Minimize your chances of being a carjacking victim by taking simple precautions.
Carjacking—a criminal attempting to steal your vehicle while you are present—is a scary proposition, particularly for women and those who might have children with them. How to avoid becoming a victim?
First, understand a little bit about carjacking and how it happens. Carjacking is a high-class felony because it always a violent crime (as opposed to grand theft auto, which is also a felony but a much less violent one). This means that anyone willing to carjack you is comfortable with using violence to get what he wants and he knows the risk he is undertaking, and he considers that risk worth it. This makes him more dangerous than your average petty thief.
Nationwide, most carjackings take place between 10 p.m. and 2 a.m. Common places are isolated ATMs, gas stations, car washes, parking lots and parking garages, highway exit and entry ramps, red lights, other places where people naturally stop or slow their cars, and your own driveway. Carjackers often work in groups, though you might not see the other members of the group. One person might distract you by asking a question while his partners circle around, or someone might have dropped off the carjacker and is waiting nearby.
By Jo Deering
