City of St. George, Utah :: Personal Safety

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175 East 200 North

St. George, UT 84770

(435) 627-4000

November 21, 2009

Police Department 200 East 265 North St. George, UT 84770 (435) 634-5000
Animal Control 605 East Skyline Dr. St. George, UT 84770 (435) 634-5829
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Personal Safety
Deputy Chief Russell Peck

I signed up for a really interesting firearms class a few years ago entitled, "How to Survive Violent Street Encounters." The class was designed for firearms instructors and police tactical team members such as members of our SWAT team. The title sounded like this would really be some high-speed training. As a police officer, I always want to be prepared for the worst case scenario.

I was very impressed with the instructor when he explained something at the beginning of the class that I've always believed in. He explained that for the rest of the day, the class on how to survive violent street encounters, would be all about the basics. Advanced techniques are nothing more than the basics mastered. The reason they call it the basics is because they WORK! We spent the rest of the day training hard on the basics and it was one of the best classes I've attended. I've always been a believer that the basics are where it's at. This can be applied in many areas.

Let's examine how the basics can work for you in personal protection. How can we stay safe. I've seen so many crimes occur because a victim failed to follow a few basic procedures in their personal safety system. A criminal must have the desire, ability, and opportunity to commit a crime. We can't always change their desire and ability, but we can take away the opportunity. Do you have a system to ensure the basic crime prevention measures are followed. Do you:

Keep your house and vehicle locked up. Keep your valuable possessions in a safe area.
Leave the lights on dark areas around your home -criminals are like cockroaches -they hate the light.
Keep your car in good repair with sufficient fuel. (Wear your seatbelt!)
Report any suspicious behavior to the police/neighbors watching out for each other.
Let someone know where you're going and when you plan to return.
Avoid walking alone, especially at night.

There are many basic techniques that we can go over. The bottom line is: basics work. Make the crime prevention basics your automatic habit. We shouldn't spend our lives living in fear, but we should take basic precautions as a matter of routine. They will pay off. Unfortunately, sometimes it doesn't matter what we doBwe can still become a victim. But by employing the basicsBwe greatly decrease the possibilities. That's basically all I have to say.

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