Greetings from the Los Angeles Police Department. The following is the monthly update for November 2001. I encourage you to continue to visit our Web site at www.lapdonline.org as it is updated and revised on a daily basis. LAPD RECOGNITION DAY AWARDS CEREMONY The 22nd Annual Recognition Day Awards Ceremony will be held at the Elysian Park Academy Gymnasium on Wednesday, November 7, 2001 at 10:00 a.m. I will be presenting medals to 126 people recognizing outstanding acts of bravery and service. Families and friends of the Department are encouraged to attend. LAPD ARCHIVES PHOTO GALLERY SHOW The Department is presently coordinating a touring photo gallery show titled “LAPD - 100 Years of Photography” featuring law enforcement and crime scene photographs from LAPD photo archives. The gallery show will travel to all Community Police Stations and various City landmarks. The Los Angeles Police Federal Credit Union will join and sponsor the traveling exhibit. The public is invited to attend the show to view these historic photographs. The show will be at Parker Center beginning November 26, beginning December 3, at the Ahmanson Recruit Center in Westchester; beginning December 10, at Pacific Area Community Police Station; beginning December 17, at West Los Angeles Community Police Station beginning December 31, at West Valley Area Community Police Station; and beginning December 31, at Devonshire Area Community Police Station. Additional dates and locations will be published in January 2002. CHIEF OF POLICE COMMUNITY HOLIDAY CELEBRATION Preparations are now being made for the Annual Community Holiday Celebration taking place this year on Saturday, December 15, at the Radisson Hotel at the Los Angeles Airport. We had an outstanding turn out last year with over 500 people in attendance. This year we are planning for 600 attendees. The price per ticket is $45 and includes dinner, a holiday portrait, an artist’s caricature, and discounted parking rates. The evening will also feature a magic show, celebrity entertainment, prize give-a-ways and dancing. The social hour begins at 5:30 p.m. with dinner served at 7:00 p.m. If you would like to join us in celebrating the season, please contact the Public Affairs Unit at (213) 485-3281 for ticket information. I hope to see you there. NOVEMBER SAFETY TIPS – AUTOMATED TELLER MACHINES (ATM) Surveys have shown the reported crime rate at ATM's has changed little over the last decade and that the occurrence of this crime has a low probability. A person using an ATM is more likely to be the victim of a street robbery or involved in a traffic collision than the victim of an ATM crime. In fact, ATM crime incidents are on a downward trend due to heightened user awareness and prevention applications. However, low probability odds and statistics are a moot point to those who suffer the trauma of an ATM crime. The following crime prevention tips can help make the use of ATM’s safer for everyone. - Do not select an ATM at the corner of a building. Corners create a blind area in close proximity to the customer's transaction. Select an ATM located near the center of a building. An ATM further from the corner reduces the element of surprise by an assailant; - Select an ATM at a location void of barriers blocking the line of sight of the ATM. This includes shrubbery, landscaping, signs and decorative partitions or dividers. Barriers provide hiding areas for would-be assailants; - Select an ATM that is in a well-lit location; - Maintain an awareness of your surroundings throughout the entire transaction. Do not become so involved with your transaction that you are not aware of changing conditions around you; - Memorize your Personal Identification Number (PIN). Do not write it down or keep it in your wallet or purse. Do not tell anyone else your PIN; - Make sure you retain your transaction receipt. Do not throw the receipt away at the ATM site; - When leaving an ATM location make sure you are not being followed. If you are being followed, drive immediately to a police, sheriff, fire station, or any crowded well-lit location or open business. Flash your lights and sound your horn to bring attention to your situation; and - If you are involved in a confrontation and the attacker is armed with a weapon and demands your money or valuables, COMPLY. This information is offered to contribute to your personal security while conducting ATM transactions. As far as your security is concerned, you can never be too careful, too prepared or too aware. Share this information with family and friends. Schedule family discussions and practice regularly to ensure that everyone you know is safe and informed. There are many more helpful hints and facts outlined in the LAPD’s “Automated Teller Machine Crime Prevention Circular.” For more information, or to obtain copies of Crime Prevention Circulars, contact the Community Liaison/Crime Prevention Unit, at (213) 485-3134, or visit our Web Site at www.lapdonline.org and open the “Building Safer Communities icon. On behalf of the men and women of the Los Angeles Police Department, may you have a happy Thanksgiving filled with family and friends. BERNARD C. PARKS Chief of Police