Jump to content

Suspicious car outside my house...


mkhalil61

Recommended Posts

Hey guys. So around 6:30 last night I pulled up to my house and notice a suspicious vehicle stopped in my alley. So I waited a few seconds for the car to pull off and it didn't. So I became more suspicious. I put my car back in drive and put my foot on the brake (in case the car tried boxing me in I would be able to react faster). I then waited a few minutes and told myself that if the car did not move along than I was going to put my car back in park and make a dash for my front door. Sure enough thats what I did and as soon as I turn back I notice the driver took his foot of his brakes and immediately put his foot back on his brakes causing his car to rock. So now I'm thinking what the heck is going on. As I got to my front door and inside my house the car than drove out of my alley and passed my house. As soon as I seen him pull over to the side to park I immediately went into my bedroom to retrieve my firearm. Once I got back to my front door the car was no where to be found. I did call the police and file a police report.

 

I decided to let you all know about this because I have been Under board review for my conceal carry license for over a year now. Honestly, there is no good reason for me to be under board review, let alone be in limbo for this long. Might I add over the summer I applied for my Florida CCL and received it 20 days later. I am just extremely frustrated with the system here in Illinois (especially Cook County) and if something unfortunate where to happen to me last night no one would be held accountable. Living just a few minutes from the ghetto, I constantly fear for my safety. I do keep a bottle of OC spray in my car, but how efficient is that against a firearm in your face?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'm glad you're okay.

 

Next time call the police on your cell phone while still in your car. If the person is not a threat, the police will quickly determine that. If he or she is a threat, a call to the police will likely scare them off from being in your neighborhood again.

 

As far as protecting yourself without the police...have you considered pepper spray?

I also believe that license holders from other states can carry within their vehicle legally in Illinois. I don't know if that only applies to residents of the state of issuance. It may not apply to Illinois residents with out-of-state licenses. Someone here knows the answer to that.

You may also carry on your own property without a license. I presume you have a FOID since you have a gun in you home. So, in theory, making the assumption that your FL license is good in your car...if you drive onto your property, you may exit the car armed as long as you step onto your property from the vehicle. Then you may walk to your door armed. From the post, I can't tell if that's possible. And, again, it depends on whether your FL license allows you to do that.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I also believe that license holders from other states can carry within their vehicle legally in Illinois. I don't know if that only applies to residents of the state of issuance. It may not apply to Illinois residents with out-of-state licenses. Someone here knows the answer to that.

Almost certain, it's honored for RESIDENTS of that state. Ergo, he needs an Illinois CCL to have it loaded and ready in the car. (Foid, he can still have it in a case mag out and just insert the mag and rack if trouble comes near).

Link to comment
Share on other sites

a couple years ago a neighbor texted me that there was a guy sitting in a car on our block and had been there for about an hour. We suspected he was casing houses and observing times of entries and exits.

 

so I grabbed my phone a sharpie marker and a piece of paper, went out and wrote the license plate down on the paper, walked up to the car, and showed the driver the letters and numbers of his own license plate and took a picture of him in the car.

 

he nonchalantly started the engine and drove off.

 

never saw the car again.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

One harmless reason a car may be parked outside a home (primarily in daylight) is when a lender has filed a formal lis pendens notice against a delinquent borrower, or a foreclosure has been granted. The lender then dispatches one or more real estate agents to perform a Broker Price Opinion to value the property. Photographs are taken of the outside and the street view, and the agent also makes note of condition, nearby comps, etc. It's going to look like someone casing the joint.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

One harmless reason a car may be parked outside a home (primarily in daylight) is when a lender has filed a formal lis pendens notice against a delinquent borrower, or a foreclosure has been granted. The lender then dispatches one or more real estate agents to perform a Broker Price Opinion to value the property. Photographs are taken of the outside and the street view, and the agent also makes note of condition, nearby comps, etc. It's going to look like someone casing the joint.

