Minimize Underage Drinking Temptations and Opportunities

Last night, after dark, an unusual thing happen.  I'd pulled into our garage, but heard the phone ringing in our house, so I didn't immediately close our garage door.  After completing the phone call, I went back to shut the door, and I saw a stranger (a teen male) next to my car in the garage...He was standing sideways, so I didn't see his face, but when I said, "Hey, what are you doing?" he turned and started to run down our driveway.  I started to follow him, and suddenly heard a bunch of glass breaking. 

To make a long story short, we have an old refrigerator in our garage, where we keep soda pop plus some beer and wine, and the kid was trying to steal liquor.  A neighbor was out walking their dog, and urged me to call the police, because two other homes on my street also had strange things happen recently. 

In one case, the family was sure they had closed their garage door, but they had a car parked in the driveway with the window down, and their garage door opener was inside the car.  Police theorize kid(s) used the opener to see if beer or anything else was stored in the garage.  In the second case, the outer door may have inadvertently been left open by a pre-teen, but it was an attached garage and the door into the house was also found ajar, although the family didn't think anything had been taken.  Bicycles, tools, etc. were untouched.

The policeman who took my report basically said that they are aware of similar situations, and so as a word of caution, keep your garage doors and cars locked, to reduce the chance of temptations to "bored kids" just looking for easy opportunities to get buzzed....