Are We Safe At Home?

DeVry University

Are We Safe At Home?

We live in a world where the only thing that is certain is nothing is certain. We all have a false sense of security in the one place we feel the safest, our home. As a child we hear the stories of how people could leave their houses and never lock the doors. Those days are unfortunately long gone for now we must be ever vigil in the fight to secure our homes. In this assessment I will be looking at five areas including the neighborhood, lighting, landscaping, fences or walls, and cameras. This assessment will be targeted around my own residence. As there are many areas in a neighborhood that can be assessed for security purposes. ”Research has shown that blighted and deteriorated neighborhoods are associated with crime” (1). The neighborhood is located in a lower class area with many dilapidated, vacant structures ranging from garages to homes to vacant lots. There are older houses with some being used by transients during harvest seasons. The crime rate is very low during most of the year but due to harvest season it seems to gradually increase. The city is on a constant vigil trying to remove all overgrowth and clear out delapidated housing. One huge geographical flaw in the neighborhood is the alleys that run in between each road. They give another promanate access to each property virtually undetected. The only positive reinforcement to living here is the neighbors who look out for each other and the response time of police due to the close proximity of the police station being one mile away. The next are being focused on in this assessment is going to be lighting, as we all know crime loves the shadows. There are street lights along the street but they are very dim and provide numerous blackout points. The house has two exterior doors both have working lamps with seventy watt bulbs that come on at dusk and off at dawn. The shop which is not connected has two motion detection lights with flood lights that illuminate the entire property. It is proven that more light which decreases possible hiding places for perpetrators. The only place that serves as a problem goes back to the alley located on the back of the property. The alley has no lighting at all and serves as a huge security risk and potential means of escape for a perpetrator. Landscaping is a huge plus and minus in home security. Having your home surrounded by numerous bushes and trees may look beautiful it does serve as a security flaw. Around my residence we have eliminated all trees that allow anyone the ability to gain access to the ceiling. The shrubs are kept low and spaced apart preventing potential hiding places for potential criminals. An addition for security will be to include barrier plants around windows which include thorns plants to prevent entry to the home. Fences and walls are a huge asset for property security. The assessed property is surrounded by five feet tall fences with electrical fence on the inside. Although the fence is in place it will be only