[LookmaNohands]

OP you are right to be concerned! You have more experience than most with crazy people. It is better to be in a position of having to apologize to someone than wonder why in the world you didn't tell the cops about the crazy people who ended up harming you or your animals or property!

Trust your gut!

[Blume Farm]

Well, I haven't read through all the posts but I think calling the police ASAP was absolutely warranted. I am a female and live alone on my property. I would have been as worried and skeptical as you...and think really anyone SHOULD be suspicious when an unknown vehicle is parked on their property without permission doing who know's what. That is only prudent and appropriate.

Regarding guns...I am a socially liberal democrat. However, I do feel one has the right to own gun with training....not an AK-47 or semi-automatic weapon, but at least a rifle or hand gun. However, I will say that everyone that owns a gun (including the majority of my family members) thinks that they will save themselves and everyone else during a robbery/ confrontation/ etc. I don't care how much training one has (although it certainly helps) but when one is terrified and adrenalin running the vast majority will lose rational thought processes and ability to make clear judments will go out the window. Along with that their aim! My grandfather was an avid sportman and did shooting competitions...he was GOOD. Many years ago through his work he was receiving bomb threats and was on heightened guard at home. One night a raccoon was trying to break into their home, my grandfather freaked (mind you a man that was normally cool as a cucumber and skilled with a firearm) thinking it was whom ever was giving the bomb threats and proceeded to shoot out a wall of windows in his house. Thankfully my grandmother went for cover in a closet. BTW the raccoon got away Just a story I like to pass along for those thinking that they will be as cool and skilled as Dirty Harry...

Regarding "profiling" people I think the rational, educated side of everyone doesn't want to profile folks. However, we are human and it is an inevitable fact of being one. I think in a scared emotional situation like the OP it would be impossible to not, and someone that says they wouldn't are lying to themselves. However, in the situation with the OP I would have taken the same precautions and response whether it be a BMW or a gilopie (sp?) but a POS car with a note like the one written would have me s**tting in my pants and my heart a racing.

In the end I am glad you are safe and the folks just seemed like redneck idiots.

[fooler]

OP-only thing different is to had the trunk opened before they left.

Good self protection to take precautions when anything unusual happens in your environment. Especially a vehicle, you don't recognize, backed up to any building. Not the action of someone who respects you, rather a very clear "chuck you Farley".

Stay alert and trust your instincts.

[Prime Time Rider]

This incident is good reason to get a locked gate on your proprety. A locked gate we prevent any trespassers.

[candysgirl]

Well, RTR, since you know PO organizations from the inside, then you knew, too, that you already had the PITA reputation from them.

LEOs should be even-handed and professional at all times to everyone. But then you can't, in the next breath, start out-buddying the intruders by talking about who is better friends than whom with Sheriff Guy, Mitchell.

Yeah, they should have popped the trunk since your roosters were missing. No, it would be uncool for your reputation to call them back about that now. No, the kid with the snotty face and hand is irrelevant. Yes, the condition of the perps' car is, too.

Just wondering: How come you didn't call the celly first and firmly ask the intruders to come back from your pasture and explain WTF? If they get huffy, you can dial 911 then.

You gun slinger/castle defender types: Since you have weapons that give you the distinct possibility of ramping things up all the way to someone dying and perhaps you going to jail, how come you guys aren't connoisseurs of reasonable escalation and the art of de-escalation?

I don't mean to criticize. It's a serious question. My dad, the gun dude in our family, was gung-ho about using a gun only as the very, very last resort. Are others not so serious? What did I miss?

Just because I have a firearm on me, doesn't mean I am necessarily pointing it at someone. I'm a small woman. Yes, I will go investigate something like this, but you better believe I will be armed while I do it. Will the firearm be in my hand? Not necessarily, but it will be very easily accessible. Do I WANT to use it? Definitely not. Am I willing to if the other guy makes it necessary? Yes.

[mbm]

It's kind of hard to compare Sonoma County, CA with...well, anywhere in TX. .

fwiw, i lived in Ghettolandia (aka Fruitvale and 40th ) Oakland USA for *many* years - before that ? SF in the mission (before it was gentrified)

i am no pansy. i still think there is a huge amount of overreaction going on here.

[Ambitious Kate]

wow, you folks must live in some really scary neighborhoods!

i would of called the number and talked to the folks.... and *then* decided what to do.

dont you think if they meant you harm they would not of parked in your driveway and left you a note?

