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crime

Someone breaking in is an emergency

Did you know that if someone attempts to break into your home and steals your property, the Snohomish County Sheriff's Office will not come out to take a report?

Shortly before 2 a.m. Sunday, a man attempted to gain entry to our home just outside the Snohomish city limits. My son was able to confront the man, but not stop him. He got a good description of the man and the car, and in the attempt to stop the thief, smashed out the taillight of the car. When he called 911, he was told the Snohomish County Sheriff's were only responding to emergencies and to call back in an hour.

Excuse me, but I thought someone trying to break into my home was an emergency! We had a description of the car, as well as the damage to the taillight. It seems to me that there couldn't have been many vehicles on the roads in Snohomish at 2 a.m. to begin with, let alone a late model, dark hatchback with a smashed taillight and our property inside. My son called back in an hour and was told they were too busy to make a report. I guess the chances of anyone getting a good fingerprint off of my front door or my garage were diminishing by the moment.

My son sat up the rest of the night so I could sleep, because we knew no one would be able to help us if the thief came back. We called for a third time Sunday midday. Two hours later a deputy phoned and offered us a case number and told us to watch our mailbox for a report to fill out. How's that for feeling safe in your home? No wonder so many people take the law into their own hands. You aren't going to get any help from Snohomish County.

Christine Del Buono

Snohomish