Burglary Report Card Program, the Facts

By now, some of you have learned about our new program. But have you the facts or been sold a bill of goods? A few remain incessantly intent on spreading misinformation about your police department and the righteous services provided by the honorable men and women of the police department. I will work to clear the air and share the facts about our Buglary Report Card program. If you have questions or concerns after reading, please don’t hesitate to contact me directly.  

The Program:

The program is familiar here in Aransas Pass. We kicked it off around 2014; see here when we unveiled it. No, no, no. We did not come up with it but took the idea from other progressive Texas police agencies across the State. We prioritize the program when opportunistic burglars are more likely to be active – on holidays or when juvenile miscreants like to roam the town. After all, the commonalities in cases we investigate are 1 – vehicles left unlocked and 2 – valuables and firearms left inside. We recently kicked off this program more aggressively after experiencing the recent crimes at Windy Shores. So, how does the program work?

1. Officers prioritize an area and inspect vehicles on foot. They usually do this in areas where burglaries are more likely to occur, like Walmart or Lowes during the peak holiday season. They also focus on neighborhoods experiencing an influx of property crimes.  
2. Officers approach the vehicle and look for obvious signs of the vehicle being unsecured. For example, some cars have lock indicators that are popped up when unlocked or have color coding on the internal locking knob. Occasionally, the officer may try the door handle.  At no time will an officer enter the vehicle.
3. Next, officers peer inside the vehicle, looking for things of value or interest to a would-be thief. We commonly observe purses, wallets, or even electronics left behind in plain sight. All of these observations take place from outside the vehicle. Again, officers do not enter the vehicle, nor do they rummage through it.  
4. The officer will check the appropriate boxes on the burglary report card and should leave it face down on the windshield.  

This program aims to raise awareness of factors most prominent when burglary crimes happen. Community partnership and educational information remain at the core of your Aransas Pass PD team’s efforts.  

Now that you know how this program works. Don’t hesitate to contact us at 361-758-5224 or online at https://police.aptx.gov/contact. We remain committed to strengthening our community partnership with you, AP!