 

Exterior BPOs are normally done while still in the car with the camera out the window while driving by. It takes only seconds.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I just called the cops last night on two men who parked their two cars at least half a block away from where they walked off too. One of them put on a reflective vest like he's a utility worker. These were personal cars and it was outside of normal worker hours and after dark. My subdivision is 116 homes on a circular horseshoe type drive. It's low traffic and there's plenty of street parking in front of any house you may be directly visiting. Why park 1/2 block away from your destination when it's below freezing, dark and really windy? Suspicious as heck.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I just called the cops last night on two men who parked their two cars at least half a block away from where they walked off too. One of them put on a reflective vest like he's a utility worker. These were personal cars and it was outside of normal worker hours and after dark. My subdivision is 116 homes on a circular horseshoe type drive. It's low traffic and there's plenty of street parking in front of any house you may be directly visiting. Why park 1/2 block away from your destination when it's below freezing, dark and really windy? Suspicious as heck.

Maybe one of the utility provider sign up scams making you think they are from ComEd with the utility vest and making the round of homes offering a better electric bill? Regardless, still worthy of suspicion.

 

The guy that showed up after 6 PM at mine in a vest was really annoyed I kept asking for a ComEd ID after he implied thats where he was from. Watched him leave and his car was not close.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

a couple years ago a neighbor texted me that there was a guy sitting in a car on our block and had been there for about an hour. We suspected he was casing houses and observing times of entries and exits.

 

so I grabbed my phone a sharpie marker and a piece of paper, went out and wrote the license plate down on the paper, walked up to the car, and showed the driver the letters and numbers of his own license plate and took a picture of him in the car.

 

he nonchalantly started the engine and drove off.

 

never saw the car again.

 

That's good Beezil and I'm glad it turned out so well. HOWEVER, you took a dangerous and unnecessary risk. What if that person's intent WAS evil? What if there were more than one in the car?

You got LUCKY.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

You can carry in your car under FOID rules if the gun is unloaded an in a closed container. Once you are on you own property, including your driveway, you can load and carry concealed or openly.

 

Sales organizations often turn teams of youngsters loose in a neighborhood, while waiting in a parked car on the street. You can't know. It's best to let the police investigate rather than take matters into your own hands. You are not a cop, and your weapon is for defense only, licensed or not.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

All that evil needs to triumph is for good men to do nothing.

Thank God there are still beezils in this world that understand the best way to turn a wolf around is to stand in front of him and snarl back.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

 

 

Witty phrases mean nothing when your are arrested for brandishing or get run over by a car. Your taxes pay the Police to investigate suspicious activity. Call them and let them do their job. By calling you've done something. As a CCL holder you are supposed to try and avoid confrontation not purposely get into one. Thanking God has nothing to do with it.

 

All it takes for all CCL holders to get a bad rap is for one of them to act like they are a cop.

Yeah, and police are always just in time to file a report.

 

Doing what the member described above is not out of line. Letting criminals know that you or even your neighborhood is not an easy mark is not only ok, but it's the right thing to do.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

 

 

All that evil needs to triumph is for good men to do nothing.

Thank God there are still beezils in this world that understand the best way to turn a wolf around is to stand in front of him and snarl back.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

Witty phrases mean nothing when your are arrested for brandishing or get run over by a car. Your taxes pay the Police to investigate suspicious activity. Call them and let them do their job. By calling you've done something. As a CCL holder you are supposed to try and avoid confrontation not purposely get into one. Thanking God has nothing to do with it.

 

All it takes for all CCL holders to get a bad rap is for one of them to act like they are a cop.

 

 

Yeah, and police are always just in time to file a report.

Doing what the member described above is not out of line. Letting criminals know that you or even your neighborhood is not an easy mark is not only ok, but it's the right thing to do.

 

 

 

 

There's a lot of assumptions with that scenario but most of them end up badly for the member described above.

That person might have just been eating lunch or talking on the phone. That's not criminal. The guy thinks you are a nut and drives off.

The guy in the same scenario tells you to go F yourself and now YOU have escalated the situation. Maybe he has a CCL and gets out of the car and feels that since he was minding his own business, YOU are the threat. In the end you end up severely wounded or dead and the guy who just finished his Taco Bell is exonerated because of your neighbors testimony.

