Comments on: Writing Believable Driveway Crime: Carjacking & Kidnapping

By: Parking Lot Crime: Writing About Burglaries and Robberies |

Parking Lot Crime: Writing About Burglaries and Robberies | — Fri, 09 Sep 2022 09:42:12 +0000

[…] intelligence operations, and we often get questions about espionage and crime. In our last article, Writing Believable Driveway Crime: Carjacking & Kidnapping, we wrote about crime that commonly occurs in driveways. Today, we will take a look at crime in […]

By: Piper Bayard

Piper Bayard — Sat, 11 Jun 2022 04:41:45 +0000

In reply to dholcomb1. Thanks so much for the added information, Denise. . . . Your mention of the ATM brings to mind scenes from Breaking Bad. :)

By: Piper Bayard

Piper Bayard — Sat, 11 Jun 2022 04:36:38 +0000

In reply to Merissa Racine. Most welcome, Merissa! So glad you found the information useful.

By: Piper Bayard

Piper Bayard — Sat, 11 Jun 2022 04:35:03 +0000

In reply to tracybrody. Sounds like you put some good thought into it. :)

By: Piper Bayard

Piper Bayard — Sat, 11 Jun 2022 04:33:07 +0000

In reply to Miffie Seideman. Having some kind of weapon is definitely better than having nothing. Attackers don't expect people to fight back. So glad you enjoyed the article.

By: Piper Bayard

Piper Bayard — Sat, 11 Jun 2022 04:28:48 +0000

In reply to Ellen Buikema. Most welcome, Ellen! It would be interesting to study crime rates and phone usage now that so many people walk around distracted by electronics.

By: dholcomb1

dholcomb1 — Sat, 11 Jun 2022 03:09:29 +0000

In suburbia, many carjackings happen at convenience stores or gas stations where people leave their keys in the ignition or sometimes running, especially when they wrongfully leave children inside the vehicle.

In many places, it's illegal to have your car running while unattended because of this--this includes people who think they need to warm their car up in the winter--most modern cars do not need this other than for clearing a windshield.

In the cities, there's the bumper tap, and when you get out of the vehicle, they get the car. That's sometimes a set of two vehicles involved with a carjacking group.

ATMs are a vulnerable spot. Drive-thru ATMs are somewhat safer, but they're not perfect. I recall being harassed at an ATM and feeling very vulnerable years ago.

Around here, there are also thefts of ATMs themselves. They tend to be near the entrance of a small store, so a heavy duty vehicle can crash in, steal it, and drive off. Those tend to be smaller ATMs. Some stores have changed the entrances and have bumpers to prevent a crash, and other's have moved the ATM so it's not near the entrance.

a VEIP testing site for a self-administered test would make an easy carjacking.

denise

By: Merissa Racine

Merissa Racine — Fri, 10 Jun 2022 21:34:24 +0000

Piper, this is a great dual purpose post. I found it informative for self-defense, and good information for writing realistic scenes. Thank you!

By: tracybrody

tracybrody — Fri, 10 Jun 2022 15:31:56 +0000

I'll now be paranoid for the next few days. LOL Not that anyone would want to kidnap me. 😉 I do feel good about the kidnapping scene in my book Deadly Aim since they use a ruse of an injured soldier to get the heroine to drop her guard before they taser her and use the wheel chair to to push her to the stolen van and drive off with her.
Thanks for the info and real-life cautions.

By: Miffie Seideman

Miffie Seideman — Fri, 10 Jun 2022 15:21:01 +0000

Hi Piper- Boy does this make me think. I'm so often distracted, multitasking, and probably a target. I'll be more conscious now. And I agree with being careful about pepper ( or other) sprays! I've often wondered on my runs how much use my spray would be, when our windy days are kicking up. I'm more at risk of basically spraying myself.