Thanks so much for attending the Glencrest Hills meeting held Saturday, Jan. 28th. We all were thrilled with the turn-out and sincerely hope for an equal or larger attendance in the future. We only have about 4 meetings a year, so your attendance is so important to hear about what is going on in our community! We have a special thank-you to Astrid Leiva and her team of young people who set up the room for us. Their church is beautiful and we thank them from the bottom of our hearts allowing us to meet there.

Many thanks to our speakers, Sr. Lead Officer Richard Wall, Sergeant Bill Gutierrez, and our main speaker Detective Marco Evans. We cannot thank them enough for their time, especially since they were officially “off duty!”

We got a lot of tips from Detective Evans, and here are only a few:

  • REPORT ALL CRIMES to the LAPD! If crimes are not reported, than resources/patrol cars will be redirected to more urgent areas. If it is a crime-in-progress, call 911 and relay as many facts as you can about what is happening, what they are wearing, car they are driving, etc. Never put yourself in danger to get a license plate, but if it is possible, that would be great information for the police to have. If it is after-the-crime, please call 877-ASK-LAPD (non emergency) or the Foothill Division: 818-756-8861 to file a report (your insurance usually requires it). It is very important that you also email/call our Sr. Lead Officer Richard Wall besides your police report. That way he can keep track of all crimes in our area: 818-634-0755
  • Make certain that when you park your car it is locked and all valuables are removed from inside the vehicle. Thieves often just go up and down streets, trying car door handles and looking into the car to see if you left any goodies for them.
  • If you park your car in your driveway or on the street, do not have your garage door opener in it as it is an easy way for thieves to have access to your home.
  • Make certain ALL your doors and windows are shut and locked especially when you are not home (especially that door between your garage and living space.) And yes, a thief can crawl into the bathroom window. Locks on fence gates is a deterrent. Outside lighting is also a great discouragement.
  • During the day, thieves often target homes that have no cars in the driveway.
  • The use of video cameras is a great deterrent. Also the use of a type of doorbell like Ring.com is very helpful as you can answer your doorbell without opening the door (even if you are not home) from your smart phone or computer. NEVER open your door if you do not know who is standing on the other side of it. Often times while someone is ringing your door bell, another person is trying to access your house from the back. Let them know you are there, but do not open the door.
  • Often times there is a look out parked on the street, waiting for you to leave your house. If it is safe, photograph cars that you believe do not belong in the neighborhood. Report any suspicious activity.
  • Crimemapping.com (you can filter down the results to your area as well as get an email about the latest criminal activity.) This was the chart that Officer Wall referred to during his talk. Other crime reporting websites are:
    LA Times Crime Report (LA Times calls our area Shadow Hills, I know, weird)
    Spot Crime
  • Possible suspects that are “up to no good” often travel in two’s, wear hoodies, and carry backpacks. They are mostly interested in high value things that they can easily steal and throw in the backpack, then pawn or fence/exchange for cash. Thieves usually spend less than 10 minutes in your home.
  • Most likely, the homeless are not usual suspects in thefts.
  • Get to know your neighbors. If you are gone ask that they pick up flyers, mail, newspapers (or the newspaper ads) so it will look like you are home. Of course you can do the same for them. It would be so helpful if we all could know our surrounding neighbors, their email address and phone numbers. Emergencies do happen, and to be able to quickly call them to alert them will be so very appreciated.

One of the reasons our area is so vulnerable is we are so close to the on ramps to the freeway, makes for a quick get-away for the thieves.

I received this list from a wonderful woman who lives in Shadow Hills who was in charge of their Neighborhood Watch program. “Things Your Burglar Won’t Tell You”

We also thank Patrick Justice from Paul Kerkorian’s office for his time. While Field Deputy Lorraine Diaz is on leave, Patrick filled in for her and spoke about City Issues. Please contact him if you are interested in getting a street light for any of your power poles. You need to give him the street name, approximate address and the number on the pole. It has to be a wooden power pole. These lights can be free. If you want a concrete street lamp, that is possible, but you may have to pay for it. or call 818-755-7676 (Paul Kerkorian’s North Hollywood Office).

A very helpful website is https://myla311.lacity.org. You can also download the app from your smartphone’s app store. It is called MyLA311 and is free. Also visit this page City Agencies/Services for many phone numbers and websites to many city agencies.

For February and March, the Coffee Time Meeting with our LAPD Sr. Lead Officers and our city representatives will still be at Bob’s Big Boy on Sunland Blvd. These meetings are the first Tuesday of the month and start at 8am. After March, I’ll post where the meetings will be since the restaurant is being demolished and a new Starbucks is being constructed. These meetings are very helpful if you have specific problems you wish to discuss with our LAPD officers and/or city representatives.

Just a reminder, the Sun Valley Neighborhood Council meets the second Tuesday of the month:
Sun Valley Area Neighborhood Council
818-76-SVANC (767-8262)
Email: info@svanc.com
Neighborhood Council Meeting: (check their website as place & time may vary)
Villa Scalabrini Retirement Center
10631 Vinedale Street
Sun Valley, CA 91352
6:30pm
You can subscribe to their meeting notices (& see their meeting agenda) by going to: Subscribe to SVANC Newsletter