<shakes head>

You don't get it. Parking in your driveway, walking around on your property, leaving a "tee hee" note is exactly what those who DO mean you harm WILL do. To not understand this is to not understand sociopathy, which is more frequent than people are willing to admit, and more and more common today than ever. Sociopaths don't care about anyone but themselves, and the big clue to them is that they preface their self indulgence and excuse their disregard for your boundaries with marginally social interactions which make you feel uncomfortable and which are designed to intrude on your personal space.

That's why we don't allow strangers onto our property and why we should follow up on intrusions agressively.

[Ambitious Kate]

MBM:

And yes, my scary neighborhood on the shoreline in CT where we don't usually lock our doors has a current rash of robberies, wherein the perpertrators (I know that's spelled wrong) knock on doors and ring doorbells late at night, like 3 in the morning. those houses where no light goes on, and nothing stirs, are marked for a later robbery. Those who turn on lights and answer the door find no one there, and are treated to repeats of the same at different times of the day until it is determined what time of the day the owners aren't home. Very agressive. Happens all the time, and you are not special that we "live in scary neighborhoods." You live in a cynical and naiive world, in my opinion.

[Alagirl]

certainly not the right thread to read at midnight, even if the husband is at home and the guns are loaded!


But back to the OP:
visit the sheriff and make a report.

[Wellspotted]

I don't really know what happened to the original officer that was supposedly sent when I called dispatch, or if he just took his time getting to my house until the sheriff called and made the 2nd request.

I live outside of the city in a rural area, so my area is serviced by the Sheriff and the county police, instead of city police.

Mitchell, the Sheriff, knows me and probably thinks I'm a big pain in the arse because I stayed on his behind about a horse that needed to be euthed. I posted about it in the Horse Care forum at the time it was going on, with pictures. The horse was missing one hoof completely and that leg was the size of an elephant's leg practically. Upon closer inspection, with Mitchell, the other hooves of the horse were breaking down as well. He told me that the horse was fat and obviously being fed, so he didn't know what he could to. I told him that there were a lot of ways to abuse a horse that didn't involve starvation. In the end, he gave in, and the horse was humanely euthanized, but not before commenting to me about "that damn girl is busting my balls all over the internet about this horse". He now knows that girl was me.

And now *you* know why the first guy he said was on the way never showed up, and why the one who did show up didn't do much. Ball-busting females are not considered "buddies" by sheriffs or any males.

I don't mean to sound unsympathetic. I am sympathetic. I'd've been probably more scared than angry (although I'd have been very angry.)

[Wellspotted]

Off topic, but which COTHer was killed?

I'm glad you asked that question. I was wondering the same thing (and horrified).

MVP, please go blur out your LP # or photoshop it or something. This may be COTH, but it's also the Internet!

[Wellspotted]

This incident is good reason to get a locked gate on your proprety. A locked gate we prevent any trespassers.

How will it do that?

[kookicat]

Kookicat-it was the woman who was a photographer, and her ex is the alleged perp in this case. I never read a followup that changed any of the information in the original story so if any is incorrect then someone please correct me. I believe she was found because the house was set on fire and she was found by rescuers. She sounded like a wonderful person from her friends talking about her on here and in the Chron article.

Wow. That is awful.

[Bluey]

I think it's funny that this thread turned into a "Texans are gunslingers thread" when I think the only Texan talking about guns is Bluey and well, she's Bluey..lol.

I judged them because it looked like they lived in the vehicle and yet they were saying they owned a horse, and were looking for it on my land (or so it seemed from the note). How does someone living in a car keep a horse? It just didn't add up.

Yes, I would have been just as mad if they were driving a Range Rover that didn't look like someone lived in it, but I would have been less skeptical about them having a horse. People can say "don't judge by appearances" all day long, but at the end of the day, all of us do it in some way. People judge me all the time by my appearance, and once they knew me, they've told me so and told me how wrong they were. Apparently I give off the conceited bitch who thinks she's hot stuff vibe, but once people get to know me they say that I'm really nice and would do anything to help anyone.

I don't know how exactly do you mean that comment, but my closest neighbor 3 1/2 miles away, is our sheriff and he tells me he is keeping an eye on me and advises me on how to stay safe.
He knows our area and what is sensible to do for that.
A closed and locked gate at the entrance is first, security systems and having a gun handy he bought for me and taught me how and when to use is part of that, yes.

