City Page

Update - December 3, 2009

On behalf of the men and women of the Zion Police Department, we want to wish all of you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. Unfortunately, this time of year also brings out the worst in some people. There are those who look to take advantage of people during this time. I want to take a minute and hopefully give you some ideas to make your holiday season safe and happy.


Traditionally we have seen a rise in many crimes during this time of year.

Home burglaries are one such crime. Many times, criminals are looking for an easy target. Open doors, garage doors, newspapers and/or mail not picked up and no lighting are just a few things they may look for in targeting a house. Please lock you doors, even if you are only leaving for a short amount of time.
Make arrangements to have your mail and / or newspaper stopped or picked up if you are leaving town. Also, lighting up your home is always a great deterrent.

Many times these criminals will knock on a door, then if someone does answer, they will ask for a name of someone they know does not live there. If this should happen to you, please call the police immediately. A description of the person and a vehicle could be very helpful in tracking down these people.

Also, don’t put boxes of gifts or other purchases you might have made out by your garbage until your garbage day. This may just be advertising to a possible criminal that you have something new and valuable inside.
Also, thefts of purses and purse snatchings are more frequent during the holiday shopping season. I would ask the ladies to keep close tabs on your purses all the time. Not even carrying a purse would be better. Many times we take reports of ladies who leave their purses in a shopping cart, only walk a few steps away, only to have it or the wallet inside stolen. Please be aware of your surroundings when entering and leaving a store. Try to park in well-lit areas of the parking lots.

As always, please report suspicious people and vehicles to the Police. If that’s not possible, let a store employee know. Most criminals are looking for easy targets. Let’s do everything we can to make it hard for a criminal to succeed.

Thank you and God bless,
Larry Booth – Chief of Police