Deb
04-30-2006, 08:20 PM
Today a friend and I witnessed some suspicious behavior on the Joe Rodata bike path between Sebastopol and Santa Rosa. We saw a man on foot (white, 35-40 years old, about 5'10", bright blue eyes, wearing a light grey wool hat, and way overdressed for how warm it was today) hanging out with a young boy on a bike (white, around the age of 10, with light blond hair, wearing a white tee shirt). It just didn't feel right and my mind immediately went to "this guy is a pedophile and something BAD is about to happen".
We rode our bikes past them a couple of times, made eye contact with the man and observed some strange behavior. We stopped a little ways down the path and just watched them. We sensed that they were uncomfortable with us being there and they went the other way. The kid looked back about every 10 seconds. Something was definitely up...
I did not have my cell phone to call the police but what able to borrow one from a passer by a ways down the path. I dialed 911 and it took nearly 5 minutes before I got to the department I needed. The man and the boy were nearly out of sight by that time.
Maybe it was a totally innocent outing and I totally misread it, but I couldn't have slept tonight if had done nothing. Maybe I should have done more and confronted them...
I checked in with the Sebastopol police about what I did and if I should have done anything differently. They said I did the right thing and that if I had my cell phone with me it should have been programmed with the numbers of the local agencies.
Apparently, when you dial 911 it goes to some switchboard and it can take a while for you to get to who you need to get to. If you are on a cell phone they can't get your location. Better to call from a payphone if there is one near.
Here are the numbers for our local agencies. I want to encourage each one of you to program these numbers into your cell phone. The time it may save could help save a life, or keep someone from getting hurt or abused.
Sebastopol Police Services
6850 Laguna Park Way
Sebastopol, CA 95472
707-829-4400 Phone
Santa Rosa Police Dept
(707) 543-3600
965 Sonoma Ave
Santa Rosa, CA 95404
Sonoma County Sheriff's Department Santa Rosa
2796 Ventura Avenue
Santa Rosa, CA 95403
(707) 565-2121
If you are out of this area, please take a moment to look up your local numbers and program them into your cell if they are not already there.
Blessings...to you, your children, all the children...
Love,
Deb
We rode our bikes past them a couple of times, made eye contact with the man and observed some strange behavior. We stopped a little ways down the path and just watched them. We sensed that they were uncomfortable with us being there and they went the other way. The kid looked back about every 10 seconds. Something was definitely up...
I did not have my cell phone to call the police but what able to borrow one from a passer by a ways down the path. I dialed 911 and it took nearly 5 minutes before I got to the department I needed. The man and the boy were nearly out of sight by that time.
Maybe it was a totally innocent outing and I totally misread it, but I couldn't have slept tonight if had done nothing. Maybe I should have done more and confronted them...
I checked in with the Sebastopol police about what I did and if I should have done anything differently. They said I did the right thing and that if I had my cell phone with me it should have been programmed with the numbers of the local agencies.
Apparently, when you dial 911 it goes to some switchboard and it can take a while for you to get to who you need to get to. If you are on a cell phone they can't get your location. Better to call from a payphone if there is one near.
Here are the numbers for our local agencies. I want to encourage each one of you to program these numbers into your cell phone. The time it may save could help save a life, or keep someone from getting hurt or abused.
Sebastopol Police Services
6850 Laguna Park Way
Sebastopol, CA 95472
707-829-4400 Phone
Santa Rosa Police Dept
(707) 543-3600
965 Sonoma Ave
Santa Rosa, CA 95404
Sonoma County Sheriff's Department Santa Rosa
2796 Ventura Avenue
Santa Rosa, CA 95403
(707) 565-2121
If you are out of this area, please take a moment to look up your local numbers and program them into your cell if they are not already there.
Blessings...to you, your children, all the children...
Love,
Deb