WOMAN RAPED in LARGO!! (Silver Spring, Rockville: middle-class, section 8, apartments)

[Skapov]

Okay, I'm kinda new to the message boards, and I never understood why people always talk about how much crime there is in PG County, because I've always felt safe after living here almost 3yrs. Largo is very clean and suburban-looking, a true "Livable Community" as the slogan goes.

Well this morning while leaving for work, I noticed about 6 police cars lined up around one of the apartment buildings at Northampton Apartments on Harry S. Truman Drive, and they had a large area near the woods taped off with yellow tape, and helicopters were hovering in the sky a distance away.

Well, I finally got confirmation this afternoon of what happend because I called the police department...a woman was RAPED/SEXAULLY ASSAULTED. I am so so shocked and worried, because I walk around there at night to take my dogs out, and now I no longer feel safe. It seems they haven't caught the suspect yet too!

FYI Ladies, be real real careful out there.

[gizmo980]

Not that it isn't horrible and you shouldn't be careful, but it should give you some solace how many police/helicopters/etc responded to a rape... around here, the woman would be lucky to get ONE cop car responding. I'm originally from Maryland (Silver Spring/Rockville), and my relatives live up in Montgomery County - and it's always been pretty safe out there, so you can probably relax. But ALWAYS be careful, no matter where you are!

Btw, are your dogs big and/or protective? Mine is about 42 lbs. and very very protective (when he needs to be), so I never worry when we go walking at night. He can't stop a bullet or weapon, but nobody would get their hands on me... plus it deters "bad people" who wouldn't try to attack a woman with a large dog. That's actually one of the reasons I got a dog, since I've lived alone in some pretty bad neighborhoods.

[Huckleberry3911948]

i dont walk my neighborhood any more. them days are over.

[PGC301]

Robbery Suspect Shot and Killed by Store Owner | WUSA9.com | Washington, DC |

^also in Largo this morning.

Fool tried to rob a liquor store with a fake gun and wound up dead

[lscalder]

Crime have been going up. On the news it seem banks are getting robbed more often. Some might blame it on the economy,holiday.

[sodaking663rd]

I understand the need to defend your home territory but PG county is definitely the most crime-ridden county in the state. Honestly though those crimes could happen anywhere but I can't say I am shocked that it happened in Largo.

[trying2moveup]

A woman should always carry mace or some sort of pepper spray and stay alert at ALL TIMES. Better yet, enroll in self-defense classes. Crime happens everywhere and women are raped everywhere, even in the "good areas" of the country.
Unfortunately it seems that Largo is not a great place. In fact, my hubby used to live in the apts of of Truman years ago (over 15 yrs ago) and he was robbed at gunpoint when he came home from the grocery store. They caught the guys but the story I could tell you about how back-room deals and politics effect courtroom trials could curl your hair and has soured my husband on our legal system permanently.

[CelticViking]

and yet(not to get too political) but the gun laws are ridiculous and maryland is getting more liberal and liberal...if that poor woman would of had the opprotunity to carry a concealed weapon it might of saved her from this terrible situation. Its a real shame...its getting to the point that maryland is just as if not more liberal then mass. and california...i love the living on the eastern shore where I am, but we are affected by the western shores politics.

I pray this lady gets over this situation.

[ZT1911]

Originally Posted by PGC301

Robbery Suspect Shot and Killed by Store Owner | WUSA9.com | Washington, DC |

^also in Largo this morning.

Fool tried to rob a liquor store with a fake gun and wound up dead

Knowing Maryland, they'd probably try to bring the liquor store employee up on charges for reckless discharge of a firearm, manslaughter, etc.

Maryland, where only the criminals can carry a gun.

[Skapov]

I am all for allowing law-abiding citizens to keep a handgun for self-defense, and I was happy when the Supreme Court overturned the DC gun ban. It really destroys my sense of ease when there's all these crimes happening, and the low-life bad apples who spoil it for the rest of us need to know that we are NOT going to take it!

Btw, the woman who was raped was walking her dog near the back of her building early Friday morning, when an unknown person approached her and then forced into her apartment where he sexually assaulted her. I can't imagine something like that happening around here, literally right here in my own community, and I don't know how PG County can expect to attact upwardly mobile middle-class families without doing something about the crime problem! The problem here, is that everything looks so NICE and IDYLLIC on the surface, clean tidy communities and well-dressed professionally-looking residents (at least this is what I see on the Metro from Largo during commuting hours), but then you scratch the surface and discover the CRIME and BAD SCHOOLS, and nothing is as it seems. At least in inner cities like D.C. and Chicago, you know when you hit the bad areas and it's easy to avoid those bad areas of town, because of the urban blight, but in PG County things can be quite deceptive. Neighborhoods with half-million dollar homes still have the crime issues, especially auto theft and buglary, and so no one is immune from the problem and you cannot buy your way out of it.

My husband & I are trying to convince ourselves to buy a home here, because Fairfax/Montgomery cost DOUBLE, but gosh, is it worth taking the risk of being a crime victim?! I just wish I had some sort of reassurance, but actually the trend seems to be more crime and I notice that rents are declining along with home values in the area, so this probably means more Section 8 people moving in over these next few years.