You being MR. BADASS think that since you have a CCL are somehow a deputized LEO with powers of arrest. You end up brandishing and the real police come knocking. You are arrested and charged, plea to a lesser charge because the guy has the whole thing on video on his IPhone. You lose your FOID and CCL and pay a hefty fine.

The guy is a MEG agent doing surveillance, you just blew his cover and he is going to have a real fun time with you. You end up in the back seat of the car and take a trip to the nearest county jail. You will probably be charged with disorderly conduct.

OR

The guy is actually a criminal and sees you walking up to the car and writing down the plate of a car he stole. He blows you away with his gun without warning. Same scenario but he decides to run you over. You walk up to the car to show him the plate that you wrote down, he opens the door quickly and knocks you to the ground and beats you senseless either taking your gun and shooting you with it or if unarmed just giving you a prison beat down, cracking your skull open on the street.

Non of these scenarios plays out as a Self Defense situation, you initiated every one of them because your neighbor texted you, you left your house and started a confrontation because a car was parked on your block in broad daylight.

OR

You should call the REAL POLICE and report suspicious activity. If they show up and the guy is gone they aren't going to bother to file a report. If they show up and the guy is up to no good, then you did the right thing, what you were supposed to as a citizen.

 

YOU ARE NOT THE POLICE, DONT TRY AND ACT LIKE A SWORN POLICE OFFICER BECAUSE YOU HAVE A CCL!

Perhaps if you don't see a path to taking a picture and writing down a license plate number that doesn't involve a gunfight, you should reconsider...everything.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

 

a couple years ago a neighbor texted me that there was a guy sitting in a car on our block and had been there for about an hour. We suspected he was casing houses and observing times of entries and exits.

 

so I grabbed my phone a sharpie marker and a piece of paper, went out and wrote the license plate down on the paper, walked up to the car, and showed the driver the letters and numbers of his own license plate and took a picture of him in the car.

 

he nonchalantly started the engine and drove off.

 

never saw the car again.

 

That's good Beezil and I'm glad it turned out so well. HOWEVER, you took a dangerous and unnecessary risk. What if that person's intent WAS evil? What if there were more than one in the car?

You got LUCKY.

 

 

i'm pretty sure the guy i scared off feels lucky.

 

what if i'm more dangerous than him?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Backing up to OP's original situation/report.

Sir, I believe you got lucky and that the guy in question had no immediate evil intent towards you or yours.

 

Had that been a home invasion, you might or might not have made it to your firearm. He almost certainly would have been in your home before you would have been able to return to the door. Assuming that he was also armed, things could have gone sideways very quickly.

 

If you pull up and find someone parked in front of your home like that, just whip out the cell phone, take a picture of the car and license plate, back up, and drive off. File a report with the local PD from the nearest McDonalds. It's the same concept as paying attention to your rear view mirror when you get to a mile or so away from your home (the "three turn" rule). Due to the location of my new home, I can't use 3 turns. But, if they've stuck with me for 5 or more turns, or for more than 2 miles, I'll drive past my house and around the block instead of pulling into the driveway.

 

I watched a reasonably good video on YouTube about this a month or so ago, and can't for the life of me find the link to it now. It was a training video where a woman and kid were followed home by a bad guy. The first time they ran through the scenario, the woman was completely oblivious. The Bad Guy was on her before she got out of the car, frog marched her in with her husband, and that was that. The second time, the woman was paying attention, was able to get the garage door closed and beat the guy in the house by a good 20 seconds, where her husband was waiting with a sidearm. The third go-round, she drove past her house and called 911.

 

Bri

Link to comment
Share on other sites

What is the 3 turn rule? An online search brings up how to do a 3 point turn.

