Peeping Toms?

[Josey]

OK. Just got through with the police. I was out with my dog. We are walking along and I hear a metallic "clink". I hear whispering. I duck away from the noise into a dark spot. I see two white males come from behind a house. One is carrying a metallic object about three feet in length which is reflecting light from the streetlight. Dog is growling and bristling. I notice that they are wearing camo and black clothing with hoods. I decide to calm the dog and call the police. I give the dispatcher the location, description, that one seems to be armed with what I thought was a aluminum baseball bat and the crossstreets. The homeowner comes bounding out in his underwear! *** ARE YOU PUNKS DOING!!?? I step out and give the dog some lead. WOOF! The two perps take off. I watch them run to another yard and hide behind a shed. The dogs in the neighbourhood start barking. I hear sirens in the distance. I know the homeowner and I start conversing with him. We know where the perps are. The police come in black and cruise the area. The cruisers went around the block. The perps jump up and run for a house down the street. The homeowner and I watch them as they go in the house. Homeowner and I then wait for a police car to stop. The officers know the perps well. An officer asks if there is a teenage girl in the house. Homeowner says he has a teenage daughter. Officer tells us that these guys are peeping toms. The last time they were caught, they were watching another girl being intimate with her boyfriend. What surprised me was the officers last question, do you have a gun? Homeowner says yes. Officer says call 911 and get your family together and keep your gun with you until we let you know we are here. I was a little surprised. To keep this on topic, I had my Browning 9MM CCW in my coat pocket. Officer told me I took a good picture on my CCW license.

 

[Perfesser]

Hm....
Peeping toms? Dress in black, check...pair, maybe...carrying a club? Sounds like it was about to become breaking and entering and rape.
Keep the officer's advice in mind; he may have been trying to tell you something without being too specific (CYA factor).

 

[ThreadKiller]

It sounds as if it's just a matter of time before these yahoos do something serious. Where are their parents?

Tim

 

[pax]

*sigh* Ugly world.

Peeping toms often do escalate to other, more violent behaviors.

Offhand, it does sound like Perfesser has the right angle on things. A baseball bat??

Maybe it's time for a range day with your neighbor -- and to take his daughter along, too. She probably needs an education in keeping the shades drawn and a reminder to keep the doors locked when the folks aren't home.

Keep your eyes open.

pax

"Violence only leads to more violence." This one is so stupid you usually have to be the president of an Ivy League university to say it. Here's the truth, which you know in your heads and hearts already: Ineffective, unfocused violence leads to more violence. Limp, panicky, half-measures lead to more violence. However, complete, fully-thought-through, professional, well-executed violence never leads to more violence because, you see, afterwards, the other guys are all dead. That's right, dead. Not "on trial," not "reeducated," not "nurtured back into the bosom of love." Dead. D-E-Well, you get the idea. -- Larry Miller

 

[slydel0kt]

Any chance the metallic thing was a video camera?

Maybe the pervs were filming the daughter (gettin' pissed here).

Glad to hear no one was hurt.

Dan

 

[MeekandMild]

The homeowner and I watch them as they go in the house.

Interesting.

So now you know where they live.

Back in the day no thug was ever stupid enough to run home.

Of course you are much more civilized than citizens were so many decades ago. You would make sure there was a nice reward posted for 'information leading to the arrest and conviction of'.

 

[Gordon]

To avoid such stuff, among other things, under each accessable window I planted Cholla cactus about 11 years ago! the nasty stuff(with 2 inch barbed needles) has filled in nicely to where anyone trying to fool around these double pane locked sliders is in for a nasty time. I really haven't found a way to get there, lucky there is enough room to manuever a paint roller behind them

 

[Kestrel]

Maybe this question is better for the legal section, but what can you do to someone that you've caught in a situation like this? Can you apprehend them legally? I assume you cannot disable them and hold them until the police arrive (dislocate knees, etc.)? Spray with OC?

I think I know the answer to this, but letting them go is just buying a mortgage on future trouble.

(Gordon - that's a good idea.)

Steve

 

[grampster]

Years ago we had a "peeper" in my neighborhood. I spent
a couple nights in some shrubs in front of my house in hopes of
nailing the creep. The second night I heard a boom
and saw a figure traveling at about light speed between
the houses. Found out later a "granny" two streets over
had the same idea I had, but took her 16 ga. outside with her.

Kid changed neighborhoods, but a friend of mine caught him and made
it so it was difficult for the peeper to walk unaided for awhile.

Career over!

 

[Josey]

Citizen arrest is full of loopholes. I have decided to spot and call 911 and stay on the line with them. I had a dog, cell phone and a Browning Hi-Power with two hands. If the peepers had advanced on me, the 911 tapes would record my verbal commands. I would hope that would aid my self defense case. As to laying in wait, I think premeditation could be argued by a lawyer. Why were you in the bushes Mr. Smith?

 

[Vic303]

Sounds like you did a good job Josey! Now you know what house to eyeball too!

 

[Triad]

It's a shame you can't buy some of those robots from the Austin Powers movies. You know, the ones with the nice guns. They want a show, give'm a show.

 

[OrvilleYertleson]

We had an adult peeping tom in my neighborhood growing up. He also apparently had a habit of exposing himself to children.

One night, while walking the dog with a friend along a bikepath around a neighborhood pond, the dog started growling and pulling towards the bushes, thinking it may be the peeping tom, my friend started shining his flashlight and walking over.

It turned out to be a couple of cops cops with a night vision scope....apparently the peeping tom kept a fairly regular schedule, and they were waiting for him. I think they caught him too.

 

[Sgt Stevo]

frreaks are everywere

Hapens everyday were I live. I have pretty blond wife who is a construction exec. More than once she was followed by some guy from one job site or another. I walk my dog at night as well. And even in this upscale part of the silicon Vally I see strange people all over the area. we live in the end of a court. and we still never leave open a blind to the front of the house. Or a door unlocked. A good way to see what 290 reg freaks live in your area. Is go to the pd and access the the Megans law site. I did. It scared the poop out of me. Stevo...........