Use Common Sense In Holiday Season
North Side shoppers won’t see any more boys in blue than normal this Christmas shopping season.
The Spokane Police Department, because of budget concerns, has axed the Christmas Cops program. The $15,000 program put extra officers on the street to cruise the city’s largest shopping mall lots and business districts - most of which are on the North Side - in an attempt to deter car prowlers and robbers.
The program was cut because it did not show in crime statistics. Lt. Glenn Winkey, in charge of the program, said car prowlings did not drop the years the program was in effect.
“I think it’s more of a matter of perception,” said Winkey. “People feel safer if they see an officer walking down the sidewalk.”
Car prowlings in commercial areas are a problem between Thanksgiving and Christmas - the peak shopping season of the year.
“They are doing their Christmas shopping in the parking lot while you are doing yours inside,” said police spokesman Dick Cottam.
Winkey said patrols would be adjusted so officers could monitor parking lots with high rates of car break-ins. The police department’s crime analysis division will be supplying patrol officers daily with addresses of lots with high rates of car prowling.
In past years, officers have focused on the Shadle Shopping Center, the North Division Kmart store, Franklin Park Mall and NorthTown.
NorthTown, like most shopping centers, hires extra officers for the holidays to watch both inside and outside the mall.
The mall has up to 24 security officers during peak shopping hours, according to mall spokesman Michelle Driano.
Here are some several common sense tips for holiday shoppers:
Shoppers often invite car prowlers by leaving packages showing and doors unlocked. Put packages in the truck. That no-brainer is a big help, police say.
Park in well-lighted, highly visible areas. “Locks and lights and out of sights,” said Winkey.
Know where your car is parked, leave through the exit closest to the car, and have your keys in hand.
Try to avoid walking alone, especially when your arms are full of packages.
Underage driver cited
Police cited a 15-year-old boy Sunday for driving underage in a stolen Dodge Caravan that had license plates stolen from a second car.
A Spokane County Sheriff’s deputy stopped the white Caravan for a traffic violation at 8 p.m. Sunday.
The driver - an unlicensed 15-year-old - admitted the van was stolen from a relative. The boy told deputies he had traded the van’s regular license plates for plates stolen from another van at NorthPointe shopping center earlier Sunday.
The boy and his companions - a 15-year-old boy and a 16-year-old boy - were arrested for car theft. The deputy also cited the driver for the initial traffic violation and for driving underage.
Home delivery in Hillyard
The first time Karen Westberg gave birth, she endured an 18-hour ordeal. This time, she was praying for a quick delivery.
“I said to Kirk (Sunday) morning, I was really hoping my water would break and speed up the process,” said Westberg, 37. “I guess you need to watch what you wish for.”
Nicole Katherine Westberg’s birth was so quick, Karen Westberg gave birth on the kitchen floor of her Hillyard home. Assisting her was husband Kirk Westberg, a birthing rookie.
Karen’s labor pains started at 5:30 a.m. Sunday. Instead of remaining steady, her contractions sped up at 8:30.
“I figured, hey, I don’t have to hurry,” said Westberg. The couple were getting their older son, Jacob, 2, ready so the family could go to the hospital when Westberg’s water broke.
While Karen Westberg lay on the floor, Kirk, 44, called 911. The baby emerged with the umbilical chord wrapped around her neck.
He started yelling into the phone, “the baby is coming, the baby is coming,” she said.
“I’d like to hear that (911) tape,” she said.
After a night at Holy Family, mother and baby went home. Nicole is 7 lbs., 14 oz., and 19 inches long.
, DataTimes