McGruff the Crime Dog, the 25-year old icon of the National Crime Prevention Council (NCPC), celebrated his anniversary last November with a survey of law enforcement and crime prevention specialists to determine their priorities for the next 10 years. With the help of corporate partner ADT Security Services Inc., NCPC surveyed attendees at the 7th Annual Conference on Preventing Crime held in Washington, D.C., October 8-11, 2005, and the results revealed that local law enforcement ranks home security and homeland security with equal importance – a potent reminder that McGruff’s very first public service message about taking precautions for home security is as relevant today as it was 25 years ago.

The findings of the study show that although crime is at a 30-year low and emphasis is being placed on terrorism prevention and homeland security, much of the work of local law enforcement involves those issues that McGruff and NCPC have been tackling for 25 years, such as residential security. In recognition of the impact and importance of McGruff’s call for everyone to “Take A Bite Out of Crime,” ADT is donating 25 McGruff costumes to law enforcement agencies across the country to assist in their crime prevention education efforts.

Home burglary victims in the United States lost more than $3.5 billion dollars, according to FBI estimates released in October 2005.

The NCPC is a private, nonprofit organization whose primary mission is to enable people to create safer and more caring communities by addressing the causes of crime and violence and reducing the opportunities for crime to occur. ADT Security Services Inc., a unit of Tyco Fire and Security, is a provider of electronic security services to more than six million commercial, government and residential customers throughout North America.