Neighborhood watch gaining momentum
(Photo courtesy FRED ARN) During a health and wellness fair at the Clark Fork Senior Center recently, surrounded by back massages, blood pressure checks and other wellness booths, volunteers from the Bonner County Sheriff’s Office Community Force Neighborhood Watch Program interacted with concerned citizens. Clark Fork resident Tom Scott, left, talks to Jim Corcoran, right, about about the advantages of and how to form a watch program in his neighborhood. Volunteers Rick Cox and Craig Nelson, center, also fielded questions about local crime statistics and how to implement the program.
SANDPOINT — Neighborhood watch is all about neighbors helping neighbors, keeping each other and their property safe.
That is what participants of the Bonner County Sheriff’s Office Community Force Neighborhood Watch program have been doing since it was initiated in 2015. Program volunteer Mary Gore said while they don’t know the exact statistics, crime in the county has been reduced since the program started.
The program got its first neighborhood watch captain in September 2016, and has since grown to 70 captains and 1,000 members in approximately 50 groups across the county. It is also up to 14 volunteers, who provide training, information and resources to groups as they are formed.
“It’s usually a little slow in the winter, but this winter we were pretty busy,” Gore said, adding that more groups were formed mostly in the rural areas of the county.
There is less of a law enforcement presence in rural areas, and city police presence may account for less interest by people within city limits, Gore said. There are a couple of groups, however, within city limits of Sandpoint, Blanchard, Spirit Lake and Clark Fork. There are also five groups around Priest Lake and five groups in the Priest River area. A group is forming in the Oldtown area as well.
The group recently got three new volunteers, including Fred Arn.
“I am a believer in returning to your community,” Arn said, adding that he also sits on the Sagle planning board.
With a background in photography, Arn said he photographed the neighborhood watch program in Marin County, Calif., at its inception. Amid his other volunteer duties with the local neighborhood watch, Arn has taken on photography for the program as well.
Across the county, neighborhood watch programs have been proven effective in reducing crime. According to the “Community Watch Administration Manual,” written and edited by Thomas N. Monson, David Sours, Don E. Fletcher and Ted E. Lawson, “Formal evaluations conclusively prove that reductions in crime ensue when prevention programs are put into effect.”
A few examples from the manual include Warminster Township, Penn., which saw a 19-percent decrease in personal and property crime; Easton, Penn., reported that overall crime fell by 29 percent; Seattle, Wash., cut the local burglary rate by nearly 50 percent; and Lakewood, Colo., reduced burglary by 77 percent in 15 neighborhoods.
Sheryl Kins, BCSO administrative assistant, said in an email that while she doesn’t know the reduction rate of crime since the program started, the deputies have said they are receiving more and better reports from the neighborhoods that have a watch group.
The top three crimes in Bonner County are theft, drugs and simple assault, Gore said. In 2018 alone, there were 722 property crimes reported, which include burglary, theft, vandalism, and similar crimes.
To get started in the program, a meeting will be set up with volunteers who will ask about concerns or problems in the neighborhood, hand out packets on how to form and maintain a neighborhood watch group, as well as information on how to conduct a home security evaluation, prevent vehicle prowling, disaster preparedness, websites for block/neighborhood watch, suspicious activity log, property inventory lists and rural crime prevention, as well as other pertinent information. The volunteers will also display a map of crime statistics in the area. Each member of the program receives a free sign that reads, “Community Force — We Report Suspicious Activity.”
Anyone interested in starting a neighborhood watch group in their community is encouraged to call Sheryl Kins, administrative assistant for BCSO, at 208-263-8417, ext. 3049.
Mary Malone can be reached by email at mmalone@bonnercountydailybee.com and follow her on Twitter @MaryDailyBee.