So I get home yesterday and in the course of conversation, my wife informs me that she met a new neighbor a few houses away....maybe 5 or 6 down.

Apparently this guy had his RV, which is in front of his house, broken into the night before. Sounds like whoever did it was there for about an hour, rummaged around, took a few things. I guess he knows because he had a security camera....sounded like the footage didn't get a good look at the guy.

We live in a fairly quiet, semi-rural neighborhood. Another neighbor a few houses the other way (on a dead end street) apparently had some things stolen out of his boat a couple years back.

A good reminder I suppose that crime can happen anywhere, and even though the place seems safe, criminals can commute. Might be time to look into a security camera myself.

Without giving out your exact address , what part of Pierce County did this happen in? It is a pretty big County.

a more rural portion near Puyallup

I still have yet to find a security cam system I really like. Quality/resolution is pretty important.

Was there an actual robbery, or just burglary? There is a huge difference, something similar to the difference between a voyeur and a rapist.

I'll bet it was the same perp....

"took a few things....."

It was a burglary and theft.

Burglary is entering property illegally with intent to commit a crime (e.g. theft, robbery, rape, arson). Burglary doesn't include the other crime itself (theft).

Is it robbery though since the owner was on the property, or only if the guy came in the house?

bit fuzzy to me, which is why I did the /

there are too many options out there. I just need a small one to start with, to learn what I like and don't before plopping down serious cash.

Being right off of 405 and I-90, our neighbourhood unfortunately does get hit with burglaries quite often--perhaps 3-4 every six months. BPD says that it's too easy for criminals to swing off the freeway, hit a house or two, and then hop back on the freeway. Same with mail theft. And this is not a rural area.

Most recently, the trend has been towards entering through the back of a garage (breaking out a window or prying the door open), then gaining entry into the actual house through the door leading to the garage. Happened a few weeks ago during the day to my neighbour Gordon, a few houses up on 146th Ave SE. They absolutely stripped his house--everything they could carry. Needless to say, he now has a security system (my suggestion was to get a dog, but he's a single guy who works crazy long hours).

Personally, I like dogs for security systems--even a small yappy dog will make a would-be thief just move on to the next house. Obviously, mine aren't small or yappy, and although Norman (Great Pyrenees) isn't territorial at all (he's happy as long as I am not being physically attacked), Lily (being a Great Pyrenees/Anatolian Shepherd cross, and Anatolians being both flock guardians and territory guardians by nature) is turning out to be very territorial, which IMHO, is actually a good thing, since she is interested in protecting both the house and yard as well as myself and the boys.

In WA robbery is from the person or in the person's presence, or by a threat to the person (weapon).