[MRVphotog]

Violent crime is up in Vermont...especially robberies. Up in Btown area there was a guy who robbed a bunch of convenience stores before he was caught. Keep in mind that in a state like Vermont an infrequent crime spree can really skew the stats.

Kerry Sleeper, Vermont Commissioner of Public Safety, advised that the increase in violent crimes is due the fact that a majority of these crimes are committed by people "from the big cities of the northeast". One of the reasons why Vermonters might not be super friendly when they first see a car with NY or Jersey plates. Parranoid...perhaps, human nature....for sure.

I don't feel real comfortable saying this but if you move to Vermont, get Vermont plates as soon as you can.

[looking4home]

People would travel all the way to Vermont just to commit crimes? What - have they saturated their home base, crime-wise or something? I know Vermont isn't all that far from NY, but it seems like such an odd frame of mind to be in - "Oh, I've robbed all the stores around here a couple of times, maybe I'll drive to Vermont to see what I can get there." I guess maybe it's not so odd after all. Perhaps they feel the more rural folk are easy pickings, and their stores are less likely to have things like alarms and surveillance equipment.

[GypsySoul22]

Well, I am used to this (we're from NY).
If someone wants to think our little family is a bunch of hoods, that's THEIR problem.
Fortunately we live in a tourist spot so every day we have cars going by from Florida, MA, NY, NH, Maine and more.

I'm finding this state almost as bad as NY with it's taxes and 'fees' for various things. Pay people decent money and they won't need to rob "FoodStops" or whatever...

[MRVphotog]

To give alittle balance to Mr. Sleeper's comments I did some quick research on the "backwards bandit" robberies I mentioned and from what I could find, 3 young men were indicted for the crimes, all Vermonters.

[Lilybeans]

Originally Posted by GypsySoul22

Well, I am used to this (we're from NY).
Pay people decent money and they won't need to rob "FoodStops" or whatever...

They NEVER need to rob any place. There is never justification for it.

[MRVphotog]

I had hoped that my posting this thread would not turn into a flame war. After reading thru alot of past threads about "moving to Vermont" I found that most folks(no disrespect intended or pointed to any particular person) did not make much of an attempt to try to see things thru the eyes of a Vermonter.

My post was an attempt, perhaps not a good one, to get folks to get some sort of semblance about where Vermonters are coming from, where their attitudes might be from. Having some sort of understanding in this regard is key IMHO on whether a new Vermonter is successful or not.

Arel - one of the main things I like about your posts is that you try to gain that understanding.

Trying to gain some understanding where people are coming from is not an easy thing to do, no matter where you move, or in life in general, for that matter. If you do tho, it makes your move all the more easier.

[vter]

When I think back to many of the high profile crimes lately it does seem that the majority are committed from folks who are not from Vermont, with the notable exception of the murder of Michelle Gardner-Quinn. It seems that a lot of the drug busts involve folks from out of state as well (but not all of course).
The rash of convenience store robberies can be attributed to one thing - drug addition and the need for the cash to feed their addictions. A lot of these seem to be committed by local folk.
The other major type of crime here is domestic. There are few random major crimes here (again, with the exception of Laura Winterbottom & Michelle GQ).
Photog - I totally understand what you are trying to point out. It sucks to see this kind of stuff happening, but c'est la vie!

[GypsySoul22]

Of course I was not being serious about robbing.

Unfortunately most places are not 'crime safe.' Even your sleepiest town garage /foodstop can be a target is someone is desperate enough. I guess you guys aren't used to it and I don't blame you for being angry. One of the reasons we moved here was because of the low crime rate.

I remember as a kid growing up on Long Island we didn't have much crime, either. Then people began moving out from Queens/NYC and more 'foreigners,' and outsiders and the crime DID go up. Things change, and not always for the better, but the most successful places learn to adapt.

Yes, Vermont likes things to go slowly, and I respect that. But maybe they will have to learn to get into the 21st Century about certain things (or build a big fence to keep those tourist $$$ out).

I never had any illusions about moving to Vermont. I did not dream of snow covered bridges and sipping cocoa by the fire. I had never been here (apart from driving through from other New England states). I chose it here because I found Lebanon physically 'ugly' and crowded compared to this side of the river.

PS I don't want or care for flame wars. I appreciate how nice you all have been on this forum and think there is room for all opinions, not just 'one.'

[Lilybeans]

Originally Posted by GypsySoul22

I never had any illusions about moving to Vermont. I did not dream of snow covered bridges and sipping cocoa by the fire.

I love that stuff. Moonlight on the fresh snow. Leaf season. Spittin' snow and hot cocoa. Old home days. Great stuff.

[flu189]

Vermont indeed suffers from drug related crime and it's roots are from out of state. The dealers and pushers have found a lucrative market to expand into and then the locals who hooked end up committing the small scale local robberies to feed their habit. Just follow the news and you will find the arrests involving the distributers shows their point of origin to be primarily the NYC area and points in Mass. Robbery,burglary, forgery and fraud rates are directly connected to the users, so the cars from NY and Mass will not be your primary suspects in local street crime. This has been all well documented in Vermont by the Dept of Public Safety and Corrections. The more we crack down on outsiders importing themselves and their drug distribution networks into this state the better handle we will have on reducing other crimes as well not to mention the high costs which come with law enforcement and corrections.