Yes, they DO deserve kudos. And so does this kid for keeping his wits about him and not getting hurt. But it baffles me as well that people think we're like 40 years ago still and can leave doors unlocked. Unlocked doors are an invitation to trouble. People need to pay attention. Yesterday, as a matter of fact, I came home yestersday to a "that person doesn't belong here" in my driveway. They claimed they were looking for someone. My gut said not to believe them and I stayed in my car with my cell phone ready and suggested they leave. They did.

Posted on Wed, Aug 27, 2008
Teen in house reports burglary in progress
By Kathy O'Loughlin

VILLANOVA – He may only have been 16 years old, but the Villanova youth showed maturity and courage that fail many adults when confronted by a burglar inside their home."He did exactly what we advise people to do. He remained calm. He got a cell phone and he locked himself in a room and called police," said Police Supt. Joseph Daly, who warned, "We never want people to confront an intruder."

Lower Merion police report the teen was alone in his home in the 400 block of Clairmont Road about 4:10 p.m. Aug. 18 when he heard two burglars rummaging through his house. The teen grabbed a cell phone, ran into a bathroom, locked the door behind him and then called police.

As police dispatchers kept the teen on the phone, patrol cars sped to the house. With the teen still on the phone, the dispatchers were able to keep track of the movements of the burglars, whom the teen said he heard on the second floor of the house. They apparently panicked and ran out the door, said Daly.

The patrol officers arrived at the home just as the pair were running out the back door. They were arrested by police.....Daly said the teen told detectives the burglars had rung the front door bell just minutes before they entered the home. He said he looked out the window, but since he did not recognize them, he didn't answer the door. The pair went around to the back of the house, where they found an unlocked door providing easy access into the home.

Unlocked doors still baffle Daly, who said they are just an open invitation to criminals. "You should keep your doors locked all the time. People lock the doors when they leave, but not when they are home. They are so thoughtful to protect their valuables when they leave, but those things can be replaced. You need to worry more about protecting those things that Detectives have identified the two burglars as Joseph Kunz, 25 and Britney Curran, 18, both of the 6000 block of Frankford Avenue in Philadelphia. They were charged with burglary, criminal trespass, theft of movable property, criminal conspiracy and receiving stolen property