For Home & Family Safety & Security Presented by: Written by: Jerrod S. Smelker of Evolution 6 & Daniel Foster of Foster Camera Solutions Written by: Jerrod S. Smelker of Evolution 6 & Daniel Foster of Foster Camera Solutions Page 1
All Rights Reserved Copyright 2016 This booklet may not be reproduced, transmitted, or stored in whole or in part by any means, including graphic, electronic, or mechanical without the express written consent of the author except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews. Contact Info: Foster Camera Solutions, LLC Fenton, MI 248-672-8640 FosterCameraSolutions@yahoo.com www.fostercamerasolutions.com Last Leaf Publishing, LLC & Evolution 6, LLC P.O. Box 93, Grand Blanc, MI 48480 517-230-5919 jsmelker@hotmail.com www.lastleafpublishing.com www.e6defense.com Disclaimer: The author, Foster Camera Solutions, Last Leaf Publishing or Evolution 6 accept no liability for any injuries, damage or incidents resulting from the materials, tactics, attitudes, advice, information or training presented or implied in this booklet. Readers and participants accept all responsibility for his or her actions. Products or people mentioned in this book are not under any contract, are not paying any advertisement fees and are only mentioned as advice or information unless specifically reported. Any product, company names or photographs mentioned or shown are protected by copyright or trademark. Information in this booklet should not take the place of any valid legal advice. About The Authors Jerrod S. Smelker has a 20+ year career background in criminal justice working in the fields of security, law enforcement, corrections and loss prevention, holding two degrees in Criminal Justice and has completed years of research in the areas of crime prevention and criminal justice. Owner and Operator of Evolution 6: Strategic Protection and Defense Training and Last Leaf Publishing. Author of Vigilant In Today s World book series, Blog and Newsletter The Vigilant View. Daniel Foster has 17 years of experience installing visible and covert camera systems. Dan has an Associate s degree in criminal justice and has worked in corrections and retail crime investigation. Dan is also Wicklander and Zulawski certified to complete interviews and interrogations and has conducted over 400 successful criminal interviews. Page 2
Safe Rooms The word safe room, or sometimes called the panic room, has been around for a long time and it seems that everyone has their own definition and opinion of what a safe room is or should be. There really is no right or wrong answer, because a safe room is generally customized and personalized to each house and family. The safe room is simply a secured room located somewhere within the house, where you and your family can go in the event of a home invasion, safety and security emergency and sometimes a weather related emergency. This room becomes the stronghold or the fortress of the castle. In any home security plan, the safe room is probably one of the most important priorities. A safe room can be as simple or as complex as you want it to be. A simple safe room could consist of a bedroom or bathroom that contains simple items such as a cell phone, sturdy locks, and defensive weapons. You can use the bed or dresser as concealment (hiding you, but not protecting from bullets) and a window as means of escape. A more complex safe room could consist of a special designed and built room in the basement or first floor that incorporates a strong solid metal door and frame, multiple locks, hidden doors and escape hatches, food storage, communication devices, multiple defense items and so on. If fact, there are companies out there that design and build safe rooms to Page 3
your specifications. Whatever you choose to become your safe room, be sure that it is a safe and highly secured place with good locks and the ability for you and your family to defend or escape. A safe room should always be a part of a family plan. The plan should include when to go to the safe room, for what and what to do while you re in the safe room. Be sure your family knows how to secure the room and how to operate all of the equipment. It is a good idea to include your children in these plans, but be aware of the child s age, maturity and mentality levels when it comes to using the defensive weapons or tools. Baby sitters or nannies should only be in the loop of the family plan or safe room if they are a trusted person or another family member. Sharing some information can be useful and wise, but share only that information that is needed at the time. Be sure to change any plans, keys, and codes if you have any difficulties with baby sitters or family members. Here are a few recommended items to keep in a safe room and why. Not all safe rooms will contain all of the items discussed, it depends on your specific room and what type of security you desire. Cell/Smart Phone - A cell phone (with charger or extra battery) provides you easy, fast and generally reliable communication to emergency services. You need to get police to your location as quickly as possible and advise them of the situation, directions to the house, and your exact location. A cell/smart phone allows you to make calls without the possibility of home phone lines being tampered with or cut. It also prevents any intruders from listening in on details from another home or land line phone. A cell/smart phone also lets you keep in constant communication with emergency services while escaping from your Page 4
