Do This Before You Need the Police
• Keep OPD phone numbers handy.
- OPD emergency, landline: 911. (Call 777-7777, the OPD emergency line, if 911 gives a busy signal)
- OPD emergency, cell phone: 777-3211
- OPD non-emergency: 777-3333
- Fire Department non-emergency: 444-3322
• Don't leave valuables - purse, wallet, cell phone, computer, tablet - in your car or easily visible through windows in your home.
• If you have or plan to install security cameras, make them visible as an additional deterrent.
• Be aware of your surroundings when walking on the street, and especially when leaving your car to enter the house.
• Do not walk and talk on a cell phone without at least assessing your surroundings for possible threats.
• Have good lighting around your home. Put lights on motion sensors; leave the porch light on at night.
• Secure your gates and garage doors. Lock outside tool storage areas and ladders securely.
• Report all instances of crime to the Oakland Police Department, and get a report number. At the least, OPD can use the information to predict and respond to trends. At best, your loss may be recovered.
• Install an alarm and the provider's identifying sticker.
• Trim landscaping, especially around windows and where walls and overhangs obscure security views.
• Screen in-house workers - contractors, their sub-contractors, and day laborers, for example - for reliability and trustworthiness.
• Find more emergency contact information and news about crime prevention programs at http://safeoakland.com/report-safety-threat/emergency-contact-information.
From information suggested by OPD panel members at the June RCPC Town Hall and the Safe Oakland web site.