Police Response to a Home Burglary

Imagine arriving home from work to your front door wide open. As you walk toward your home, you see there was clearly a forced entry. You enter your home to find your TVs, computers, and jewelry missing. You have no idea how long the intruder was in your home. You call the police.

Now imagine, your front door has been kicked in. Luckily, you have a security system installed. However, 30 seconds go by before the alarm is triggered. This time allotted for you to disarm your system is now time for a criminal to look around for valuables. The alarm is triggered; the security company calls and verifies it was not you who set off the alarm. They then call the police to notify them of the intrusion.

Consider the first scenario. You’ve called the police. According to the Bureau of Justice, over 15% of the time, the police don’t even come. Police departments respond based on a priority system. This case is considered “low-priority” since no lives are being immediately threatened.

Now, let’s consider the second scenario. Not only are there minutes before the police are even notified, but also it takes an average of 7 minutes nationwide for police response to verified alarm dispatches.

These statistics are alarming and leave you wondering, “What do I do?” First, You must have emergency contingency plans prepared and in place that clearly outline what you will do during that wait for the police, whether or not that your home alarm system is monitored. Second, consider how to prevent the break-in from happening in the first place. Hide your valuables out of sight from a window. If you have a security system, make sure you have stickers in the window or a sign in the yard to deter a criminal. Finally, HAVEN helps secure your door and prevent a break-in before it ever happens. These are just a few simple steps to greatly reduce your chances of a break-in.