Concerned About Crime? Join Lower Merion Community Watch

Right on the heels of a recent wave of burglaries across Lower Merion Township, a community organization aimed at preventing crime is starting its spring membership drive.

Lower Merion Community Watch, one of the oldest community crime watch groups in the country, is an easy way for Lower Merion residents to get involved in crime prevention, president Matt Peskin said.

The organization has 200 members in total and about 75 active members, and the goal is to bring the number of active members up to 200.

And lest you worry about the committment: If you're older than 18, a Lower Merion resident, have access to a car and about a dozen free hours in your year, LMCW wants you to join.

Patch spoke with Peskin this week to learn more about what being a member of LMCW means.

What's the time committment like?

The total time committment, per year, can be as little as 10-12 hours.

New members will attend an hour-long training at the police department, where they learn about what to look for while on patrol, and places in the township where a patrol presence is most effective: the back of buildings, train stations, schools, etc.

The average community watch member volunteers to patrol once per quarter, or four times a year. Volunteering more frequently is welcome, of course.

What's an average shift like?

The average shift—which lasts two to three hours—begins when the community watch member heads to the police station and is briefed on what is happening in the township crime-wise: things to look out for, Peskin said.

Then the community watch members get a radio and head back to their cars. They drive around for a few hours, typically in their own section of Lower Merion, and keep a lookout for any suspicious activity.

Watch members can report anything odd over the radio, and an officer on duty at the department will evaluate whether to send police out to the site, Peskin said. At the end of the shift, the member heads back to the station, turns in the radio, and fills out an incident report for anything they saw while on patrol.

What's the impact?

It's rare that a watch member sees a crime being committed while on patrol, Peskin said, but the value of LMCW goes beyond the actual patrols. Being a member of a community watch group trains residents to be vigilant and report suspicious activity to police, even when they're not on duty.

"People are very hesitant to pick up the phone and call—it's better now than it used to be, but once people go through training, they’re more comfortable communicating and getting involved," Peskin said. "People see that their involvement is important and that ... you’re doing everything you can to make it safer by calling."

That said, there have been times that a community watch patrol has led directly to an arrest.

A few years ago, there was a hold up at a convenience store in Bala Cynwyd, Peskin said. Police sent out information over the radio about the car and its occupants, and a community watch member on patrol just so happened to be close by. The watch member followed the car at a safe distance at police instruction, Peskin said, into Philadelphia. The perps—thinking no one was following them—stopped for gas, and were soon swarmed by police.

Another example: seven or eight years ago, a community watch member called in a suspicious vehicle in Bryn Mawr. Police found and stopped the car, which was filled with items the occupants had burglarized, Peskin said.

How can residents join?

A mailing to Lower Merion residents is going out this week, Peskin said. Interested residents should fill out the application form and return it to Community Watch. Or, for more information, visit lmcommunitywatch.org or call 610-649-7055.