When science teacher Leah Roskin went to turn on her car on Nov. 13, she was met with a loud sound. At around 11 a.m., Lane administration notified her that something had happened to her car while it was parked in the Lane Tech parking lot, and it turned out her catalytic converter had been stolen. This was the first of two times this happened to Roskin at Lane, and of five total instances in Lane community since Nov. 13.
Once again, on a morning in early February, Brenda Remess, a computer science teacher at Lane, had her catalytic converter stolen from her car parked near the driver’s ed building, and she saw the security camera footage of it happening.
“One [of the thieves] started elevating the car, the other one was just walking around, but I could also see students walking by and cars passing by,” Remess said. “Finally a guy came out with [what], I believe, was the machine to cut it out. It took, I believe, less than a minute.”
This was just one of three robberies that happened that day, according to Roskin.
“They didn’t care about the people around,” Remess said. “It doesn’t matter where you park, it could be right in front of cameras, or you could be all the way next to Western. It doesn’t matter.”
According to Edmunds, the catalytic converter is a component of a gas powered car that transforms the pollutants coming from the car into less harmful substances, essentially working as a filter. Without it, the engine of the car risks breaking down. It is also illegal to drive with a broken or missing catalytic converter. The cost of replacing a catalytic converter is typically between $1500 and $3000.
This has been very difficult for teachers. “It’s super frustrating because you can’t really drive your car and it’s frustrating that something like that is happening while you’re working and that we really don’t have any recourse,” Roskin said.
“I wasn’t mad,” Remess said. “I was more upset and sad that now it doesn’t matter where you go, right? It’s no guarantee that your property is going to be safe.”
This is also a big safety issue. “I think there’s some concern about people that are coming into our lot, and if a student walks up to them or a teacher or somebody is like ‘what are you doing.’ I don’t think they’re necessarily people that you would want to interrupt,” Roskin said.
Remess agreed: “I don’t think it’s right for [security] to confront them because [security] can risk their lives, but something has to be done,” she said.
But what can be done about this issue? “Maybe we should have a secure entrance and exit; [people can] scan who-comes-in who-comes-out,” Remess said.
She also noted, “Maybe the parking lot should be closed to anyone, even the parents. If they want to come in, they need a pass.”
According to Roskin, this issue is not specific to the Lane community. It is also happening at other schools, including Northside.
Lane administration is aware of this issue, and in an email to staff in January, they advised staff to not confront suspicious people, to alert the administration, and to call 911 if comfortable. They also said they would save video footage and work with people affected to create a police report.
