpa Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KaskadskyjKozak Posted April 3, 2007 Share Posted April 3, 2007 Why don't you just sit in the back of your pickup with an M-16 and make sure none of the rest of us have our cars broken into? That's an idea. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
archenemy Posted April 3, 2007 Share Posted April 3, 2007 [ How would you carrying a gun while four miles away from your car deter any thieves? I guess the point is they don't know if you're 4 miles away or 4 seconds away from the car. Anyway, I was just wondering. We don't seem to have that problem here (admitedly, not many mountains and trailheads), and we do have concealed carry laws. One day I'll be "out there" more often than I am now, and am deciding on how to conduct business. That's it..... grandpa I understand your memory may not be what it used to be so let me restate: We have CW permits here that are easy to get. This obviously does not stop the crime and is not the answer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
grandpa Posted April 3, 2007 Share Posted April 3, 2007 I understand your memory may not be what it used to be so let me restate: We have CW permits here that are easy to get. This obviously does not stop the crime and is not the answer. Well, it's not an issue of memory, I saw (and recalled) your reply that you folks do have concealed weapons laws. However, in that case, I believe that the thieves are banking on the fact that they think that they'll not be confronted, especially by anyone with a weapon, that's why the crime rate (in this particular area anyway) hasn't dropped. So I guess my question would then be, what IS the answer (in your view)? I really would like to take my grandkids out hiking (when they're old enough, soon) without having to concern myself with the likelyhood of encountering lots of low-lifes somewhere in the parking areas, having my car broken into, having to rent a car with extra insurance or whatever. What do you folks (who live here) think the answer is? grandpa... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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