Sad...so sad...what makes me want to flee (Cleveland: transplants, crime rates)

[Carmelle]

Originally Posted by amyevansmom

Well Detroit and G-burg aren't much different in my opinion. I wouldn't walk the dark streets alone in either place. Enjoy your vacation here, Carmele, it's what you make of it. Just don't trust the locals. Moderator cut: cut Before you come, why don't you check the police logs to see how many DUI's happen every night and how many burglaries and sex crimes are happening. They don't put that in the tourist brochures.

Why didn't you check the police logs prior to your move? Moderator cut: insults are not nessesary DUI's, and criminal acts happen everywhere, why would you be so naive to think Gatlinburg would be an exception?
I would never assume a tourist town with such a high volume of people on the move would house nothing but upstanding citizens.

[amyevansmom]

Didn't think it would be an exception....just didn't realize that it was so rampant. Moderator cut: orphaned I said that we hired him based on a reference from a current employee. It was her relative. That employee is the best employee ever and is so trustworthy. Why would we have any reason to think she would bring us a creep?
Moderator cut: cut

[pdq]

amyevansmom,

Don't let the other posters get you down. They just can't take it when someone says any negative fact about this area they keep pitching as the greatest place on earth. Try to stay calm and relax this weekend. I do wish you the best.

[jabogitlu]

Still, it might be a good idea to run background checks and interviews on all employees. To assume that everyone here is nice and honest just because we're Southern is overtly naive.

[gemkeeper]

Originally Posted by pdq

amyevansmom,

Don't let the other posters get you down. They just can't take it when someone says any negative fact about this area they keep pitching as the greatest place on earth. Try to stay calm and relax this weekend. I do wish you the best.

Pdq is really right, amyevansmom. A poster who attempts to make a very emotional sad experience even more stressful should just be ignored. I hope that the pain of this crime passes soon for you.

It's likely that your trusted employee was duped by her relative too. We want to believe that bad people can reform, especially ones we are close to. But, there are mean-hearted people everywhere and it does seem so unfair that good, honest ones like you have to suffer.

I hope all of this is soon behind you, and then you'll be able to consider what you should do. Maybe the security system isn't a bad idea - at least a hidden camera and door alarm. Our insurance company gave us a lower homeowner's policy because we had an alarm system installed. It could help ease your mind.

Have a peaceful weekend.

[knoxgarden]

I empathize with your feelings. When I was living in Maryland, I had my house broken into repeatedly. I did have an alarm system. They stole it.
Compared to other areas I've lived in, I feel very safe in Knoxville. I don't hear random gunfire on the streets and you almost never hear about a drive-by shooting. I never had a stereo stolen from my car. I went through 5 in 2 years in DC.
Background checks are a good habit to get into. You can get one from TBI for $29.95.
TBI Background Checks (http://www.tbi.state.tn.us/Info%20Systems%20Div/TORIS/TORIS.htm - broken link)
I do local criminal checks for a a New York company. More and more companies are checking these days. I used to get 4-5 names a day to check. Now it's up to 20-30.
Jails are crowded and non-violent offenders aren't going to be locked up, in Tennessee or anywhere else. I see criminals with 2-3 pages of convictions for misdemeanors who spent very little time in jail.

[pdq]

I was reading through these posts and I personally think it's despicable to try to trash amyevansmom just because she mentions a negative aspect of East TN. Come on people she was robbed, don't trash her and call her an idiot!

The fact is that meth and perscription drug abuse in East TN is one of the highest in the US, and drug abuse leads to crime. Everyone seems to want to compare the crime here to Detroit, DC, NY, LA, etc. Those places this is not, but compared to places it's size the crime is 3 times higher.

Awhile back someone was discussing the terrible air pollution of East TN. The only thing that most posters were saying was that it was better here than LA and the Central Valley. Well of course it is. What they didn't mention is East TN air pollution is worst than hundreds of other cities and places in the US.

Amyevansmom, I wish you the best. Don't pay attention to these people.

[amyevansmom]

[mod personal attacks not allowed on this forum [/mod]
Again, thanks to all the understanding people that have posted. (The ones that live here and know first hand) I appreciate it. I will say after sleeping on this, I've calmed down a bit but still feel a little sting. I so want to like it here. I really do, I loved it before I was here and just got slapped into reality. Shame on me for being so trustworthy, but where I come from, which isn't a small town, you trust those that you've known for awhile. If you could see the applications that have come in this store...and there are at least 100 in the last year, there is not ONE that had a completely clean work history. Theft, working for only a few weeks, hotel hopping, and the list goes on. NOt to mention when they come in for interviews with crappy clothes, hickeys, and smoking cigarettes inside the store, you get the picture. They don't care about themselves, so why would I want them to be part of my business? We cannot run this store alone, so you take your chances and pick the best of the bunch, and still end up getting burned. I guess insurance takes the hit and I just deal w/ the fact that this area is filled w/ creeps. Sad, so sad. It's just not how I thought I'd think of my neighbors. Ever.

[Beretta]

This thread has jogged my memory. I believe I read somewhere that the Pigeon Forge area ranks very high in crime in the entire country; because it is tied to the tourist season and activities. I am going to try to find that link.

I think it is also important to remember that a lot of people that work in the area during tourist season are transient; and as such, are not indicative of the behaviors of the majority of the locals.

[amyevansmom]

Thank you so much for that bit of info! Please post it when you find it! That may just be the real problem here. Transients. The locals swear the other locals are good but nobody has really mentioned the large population of transients being a big part of the problem. Not the entire problem but a big part of it. Again, please post that link when you find it.