Home Break-ins in Weddington (Charlotte, Marvin: for sale, crime, house)

[msvaughn]

What is with all the home break-ins in Weddington? Also, I am very upset that the response time for the police, fire, ambulance and 911 response is TERRIBLE! We moved down here from Maryland and would never have believed that with a fire department 1 mile from our home that we would have to be concerned about response times. I had an attempted break-in in my Weddington home with ADT blaring, it took almost 8 minutes for ADT to contact the police and another 20 minutes for an officer to arrive at 2:30 in the morning several weeks ago. This is absurd as my family could have been hurt or worse. The officer had to drive all the way from Independence. We could not figure out why so many homeowners in our community have big dogs. Now we know, so we bought our own security system - a Schuntzen 3 trained German Shepherd who will eat anyone who tries to enter our home and isn't welcome. Still, I don't think there is enough protection in Weddington and the police force should be better. I am all for raising taxes if it means investing in the security and protection of our communities. Anyone have any thoughts on this?

[berryjuice4life]

Oh my coming from jersey that is very disconcerning as we are looking in the Marvin Area....

[Berkshires413]

Originally Posted by msvaughn

What is with all the home break-ins in Weddington? Also, I am very upset that the response time for the police, fire, ambulance and 911 response is TERRIBLE! We moved down here from Maryland and would never have believed that with a fire department 1 mile from our home that we would have to be concerned about response times. I had an attempted break-in in my Weddington home with ADT blaring, it took almost 8 minutes for ADT to contact the police and another 20 minutes for an officer to arrive at 2:30 in the morning several weeks ago. This is absurd as my family could have been hurt or worse. The officer had to drive all the way from Independence. We could not figure out why so many homeowners in our community have big dogs. Now we know, so we bought our own security system - a Schuntzen 3 trained German Shepherd who will eat anyone who tries to enter our home and isn't welcome. Still, I don't think there is enough protection in Weddington and the police force should be better. I am all for raising taxes if it means investing in the security and protection of our communities. Anyone have any thoughts on this?

You know what is strange... before moving to the Charlotte area, I lived in Philadelphia. And Philly has a lot of crime... but it's mostly confined to the sh*tty sections. Here in Charlotte there seems to be quite a bit of suburban crime. I've never in my life heard of home invasions the way I have here in Charlotte. Insane... is this a southern thing? Another "cultural" advantage to Charlotte?

[Sampy123]

Response time is delayed for an ambulance also??? That could be a major problem, as I have significant health issues. So you're saying that there have been a lot of home invasions down there as well? Certainly is making me think twice about the area, as the crime stats where I live now is very low. I would still love to come down and see the area for myself.

[businessperson]

I'm sorry to hear about your incident; glad you're safe. What neighborhood did this occur in?

[msvaughn]

Hello to all and thank you for commenting on my Post. I live in Lake Providence off of Beulah Church. Near Providence Road. The officer did say that he thought it was teenagers trying to find liquor and money. My husband and I laughed since neither of us drink and the last time we checked we were broke. Obviously, that isn't what the "have nots" think of when they look at a 5000 sq ft Georgian Colonial. If they only knew that when we lived in Maryland, our house was 1/2 this size and twice the cost. That is why we moved here. It could be too that I am just not used to the difference in the crime between Maryland (Woodbine) between DC and Baltimore in the beautiful countryside, and the Charlotte area. We are just inside the Union County line near Mecklenberg County in South Charlotte, which is considered to be the safest area and one of the best to raise your children. It is a beautiful area and a very nice County, but I am concerned about the response times as the officer told us that there are only a few officers on duty at any one time and they cover all of Union County which is quite large. I think the residents should have a town meeting for the County or for their individual towns. I know I am looking into it.

[Sampy123]

That is the area we are going to concentrate on looking at. Wonder if that's why there are so many homes for sale there. I agree...if safety means raising taxes, then so be it. Heard it's beautiful there, can't wait to visit.

[businessperson]

You may already have a community watch program, but if you don't that might be an option. I know that at 2:30 am they still may not have been seen but sometimes just having the signs in place is a deterrant.

[msvaughn]

Good point. My dog's name is Adolf, so the sign should read: Security by
A-D-T and A-D-olf. He is the best dog I have ever had. Especially when my husband is out of town on business, I am sleeping better at night. Still, there is a lot of petty crime in this area. My neighbor had someone try to pry his front door open with a screwdriver, and another neighbor had someone steal his car for 2 days, put a couple hundred miles on it, and then return it to the garage when he was at work - he had that gps location ability in the car. I guess they thought they would get caught. Is that nuts or what? In Maryland there were a lot of homicides and drive-by shootings, a lot of crazy people throwing rocks at cars and trucks off the interstate. Very few bank robberies (compared to here). More rapes and assaults in Maryland. Much better response time from police, fire, rescue, etc. Still, it takes time to get used to the differences, no matter what they are.

[wmspeep]

Wow - I think the police are probably right that it was teens. I have not heard of anyone I know around here having a break in or attempted break in. I have, however, heard a lot of rowdy teens stories.

To answer your question, I have no problem paying taxes to get more services. This area is definitely growing faster than the services keep up with right now.