Falls Church Police Offer Tips to Keep Kids Safe

On the afternoon of Saturday, May 7, an unknown woman approached a 9-year-old boy in the City of Falls Church asking for help. The boy got away and told his mother.

City of Falls Church Police Chief Harry Reitze said he did not expect an escalation of similar incidents but the police department is becoming proactive. Community services officer James Brook gave tips for parents and children during a community meeting on child safety held at city hall Thursday evening.

“If a child is playing in the street or out in the park and someone approaches them that they do not know that should be an alarm for sure regardless of what they say,” Brooks said.

He said children should avoid dangerous situations by playing and walking in groups and being aware of their surroundings. Brook added the three things for children to remember are to: say no, try to get away, make a scene if the unknown adult persists and to tell a trusted adult about the incident.

However, he noted that many children who have been taught to be polite and helpful to adults have a hard time making a scene for fear of being thought rude.

“We are always told as kids to be polite and then we are told to yell and scream that can be very confusing,” he said. “If you are being rude to an adult because you feel safe, you can say officer Brooks says that’s ok. But when you are around your family and you are safe you should be polite.”

An ill mannered child does not bother Patricia Jordan as much as the thought of a stranger approaching her four year old son who sometimes plays out in the yard and opens the door when someone rings the doorbell.

 “I am definitely very worried especially living in the city of Falls Church where not many things happen,” she said, “you know you get kind of scared knowing that something can happen here.”

Falls Church police say they want people to call and report suspicious activity even if it turns out to be nothing. Robert Greenwood an Emergency Communications Technician with the city said about 95 percent of calls turn out to be nothing but there are calls that prevent crime or save lives of people in distress.

“I want to reemphasize please call,” he said. ”If something does not feel right, if some just isn’t right, if something is different, strange call us then. We dread the call that I get at 10 in the morning saying last night there was this guy. .”

Citing a three to 4-minute response time, Brooks said in case of emergency, city residents should call the police directly at 703-241-5050. He said because Falls Church City does not have an emergency tower, people calling 911 were either directed to Arlington or Alexandria emergency services and experienced a 15-45 second delay as their calls were relayed to city police.

Jeanne Duroff who brought her son and daughter to the meeting said although she had shared some safety tips with her son and daughter, there could never be too much reinforcement when it comes to stranger danger and the children learned a lot.

“I think it really struck the right balance between giving the children concrete tips on what to do but also reassuring hem that if they do what they have been told to do they will be safe,” she said.