US & Memphis Car-Jacking Info

[Pat McGarrity]

Thanks to TFA Member Robbie Robinson for this good info on a bad subject.

According to the U.S. Bureau of Justice Statistics, there are about
49,000 carjackings in the United States each year.

In Memphis, there are about 500 car-jackings each year. In roughly
half of these, the driver is seriously injured.

It may not sound like much, but that means that a little over 1
percent of carjackings in the entire U.S. happen in Memphis.
Considering that there are hundreds of cities in the U.S. that makes
1 percent a pretty high number.

According to the BJS, the "typical" car-jacking:
· occurs when there is only one occupant in the target car
· offender is armed with a gun, or less often a knife
· occurrs within five miles of the victim's home
· *on street* occurs at stop signs, traffic lights, or bus stops
· *off street* occurs in parking lots of stores, res taurants,
gas stations, and office buildings

A few very simple tips to help avoid car jackings

· Be alert! Look around your vehicle as you approach it. Be
especially wary of anyone loitering near your vehicle.
· Look inside your car before you get into it.
· Immediately, lock all of the doors and keep them locked while you
are in the vehicle.
· Don't loiter in a parked car. Start the car and drive.
· Whenever stopped, such as at a traffic light, keep your head up and
move your eyes around! Be especially watchful for anyone
approaching your car on foot.
· When stopped, be sure you can see the bottoms of the tires of the
car in front of you. This leaves you enough room to drive around
that vehicle if needed. (this particular study did not mention
which lane of traffic was most vunerable, but previous studies
seemed to indicate it was the center lane, second or third car back
when there were were cars on both sides, bec ause the driver had
nowhere to go).

I'm always amazed, well, I used to be, but not any more, when I see
people walk out of a store and walk right up to their car when there
are people standing around it. You don't have to be paranoid of
every person, but I see these people and I can tell they had no idea
anyone else was anywhere near them.

Even though it's normally attributed to women, people of both sexes
do it; it's a bad habit to get into your car in a parking lot and
just sit there. I have a good friend that, when he gets into his
car, it literally might be 6 or 7 minutes before he drives off, but I
see lots of other people do that.