It’s hardly the first time the point has been made, and it surely will not be the last, but this message is important enough to bear repeating: No matter who you are and no matter where you live in Western Tidewater, the last thing you should do when you get out of your car to go inside for the evening is to lock the doors.

Most folks would think of this advice as simple common sense. Maybe some people think their communities are too nice or too remote or too busy or too something else to be targeted by thieves during the occasional, but not unusual, rashes of automotive break-ins that take place in various communities across the region. Some probably just forget to lock their doors. Some likely figure they’ve left nothing all that valuable inside their cars anyway, so why bother?

But police say it’s important for neighborhoods to make themselves as unattractive as possible to potential thieves, and folks who leave their car doors unlocked — whether there’s anything valuable in the car or not — are leaving an open invitation for potential thieves to come back.

It seems almost too obvious to note, but leaving your car doors unlocked puts your valuables at risk. Of course, it might not be a bad idea to take those valuables — cash, cellphones, GPS units, weapons and the like — inside, but at the very least, they should be put out of sight and the car doors locked.

Locking your car doors also prevents thieves from getting easy access to your home. Many people have extra sets of house keys or garage door openers in their vehicles, and people letting themselves into cars with those things available can easily and quickly become people letting themselves into the houses where those cars are parked.

Lock your car doors, folks. It’s good for you, and it’s good for your neighborhood.