home. Today s cell/smart phones also allow you to monitor any security cameras you may have installed throughout your home and property. This can prove vital to see exactly where any intruders are inside and outside of your home. You can relay this information to responding police. Defense Weapon - Defensive weapons or tools can consist of many different types of items such as firearms, pepper spray, and batons. Whatever defensive tool you choose (you can have multiple defensive tools also) to be in your safe room, be sure you and your family are aware of the item s and are all properly trained on how and when to use them. If you use a firearm, be sure to keep extra ammunition within your safe room. Know the legal aspects, responsibilities and details for each defensive tool and the use of those tools. Consult an attorney specialized in the field. House Keys - Keeping a set of house keys, including any garage or entrance keys, in your safe room will allow you to toss them out to responding police to give them quick access into the house. Once inside, they can conduct a search of any intruder or assist in emergency situation. Extra keys should be made and checked with the locks to insure proper working order. Keys should be secured to a key chain or ring of a large item, flashlight or preferably a snap glow stick. Be sure to tell the police on the phone that you have keys and will toss them out when they arrive. Do not toss them out before the police arrive, an intruder or accomplice could be outside giving them more access. Do not include keys to your safe room on the key ring. Vehicle keys and fobs can be kept in a safe room as well, to provide an escape once you get to the outside of your house and safe room or to sound the vehicle alarm. Page 5
House Plans - House plans are just a simple drawing of the house and where each room is located. These will show a brief sketch of the interior and exterior of your home and can assist responding police to where your safe room is, along with each room, wall, hallway is located. Your plans can be tossed out your safe room window along with your house keys to assist police in getting in and clearing your home safely and quickly. Include how many people live in the house including children and brief descriptions of your family. This will help police identify you from an intruder. Flashlight - A flashlight is very useful in providing light if the power goes out or is cut by an intruder. It can help illuminate any room or intruder and can also help to blind an intruder temporarily. A flashlight can also be used as a defensive tool much like a baton and can be used to signal responding emergency services. Keep a few in the safe room and give one to each member of the family once secured inside. Check them often and replace batteries when needed. Keep extra batteries in the safe room. Door Scope - Installing a door scope (which is larger than a standard door peep sight) on your safe room door allows you to see if anyone is near your safe room and what he or she may be doing. Even if you have cameras installed, it s a good idea to include a door scope as part of the safe room. Page 6
Alarm Control Box - If your house is equipped with an alarm, having a control box in your safe room can be used to call for assistance depending on your system. If an intruder came into your house without setting off the alarm, you can manually set it off by the control panel, which will contact the police to respond. Light Control Box - A control box that can turn on and off lights inside and outside your home can prove to be useful in deterring and scaring intruders. If someone is in the house, perhaps turning on the lights will be enough to scare the intruder out and can also provide lighting for responding police. Cameras and Monitors - If your house is equipped with security cameras, having a small television or computer monitor in your safe room allows you to view those cameras giving you constant view of where an intruder is. You can assist responding police with the subject s location, description and what they are doing. Even if you can monitor the cameras with your cell/smart phone, a monitor in a safe room can prove to be useful. There are other items that can be kept in a safe room that may not apply to an intruder or home break in, but could prove to be useful in a weather or emergency situation. Food & Water - Some form of snack type foods such as beef jerky, candy bars, granola bars, trail mix and a few bottles of water, may be a good idea to keep in a safe room in case you are held up for any length of time. It also may help keep children calm. Page 7
Radio/TV This would apply more towards weather or catastrophe related type emergencies, but having a television or radio in the safe room can be useful in keeping children calm and entertained. It would also help keep you informed of any communication being broadcast about the current situation. Be sure to keep the volume low or include headphones. Be sure to check all of your items and equipment regularly. Keep them maintained and working properly at all times. Your life could depend on them. A safe room can be just one room in the house, but it is a good idea that every room in your home be viewed as a possible safe room in case you or a family member cannot get to the main safe room in time. If you have a small amount of the above mentioned items in each room, you will cover your bases and be ready for anything that comes your way. Worth Noting: If you have kids, you know what a challenge it can be to get them up in the morning let alone in the middle of the night. So, it is suggested by many safety and security experts that the safe room be in one of the children s bedrooms. This way, the adults can get to the children and secure the location (safe room) with the children already inside. Now, if you have multiple children with multiple rooms, this could prove to be tricky. You and your family would have to decide what would work best for everyone. Page 8
For more information on Home Security, Personal Protection, Defense, Crime Prevention, and Security, visit these websites. FosterCameraSolutions.com E6DEFENSE.com TheVigilantView.com Also, be sure to purchase Vigilant In Today s World series of books for vital information on all topics of crime prevention, security, protection and defense at E6DEFENSE.com, LastLeafPublishing.com, Amazon.com, BarnesandNoble.com, BookCountry.com or itunes/ibooks. And read The Vigilant View newsletter and blog for even more vital information at E6DEFENSE.com or TheVigilantView.com Page 9