Still, that will only help discourage those that are not very insistent.
If someone really wants to do you harm, they will find a way.
That doesn't mean you have to make it easy for them by not being prepared the best you can.

It would be foolish, knowing what situation someone lives in, not to be proactive, just as it seems foolish to tell others that they are overreacting, when we don't know their situation and especially if we don't seem to have any experience in bad situations, that can happen to anyone.

If I was the OP I too would be very careful, as those people have already shown they are a bit strange and take liberties, not even talking about where your roos went, that for now will have to be just a suspicion of ending in their pot.

[RacetrackReject]

In an odd turn of events, I've been on the phone with the local city police 5 times this morning (they called me), because they had some burglaries and theft reported and they are currently checking out the guy that was at my house as a possibility. From what I could tell on the phone, they had him with them and were trying to run a check on him, but he said he had no ID- same story he gave at my house.

These officers are a different department than the ones that came to my house, but my friend is at this department and when she heard what was going on, she put 2 and 2 together and thought it sounded like the same guy that was at my house, so the detective had her calling me to get some more information. They are a bit peeved that the officer that came out didn't get this information which made them have to keep calling me about it.

I still have found no other sign of the roos and I looked pretty extensively yesterday. I found the few clumps of feathers near their car, only from one roo as they were different colors, but have not found any blood, body parts, or larger areas of feathers. I just don't think there is any way it could be an animal that took them.

[RacetrackReject]

I don't know how exactly do you mean that comment, but my closest neighbor 3 1/2 miles away, is our sheriff and he tells me he is keeping an eye on me and advises me on how to stay safe.
He knows our area and what is sensible to do for that.
A closed and locked gate at the entrance is first, security systems and having a gun handy he bought for me and taught me how and when to use is part of that, yes.

Still, that will only help discourage those that are not very insistent.
If someone really wants to do you harm, they will find a way.
That doesn't mean you have to make it easy for them by not being prepared the best you can.

It would be foolish, knowing what situation someone lives in, not to be proactive, just as it seems foolish to tell others that they are overreacting, when we don't know their situation and especially if we don't seem to have any experience in bad situations, that can happen to anyone.

If I was the OP I too would be very careful, as those people have already shown they are a bit strange and take liberties, not even talking about where your roos went, that for now will have to be just a suspicion of ending in their pot.

It was not meant as a slight Bluey, just that you have very strong opinions and haven't been shy about sharing them. You are a take you as you are type person and I think that's a good thing.

[Bluey]

It was not meant as a slight Bluey, just that you have very strong opinions and haven't been shy about sharing them. You are a take you as you are type person and I think that's a good thing.

Thank you, I didn't know what you really meant, that is why I tried to explain better what we have here.

As for expressing one's opinions strongly, maybe that is not always so good, when they conflict with other's opinions.
I try to moderate myself a little, best I can, when I remember to do so.

Luckily, most of us will never be in a position to see how we we would handle questionable situations and people.
Stories like this one teach us what can happen and how to think thru if and when it does happen we find ourselves there.

[SmartAlex]

This incident is good reason to get a locked gate on your proprety. A locked gate we prevent any trespassers.

To quote my retired cop husband:

Laws and Locks only deter honest people.

[Alagirl]

In an odd turn of events, I've been on the phone with the local city police 5 times this morning (they called me), because they had some burglaries and theft reported and they are currently checking out the guy that was at my house as a possibility. From what I could tell on the phone, they had him with them and were trying to run a check on him, but he said he had no ID- same story he gave at my house.

These officers are a different department than the ones that came to my house, but my friend is at this department and when she heard what was going on, she put 2 and 2 together and thought it sounded like the same guy that was at my house, so the detective had her calling me to get some more information. They are a bit peeved that the officer that came out didn't get this information which made them have to keep calling me about it.

I still have found no other sign of the roos and I looked pretty extensively yesterday. I found the few clumps of feathers near their car, only from one roo as they were different colors, but have not found any blood, body parts, or larger areas of feathers. I just don't think there is any way it could be an animal that took them.

The human animal, wring the neck, chuck them in the trunk...

(would work both ways I guess.)

Sorry about the roos.

[trubandloki]

I sure hope this police department is calling the police department that was at your house and giving them an earful.