When carrying a purse or wallet, there are several steps you can take to help ensure your personal safety. Here are a few ideas.
Keep a list at home of contents of your purse or wallet. Include all card account numbers and phone numbers to call to report a lost or stolen card.
Carry only a driver’s license, cash and one credit card. Don’t carry anything with a PIN or password written on it. When possible, don’t carry blank checks or a checkbook. Don’t carry your Social Security card or anything with your Social Security number on it.
Those with Medicare cards should carry photocopies of the cards with the last four digits of their Social Security number removed (or scratched out). Keep the card in a safe place at home.
Don’t carry personal information of your family members, except emergency contacts.
Avoid carrying a purse when possible and wear a money pouch instead. If you need to carry a purse, use a cross-body purse or one with a shoulder strap and keep the flap next to your body, and your hand on the strap. When wearing a coat, keep the strap and purse under the coat. Keep a tight grip on your purse.
When using a shopping cart secure your purse inside the basket with a clip attached to your bag or use the child safety straps to intertwine the handles with the cart. Don’t let it hang loose or leave it or your wallet on a counter in a store.
Carry your wallet, keys and other valuables in an inside or front pants pocket, a fanny pack or other safe place. Don’t carry a wallet in a back pocket.
Don’t fight over your purse if someone tries to take it by force. It’s also a good idea to keep your cellphone on your person for emergency use.
June 21. Assist other agency: Officers are tasked with obtaining information regarding a couple who have recently stayed in our area but have now been reported missing at 12:45 p.m. in the 700 block of Nevada Way.
Stolen vehicle: The Crown Victoria seems to have left without its owners at 5:12 p.m. in the 1200 block of Industrial Road.
Thought for the day: An alert neighbor saves the day by spotting the car at a nearby shopping center.
June 22. Suspicious: An officer finds the subject camping in an area he has been warned about at 6:57 a.m. in the area of Gingerwood Street and Boulder City Parkway.
Theft: The subject tries to purchase alcohol with an invalid card and then sprints out with the item at 9:55 a.m. in the 100 block of Ville Drive.
Thought for the day: The next patrons just happen to be the thief’s buddies who chew him out over the phone and end up paying for the item before heading out to collect.
June 23. Foot patrol: The vagrant sleeping in the area is rousted and asked to move along at 2:30 a.m. in the area of 1600 Boulder City Parkway.
Suspicious: The two subjects on the roof are quickly located but assure officers they are just fixing the refrigeration unit while the temperatures are moderate at 5:13 a.m. in the 800 block of Nevada Way.
Thought for the day: Kudos to all the hardworking guys and gals that have to brave these temperatures to keep us cool.
June 24. Unknown problem: A transfer from another agency goes amiss and ends with the couple opting to spend the rest of the day apart at 5:53 a.m. in the 800 block of Marina Drive.
Vagrant: The naked vagrant is “catching some rays” a little too thoroughly and is advised to suit up and head out at 9 a.m. in the area of Colorado Street and U.S. Highway 93.
Thought for the day: There are just some places that shouldn’t get sunburned.
June 25. DUI: Fast food just isn’t fast enough to catch a little snooze and the fancy footwork of the standardized field sobriety test proves a little too tricky at 1:59 a.m. in the 1100 block of Nevada Boulder City Parkway.
Suspicious: The caller reports a man on the roadway laying down with a cooler nearby at 11:10 p.m. in the area of Commons Road and Veterans Memorial Drive.
Thought for the day: The night ends for one fellow with no midnight snack and a heck of a headache in the morning.
June 26. Keep the peace: The caller insists the love is gone and so is the bike at 3:20 p.m. in the 1000 block of Nevada Way.
Animal: The dog is pretty thin but friendly and gets a private transport to the shelter for a good meal and night’s sleep at 10:21 p.m. in the area of Adams Boulevard and Avenue B.
Thought for the day: The bike delivery goes off without a hitch and the parties are now officially over — well, maybe not.
June 27. Traffic: The driver admits not stopping at a stop sign but believes the infant in the back seat is a valid reason. No proof of insurance and no valid registration are another story, however, the driver believes being in route to a VIP meeting with a VIP person should exempt the citation at 9:19 a.m. in the area of Wyoming Street and Avenue H.
Parking: The senior moves the moped after a reminder that it cannot be parked on the sidewalk at 9:54 a.m. in the 800 block of Arizona Street.
Thought for the day: Residency, parenthood or meetings aside, safety rules.
Call(s) of the week: Animal: The caller states that her dogs locked themselves inside of her running vehicle that is parked inside the garage. The dogs are quite active and she is afraid they will inadvertently knock the gear shift and put the car into motion. Officers arrive and confirm that the dogs, indeed are very active, and suggest trying to get one to step on the unlock button and, it works. These two win the smartest dog awards for the week at 7:46 a.m. June 23 in the 800 block of Temple Rock Court.
Editor’s note: A production issue in the June 28 issue misprinted the June 14-16 entries in Tina Ransom’s June 28 column. They appear below.
June 14. Suspicious: The caller reports armed “munchkins” have entered her car and residence and she has fled to the neighbors to make the call at 8:36 a.m. in the 600 block of Avenue L.
Home invasion: The caller is embroiled in a bitter custody battle and reports the other party has broken a window and entered the premises at 11:43 a.m. in the 1400 block of Marita Drive.
Thought for the day: The teenager who forgot his key is the actual culprit and flees the scene when the yelling starts and the blue lights arrive.
June 15. Assist other agency: Traffic snafus and tense moments abound as the bypass bridge is closed and all traffic is diverted to avoid an unstable situation at 12:20 p.m. in the area of U.S. Highway 93 at mile marker 6 (and beyond).
Assist: Several gusts of wind create unusual lift and assist a carport awning to become airborne. The resulting power outage is a result of gravity versus an electrical box at 4:35 a.m. in the 500 block of Hopi Place.
Thought for the day: The elderly woman feels terrible that, after all this time, the awning decided to leave them all in the dark.
June 16. Suspicious: The man is a little tired and decides the sidewalk is a great place for a nap at 5:57 p.m. in the 800 block of Buchanan Boulevard.
Suspicious: The caller does not see the neighbor’s vehicle but sees someone inside the home with a flashlight at 11:36 p.m. in the 500 block of Avenue L.
Thought for the day: The surprised homeowner is relieved for the neighborhood watch but not so much they know he was foraging for cookies.
Tina Ransom is a dispatcher with Boulder City Police Department. She is coordinator of the Boulder City Citizen’s Academy.