Not only do I not lock my car, I don't even know where my house key is

[cali]

I never lock my car unless I go to Boston or Montreal, and I haven't locked my house in years, even when I go away. It's never been broken into. It's not even something I think about.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

1. My dear cali...

You must live in a very low-crime area...

If we behaved like that, our house would be gotten into rather quickly, I suspect.

We always lock our cars when we take them out, too.

We've never had a problem.

And we are comfortable with it.

I'm happy for you!

:hi:

[cali]

2. Yes I do.

Live in a low crime area, I mean. I live outside a tiny village in Northern Vermont. I can't remember the last time there was a crime here.

[Enrique]

9. be more specific

and just out of curiosity, what color is your house? :-)

[cali]

18. LOL! n/t

[FloridaJudy]

4. I stopped locking my car

After the last two times it was broken into. It cost me far more to replace the glass than the stuff that got stolen was worth. So now I just leave it open. The car is fourteen years old, and held together by rust and bumper-stickers, so no self-respecting thief would bother with it. The junk inside? I'm not that attached to any of it. I've had even more decrepit cars. On one memorable occasion, I drove to the station to take a train to visit a dying family member. I was so upset, I left the door unlocked and the keys in the ignition. When I returned four days later, after the funeral, it was still there. There are some advantages to driving old junkers.

My apartment I lock. I don't have anything that valuable there (except for the pets), either, but I do care for my safety, as well as that of my cat and dog.

[northzax]

22. heck I once TRIED to get my car stolen

to get rid of it, and it wasn't taken.

[GenDem]

3. Not only do I not lock my car, I leave the keys in it.....

so that I know exactly where they are. We don't lock our house, either.

:hi:

[AZBlue]

23. Not only do I lock my car, I leave the keys in it with the engine running.

Ooops.

(Just once...)

[amitten]

5. Here's why I always lock my house:

I saw a documentary on A&E about a family that got murdered on New Year's Eve day in Boston.

They lived in an expensive, upper-middle-class neighborhood. They were preparing for that night's party, where most of the neighborhood was invited to attend. They didn't lock their doors.

That day, in broad daylight, a couple of freaks walked into their unlocked house, took the whole family by force into the basement and killed them all (including two young children).

I don't live in fear but I hate to think how many crimes would have been prevented by the simple act of locking a door. If that family had locked doors, they would have heard a break-in first and had time to react and probably save their own lives.

[Midlodemocrat]

6. That actually happened here, in Richmond.

And, it was horrible.

[amitten]

12. Oh...I don't know why I thought it was Boston. I just remember

watching and thinking how the poor family must have been so incredibly terrified. Those murderers walked right in the front door.

It also made me wonder why parents with small children, who probably took every other normal safety measure like seat belts etc., wouldn't take two seconds to lock their doors to protect their family.

:shrug:

[Midlodemocrat]

24. IIRC, the couple were getting ready to host an open house

for their neighbors and when the POS rang the doorbell, they opened it, never expecting to find what they did.

The worst part was that one of those four people was the first to die and the others watched it. I can't imagine a worse hell.

They caught the guys and I believe that they got the death penalty.

[SocratesInSpirit]

15. A similar story I mentioned downthread

This happened not long ago - the home of a well-known, highly respected doctor and his family in Cheshire, CT (this is a nice area, too) was invaded by two men at 3 am on a Sunday night. The family was kept hostage for several hours, and the two daughters were tied to their beds and raped. In the morning, the doctor's wife was taken to the bank and told to withdraw $15,000, which she did, and then they returned to the home. She and her husband were tied up in the basement. The criminals then set the house on fire and fled. Though he had been badly beaten, the doctor managed to get loose and escape, but his wife and daughters died of smoke inhalation.

Luckily, while at the bank, the mother was able to alert the teller that she and her family were being held hostage, and the police caught the men while they were fleeing. These guys were career criminals who had been out on parole, though this was the first time either of them had committed a crime of this magnitude.

The evil that men are capable of is truly astounding. :-(

[Blue Diadem]

7. Around here we have to and not all because of criminals,

A year or so after moving here, I was away and my DH had gone in the bathroom. He walked out to find a female neighbor standing in the kitchen. It totally freaked him out. Yeah, we occasionally spoke to her and her husband, but it's not like we were buddy buddy. We both suspect that she didn't realize anyone was home. Not that she'd steal..she's just tremendously nosy.


Cars are also always locked. There's been several incidents in our rural area of groups of kids going from town to town and getting into unlocked vehicles and either trashing them or stealing stuff, even if it's just stealing the change left in it. There was a time we didn't lock ours but we also learned the hard way.

[mulsh]

8. I rarely lock anything & I live in "crime riddled" Oakland, Ca.

Half the time I forget to lock our house. We've never been broken into, never been robbed. In fact the only time I have been robbed was in the 70's in SF.
I don't drive so the car isn't an issue. The guy we bought the house from installed an alarm system and once my basement recording studio was set up & filled with musical instruments I added it onto the system. We only use the alarm system when we're away from the house.
On my parent's street in the hills there are only 2 houses with out alarms, my parent's an some friends down the street. these are also the only houses that have never been robbed. funny huh? The neighbors never lock anything. My brother & I used to take their pick up truck out for joy rides, Bill, the owner, used to just toss the keys on floor and leave it parked.one day Bill remarked that if we were going to go cruising the least we could do is put some gas in it once in a while.

[Lex]

10. My insurance policy says I have to take reasonable steps to secure

the stuff in my house and car or they can deny coverage if I get burglarized, or if my car is stolen.

[amitten]

13. That's a good point. Insurance won't cover unlocked break-ins

and I would hate to lose everthing and have NO insurance because of an unlocked door.

[SocratesInSpirit]

11. I always lock my doors

For my own safety. There was a gruesome home invasion/murder of a well-known family in Cheshire, CT somewhat recently, and that has left me a bit rattled. :(

[Roon]

14. My roommate and I keep our house locked up tight!!

Even when we are home just hanging, the back door and front door are locked up.

[ikojo]

16. A lawyer in St Louis city forgot to lock the door to her townhouse

A kid was walking down the street and noticed an open door...he took advantage of that opportunity and went in. She came home and he attacked her and beat her into unconciousness, I've not heard recently how she is doing but I think it's going to be a long recovery.

When the kid was interviewed by the cops he said it was a crime of opportunity.

[WinkyDink]

17. Not prudent; just lucky.

[cali]

19. Most of my neighbors don't lock their houses either.

It's just highly unlikely anyone will break into a house in the village or its immediate evirons.

I think the lucky part is that I live in such a low crime area. I've been in this house 9 years, and there hasn't been a break in in the community in that time.

[Marrah_G]

20. Me either

I've never been robbed. I always grew up with an unlocked house and I guess I just never got used to it.

[mitchum]

21. I never lock my house when I am home, but woe until those who think...

that's an open invitation to come right in and help themselves. Woe indeed.

[Lyric]

25. We don't lock our house or our car

Honestly, we don't have anything worth stealing. Even the computer is kinda outdated. :)

[philosophie_en_rose]

26. Party at cali's house!

:rofl:

[Kutjara]

27. I lock both at all times.

I want to make the police do a bit of work when they come to drag me away to the camps.