Problem Hit Home For Ivey
Glenn F. Ivey's minivan was stolen in 2002 from his home in Cheverly.
(By Mark Gail -- The Washington Post)
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Talk to Prince George's State's Attorney Glenn F. Ivey about fighting auto theft, and he will speak with an authority born from experience.
He hasn't forgotten that morning in 2002, a few days before Thanksgiving, when he looked out the window of his Cheverly home and saw an empty driveway.
He turned to his wife, Jolene, and asked: "Baby, where did you park the car?"
In the driveway, she replied.
Ivey had become one of the highest-profile victims of the auto thefts plaguing the county.
For the Ivy League-educated lawyer, the crime brought home one of the biggest challenges he faces in the county.
"I had not realized that auto theft was such a serious problem," said Ivey, 42. "After my car got stolen, it was a real eye-opener. There's nothing like having it happen to you to really understand it at the gut level."
The night his vehicle was stolen, something vital was missing from the white Ford minivan: a steering lock that one of his five young sons had broken two days before.
It was enough time for thieves to target the van.
Two weeks later, the police called. They had found the van in Laurel. Ivey drove out, expecting the worst. Was it stripped apart, its parts funneled throughout the county?
Much to his surprise, the van was intact. The thieves had popped out an air-conditioning vent and stolen a child's car seat.
They left behind four bicycles in the back of the van.
"Apparently they had a child that needed a car seat," said Ivey, who was preparing to take office at the time.
He still drives the van -- and fighting auto theft has become a top priority.
"I can't say it didn't help me focus on the problem," he said.
For Ivey, educating the public is crucial to combating the problem and is a key reason he talks candidly about his experience.
For instance, every chance he gets he stresses that several thousand cars are stolen each year as owners rush out of their cars to get coffee or fetch something from their house and leave the engine running.
"If everybody stopped doing that, we would make a huge dent," he said.
It's all about taking precautions, he added.
Now, when he goes home and parks his van, he makes sure he secures the steering lock and locks the doors.
"You try not to be complacent. You don't put your guard down," he said.
During the day, he tries to find ways to stop others from becoming victims.
"I'm fortunate to have a day job to work on it as well," Ivey said.
-- SUDARSAN RAGHAVAN
