Purse snatching, Apple picking, pickpocketing, and other street crimes are a sad reality of living in any major city. In 2012 the FBI reported that 1 in every 30 people in the U.S. was hit by one of these crimes. What can you do to reduce the odds of these things happening to you? The answer lies with any PBS nature program. Think of pickpockets as opportunistic carnivores sneaking around outside a herd of peaceful, law-abiding herbivores — you can’t afford to appear to be the weakest herbivore. Here are 12 common sense personal-safety tips to keep predators at bay, as well as real-life tales of folks who learned these lessons the hard way.
Why? If you’re oblivious to your surroundings, you won’t know what hit you when a predator strikes.
Life Lesson: At lunchtime, a man is texting while walking on a crowded Financial District sidewalk when he’s suddenly punched in the face and robbed. He can’t even tell the police his attacker’s gender.
Why? Just because your coworkers leave you alone when you’re on the phone doesn’t mean a predator will: Distracted prey is what’s for dinner.
Life Lesson: One sunny afternoon, a coed talks on her phone while walking home from school. She’s abruptly shoved from behind and knocked down. A two-women team grabs her purse and phone and runs. She “never saw it coming.”
Why? In the urban jungle, dangling a purse is akin to teasing a cat with a string toy. Add a phone call or another distraction and most predators can’t help but pounce. Tuck your purse against your body or secure your valuables elsewhere.
Life Lesson: A woman is walking her dog when a man springs out of nowhere, knocks her down, snatches her purse, and runs. An eyewitness offers to chase the mugger. She says, “Please don’t. That’d be dangerous. Besides, the only thing I keep in the purse is my dog’s poop that I pick up on our walks. All the good stuff is in my body wallet.”
Why? When something brushes against a sea anemone’s many arms, it’ll pull them all in until the coast is clear. When someone bumps into you, resist becoming an anemone. Predators interpret this freezing up as fear and weakness and are drawn to it. Keep your head up and walk with confidence. Only by seeing predators coming do you have any chance of avoiding or escaping them.
Life Lesson: A woman lies in the ER after a brutal sexual assault. When asked what she remembers, she keeps repeating, “I don’t know what he looks like. He kept telling me not to look at him so I kept my eyes down even when he was hitting me.”
Why? Just as in the wild, humans take direct eye contact as a challenge. If you look down to avoid a predator’s eye contact, you’re signaling submission. Plus, you’ll never see his next move. Hold any eye contact for a second, nod slightly in acknowledgment, and scan to the side, an interaction expected of equals (looking above the person’s head may come off as snootiness, which can provoke a predator). Also use eye contact to deflect potential negative engagement.
Life Lesson: An older woman is sitting at a bus stop when two unsavory characters come snooping around. The woman looks at the leader until he snarls, “Whatcha looking at, ol’ lady?” She replies animatedly: “You look just like my grandson. He’s in the army and is on leave. He said he was going to visit me this week and I was hoping….” The woman maintains a stream of conversation until the bus arrives.
Why? It’s pouring and you’re trying to get maximum coverage with your umbrella. Unfortunately, you sacrifice your ability to see what’s happening around you, making you easy prey. The colder and wetter it is, the more aware of your surroundings you should be. Everything on you can be warmed and dried later.
Life Lesson: A martial arts black belt walks home in the rain with his backpack on, hoody up, earbuds in, and umbrella open and leaning on one of his shoulders. Three guys jump on his back, smash him into the ground, and take his iPhone and backpack. “I never heard or saw them coming!” he exclaims.
Why? When convicted bank robber Willie Sutton was asked why he robbed banks, his apocryphal response was, “Because that’s where the money is.” Predators have a fondness for ATMs and the inattentive folks who use them. They tend to strike after they’re out of the security camera’s range, though, so be especially careful leaving an ATM.
Life Lesson: At 10 p.m. on a Friday night, a woman has her friend drop her off on a bustling street opposite her bank so she can get some cash. There’s no parking so her friend circles the block. Within two minutes, she finds her friend on the ground bleeding with a few bystanders staring at her.
Why? Predators prefer slow, unsteady prey, so if you’re strapped into an unwieldy pair of heels, you become a prime target. Wear your shoes wisely (or carry them until you reach your destination).
Life Lesson: A well-dressed woman in high heels embarks on a Union Square shopping spree. As she navigates a congested street, she’s struck hard from the side and knocked down. Stunned by the fall, it takes her a moment to realize that her shopping bags and purse are gone.
Why? If you freeze in the face of danger, you’re the perfect prey. Learn to do something to disarm a predator when confronted. Perhaps loudly expound on some nonsensical topic with grand hand gesticulations, or boisterously burst into your favorite Disney song. Doing anything, even acting loony, could be your sanest move.
Life Lesson: A grad student leaves the school library when it closes at midnight. He walks toward a hot-dog joint for a snack when a street person pops up brandishing a knife, yelling, “I’m gonna fuck you up!” The student launches into a rousing recitation of the many uses of lug nuts as he slips off his backpack in case he needs it to block the knife. Curious onlookers soon gather and the attacker leaves in a cloud of swear words.
Why? Predators know just as well as you do that valuables shouldn’t be left in plain view in a car. So don’t let them watch you stow your stuff in the trunk and then disappear down the block –predators have poor impulse control. Put your valuables in the trunk before you get to your destination, or scope out your surroundings beforehand. If there are too many eyes, take your goods with you or find another parking spot after everything’s in the trunk.
Life Lesson: A man flies into Oakland, rents a car, and drives to his favorite sushi bar. He parks between two cop cars, throws his overnight bag and computer bag in the trunk, locks the car, and heads into the restaurant. Two minutes later a guy runs in, shouting, “They’re busting into a car in the parking lot!” Everyone runs out and the man finds that his car’s trunk has been crowbarred open and both of his bags are gone.
Why? The passenger seat is a convenient place to rest your purse or laptop bag as you drive yourself around. Unfortunately, predators commonly pull the sneak-and-snatch at gas stations and in parking lots (the police call these predators “sliders”). Predators have also been known to smash passenger-side windows at stoplights and grab what they can.
Life Lesson: A woman drives to a gas station and parks in front of a pump. She extracts a credit card from her purse on the passenger seat and hops out to pump gas. She hears a noise and sees a man on the other side of her car running away — after he’s flung open her passenger-side door and snatched her purse.
Why? A laptop sitting open in a cafe will make any predator lick his chops. Most cafe patrons are so engrossed in their own devices that no one will notice when a predator plucks a laptop and exits; if the laptop’s still unlocked, the password can be easily changed. Take care when using a laptop in public. Carry it and other valuables with you, even if it means losing your spot.
Life Lesson: A man working on his laptop at a table in a busy cafe gets up and stands in line to buy a muffin. While there, he watches as a man grabs his laptop and BlackBerry and runs. He chases the thief until he jumps into a nearby waiting car and takes off.
