Trespassing? Or worse?

[tarkus]

My girlfriend lives in a gated apartment. Sometimes people bypass the access control by following residents through the gate. Sometimes it's another resident behind her who doesn't want to wait for the gate to fully close and open again. Sometimes there's someone lurking near the gate waiting for the opportunity to get in. The lurkers are obviously up to no good.

When she sees the lurkers, she calls the apartment office and reports them. However, the office is only open during normal business hours. What if a lurking criminal follows her car through the gate at night? At the very least, the criminal is trespassing by entering property that has "fencing or other enclosure obviously designed to exclude intruders" and if they drive into the parking garage "appurtenant to or connected with" the inhabited apartments, then it sounds like a class A misdemeanor. Do the police care about class A misdemeanors? Should she call 911 to report the intruders after dark?

[KFP]

I'd say if she is concerned about her well being she should definitely call the police. A lot of the time those people are coming to a friend's apartment and don't want to have their friend hassle with letting them in once they arrive. Depending on where she lives and how busy the police are at the time, I can't imagine that it would be a very high priority call for them.

[android]

My girlfriend lives in a gated apartment. Sometimes people bypass the access control by following residents through the gate.

At the very least, the criminal is trespassing by entering property that has"fencing or other enclosure obviously designed to exclude intruders" and if they drive into the parking garage "appurtenant to or connected with" the inhabited apartments, then it sounds like a class A misdemeanor. Do the police care about class A misdemeanors? Should she call 911 to report the intruders after dark?

I sincerely doubt you'll be able to get any legally savvy property management company to state that this is the intended purpose of any gated access control on a property and I would bet that your lease mentions that any fencing is decorative and not intended to keep out intruders or some other such language. Any property management company that makes a statement about the gates and fences being for security is liable to lawsuit whenever they don't work. So they usually go to a great deal of paperwork to make you understand they and their fences are not responsible for your safety.

[boomerang]

Definitely call the police. They may not do anything but at least there's a record of the intruders. That could be important if there's a robbery or rape.

[geoelectro]

In my business I service in homes. A number of gated communities and new ones all the time. I am always amazed at how many times I arrive to find a gate that was never mentioned with no idea how to gain entry. Many customers can't even speak English very well. I hate to sit there stuck with cars stuck behind me. So yes, I sometimes wait for someone else to enter and drive in behind them. When I lived in an apartment, I would walk out and locate whoever was coming to see me and guide them in. Seems people can't be bothered with all that much detail and figure you'll just find it.

I now have a sign on my van but for years I didn't so I may have looked like an opportunist. Believe me, I'm Just trying to get in, do my job, and get the heck out! I've been stuck at a gate with other vendors...same problem! Probably happens alot. If you go there on a regular basis, you know how to get in. Service people don't usually...

Geoelectro

[dihappy]

This doesnt even fall under "suspicious behavior". If someone is waiting to tag along inside to go visit a friend, they have been invited and are not trespassing.

If there is no guard stationed at the entrance, the gates at a "gated community" are only there to help prevent solicitation and maybe assist in the prevention of loitering and/or theft.

I seriously doubt there is anything written in the lease agreement stating the gates are there to protect anyone.

Hopefully she is armed and therefore has taken her own safety into her hands.

[boomerang]

If someone intentionally circumventing the gates after dark isn't "suspicious behavior" I don't know what is.

[geoelectro]

This doesnt even fall under "suspicious behavior". If someone is waiting to tag along inside to go visit a friend, they have been invited and are not trespassing.

If there is no guard stationed at the entrance, the gates at a "gated community" are only there to help prevent solicitation and maybe assist in the prevention of loitering and/or theft.

I seriously doubt there is anything written in the lease agreement stating the gates are there to protect anyone.

Hopefully she is armed and therefore has taken her own safety into her hands.

That's a good point. I lived in a gated apartment where the gates were often broken and just left open. My neighbor had his brand new truck stolen off the property. He tried to hold the apartment complex accountable and they readily pointed to the lease which stated that they were not responsible for any damage or theft due to the gates not working.

Geoelectro

[Frost]

I am pretty sure cops have better things to do then harass friends of residents who forgot the gate code.

[Liberty]

If someone intentionally circumventing the gates after dark isn't "suspicious behavior" I don't know what is.

Having lived in one of those gate apartments for 6 months, I learned that those gates had very little to do with security. They are effective in slowing first responders from getting on the property and that is about it.

[roberts]

I am pretty sure cops have better things to do then harass friends of residents who forgot the gate code.

Yeah! Like harass honest people driving rental cars. http://www.texasshooting.com/TexasCHL_F ... 6&start=15" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[shootthesheet]

What is sad is that people will often choose those places thinking they are more secure. I look at it the same way I do the ADT Security or whatever they are now, commercials. It is selling a lie that most people buy into. Alarms are good but to rely on that or a so called security gate and fence alone is dumb. I wish just one time the commercial would be realistic where the criminal continues in anyway and shuts the door behind him and forces the resident to turn the alarm off and call the company before taking his time doing as he pleases. The key is that most neighbors do nothing at all if the alarm goes off inside a few minutes and the company cannot or will not do anything else. That is where getting to know the neighbors is essential but most people never do.

This seems like a good reason to talk to her about guns, car carry and CHL if you have not.

[joe817]

This seems like a good reason to talk to her about guns, car carry and CHL if you have not.

Once again s.t.s. I agree with your assessment.

[tarkus]

She stumbled upon an interesting solution yesterday when she saw a deputy constable that lives in the apartment and asked his advice. He gave her his cell phone number and suggested she text him the vehicle description and plate number for people sneaking in, and he would check them out. I don't know what that means exactly, but she feels better about the situation. (Therefore I feel better. )

Thanks to everyone for your comments and concern. Whether you encouraged her to call 911 or suggested that she assume the person has a legitimate reason for lurking after dark, I hope your neighbors will follow your advice if they see someone outside your bedroom window.

[striker55]

I lived in a gated community on Sugar Hill for a while. Saw a brand new corvette stripped of his wheels, not once but twice. He then moved it off property. One morning while having coffee on my patio, around 4am, saw a guy coming running down the sidewalk, past my unit and hopped over an 8" fence like a gazel. After investigating and calling the police, I discovered he had broken into several cars.