 

As you are driving, and particularly driving in less-travelled areas or getting ready to pull into your subdivision/home area, keep an eye on your rear-view mirror. If you see a car follow you through three turns, you're not necessarily being followed, but you should be concerned. Consider driving past your destination and looping back around. The video I talked about above mentioned it (and I'd have sworn I'd seen Massad Ayoob mention it as well, but my Google-fu is weak today).

 

Bri

Link to comment
Share on other sites

 

 

Pretty sure the guy was finishing his lunch and thought "Look at this whack job".

By initiating a confrontation you will always come out on the losing end.

Did you miss that part in CCL class or just forget it? You NEVER come out on top in your scenario.

"what if i'm more dangerous than him?" You lose, if you're not, you lose.

If your neighbor was so concerned then why did they contact you instead of the POLICE?

You are not more dangerous then a 4000 lb. car, you are a stain going down the street.

Plus it's justified homicide on his part because you thought you were John Wayne, especially if you brandished.

You cannot claim Self Defense when you walked X amount of feet to start a confrontation.

I'm done writing about your MISTAKE. You might want to look into the law and see exactly what SELF DEFENSE means.

You're duty in this situation is to call the POLICE and not act like you are a US Marshal, nothing more.

 

"You definitely got LUCKY."

 

i'm sorry.....what did i say that made you jump to the conclusion that I treated this like a self-defense senario? Did I mention I was carrying? at all?

 

You weren't there, i sized the guy up, and i know what i am doing.

 

The guy was apparently up to no good, that's why he abruptly left. If he had a legitimate reason to be there he would have asked what i was doing or would have explained himself through his open window.

 

I live in an area that is suffering from forced entry, home invasion, burglary, package theft, etc.

 

I'm tired of it.

 

The candyasses that see suspicious things and don't do anything about it are enabling these crimes to continue.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

 

I am just extremely frustrated with the system here in Illinois (especially Cook County) and if something unfortunate where to happen to me last night no one would be held accountable.

That's how Illinois works. Someone gets hurt. A law suit is filed because their rights were violated and they were unable to defend themselves. A court order forces Illinois to fix themselves. Then Illinois applies a halfassed band aid fix.

 

But at least you would be famous! #sarcasm

 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

a CCL has NOTHING to do with this

I think he's trying to say if a person misjudged a situation and it turned violent that the person creating the confrontation in the eyes of the police would likely be charged thus putting that persons gun rights in jeopardy in this stupid state. That's why I just called the cops on the guys I saw in my neighborhood doing something that seems weird and out of place. I wasn't going to step in directly, particularly right outside my house so they know where to find me when I'm sleeping.

I'm not judging you. I don't blame you for doing something. It's just that some of us would do something different for reasons we find compelling.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

What if this innocent person was complying with the law to pull over and text, email, or do a conference call that required note taking and someone aggressively approached the car and banged on the window. If they were a ccw'er they'd have their hand hidden, but on their gun. Your next actions would determine if the driver was going to draw. If you reached for a gun because you suspected the driver was doing the same you'd be in a shootout as the aggressor.

 

Not saying this is how it went down, but it could be perceived or witnessed as exactly this.

 

These are those "blood on the street" situations liberals warn us about. They don't happen because most of us are not stupid enough to play law enforcement. With or without a CCW.

 

Just remember the George Zimmerman case. That situation could of gone down so many ways depending on who was armed, who lived to tell their story and who died, who had the cleanest background, what the witnesses recalled, and who had the best lawyer.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

 

a CCL has NOTHING to do with this

I think he's trying to say if a person misjudged a situation and it turned violent that the person creating the confrontation in the eyes of the police would likely be charged thus putting that persons gun rights in jeopardy in this stupid state. That's why I just called the cops on the guys I saw in my neighborhood doing something that seems weird and out of place. I wasn't going to step in directly, particularly right outside my house so they know where to find me when I'm sleeping.

I'm not judging you. I don't blame you for doing something. It's just that some of us would do something different for reasons we find compelling.

 

no gun rights were put in jeopardy.

 

I WAS NOT CARRYING. it happened before the FCCA

 

i also live in a place where police don't respond for silly things like "suspicious parked vehicle."

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...