January 22, 2025 • 35 mins
In this episode, Sarah tackles the unsettling reality of feeling too safe in your bubble—until something shatters that sense of security. From chilling incidents in Highland Park to a terrifying moment where a 911 call went unanswered, Sarah explores what happens when we let our guard down. It’s a wake-up call about the importance of staying vigilant and taking responsibility for protecting ourselves and our loved ones. Later in the episode we head to Pickleball Kingdom Dallas North for some safe, indoor fun that keeps your mind and body engaged!
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (00:00):
Hi there. Today, we're diving into a topic
that hits a little too close tohome, our safety here in Dallas.
While some parts of the cityfeel safer than others, the
truth is you can never truly letyour guard down. I'm Sarah
Zubiate Bennett, and this is ahard reality I've had to face,
especially after a couple ofterrifying experiences right in
Highland Park. One of thosemoments involved my daughter,
(00:20):
Liliana, and she's here with metoday to share her perspective
on what happened. I've alsoinvited my niece, Bryce Martin,
to join us to talk about atroubling experience she went
through. Together, we'll unpackthese stories and reflect on
what they've taught us aboutstaying vigilant. Here's a
takeaway I hope you'll leavewith. Until we have enough
police officers to meet thedemands of our city, we all have
(00:40):
a role in protecting ourselvesand our loved ones. Thank you
for tuning in to this importantconversation. Don't forget to
like, subscribe, and share thisepisode with someone who might
need to hear it.
(01:00):
Hi there. I'm Sarah. This isAlicia.
Alisha Moldakhmetova (01:03):
Hi.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (01:03):
Alicia, where are you from?
Alisha Moldakhmetova (01:05):
I'm from Kazakhstan. Central Asia.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett: Central Asia. So she is my and (01:08):
undefined
the kids' private tennis coach.And we're here in, a beautiful
neighborhood in Highland Park,known for being very safe. But
one of the last times we werehere, we were playing at a court
that is now under construction.Yep. And it was a very
(01:31):
unfortunate event, thatparticular day. It was hot
summer, and so we were veryhappy to be on the court, which
is covered with foliage on thenorthern, eastern, and the
southern sides. And as we werethere, she she was giving my
(01:51):
daughter, Liliana, and myself aprivate lesson. And at that
point, we while playing, spotteda group of how many guys was it?
It's like 6. 7.
Alisha Moldakhmetova (02:04):
6 or 7. Yeah.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (02:05):
Something like that. And they they were
not old. They were younger,like, maybe twenties, maybe late
teens or twenties. They were notsmall. They look like they were
Latinos.
What caught my eye was that noneof them had a tennis racket, and
something inside of me just toldme to run to Alisha's side of
(02:27):
the court where my purse wassitting, and I had a gun in it
because they were stringingtheir hands kind of along the
chain link fence that was justlike this. Wasn't it, Alisha?
Alisha Moldakhmetova (02:36):
Yeah. It was like that. Yeah.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (02:37):
So they were kinda doing that bit along
the chain link fence, and I sawthem eyeing the 3 of us in
there. So I sprinted across thecourt, which is the same size as
this, from that side all the wayto that southern side at the
other court, and I held up mypurse and they knew that within
(03:00):
it I had a gun because I guessmy stance, and then I asked
Alisha and Liliana to stand tothe back of me. At that point,
right kinda when I was holdingthe gun, they had the latch to
enter from the eastern side ofthe court opened, but then at
that point, they shut it. Theyclosed it and they just went
(03:24):
away. Then they walked up thestairs. I did not call, Highland
Park Police, which I shouldhave. I think it's because I
didn't know if my gut instinctwas correct, that they were
there to cause harm in some way.I almost was in disbelief.
(03:47):
Actually, I was in disbeliefbecause I thought this is a
neighborhood where it's renownedfor being extremely safe, and,
certainly, this didn't justhappen here. What were your
feelings After that?
Alisha Moldakhmetova (04:04):
I was kinda like it was weird. Like,
we saw, like, 7 men just walkingand, like Big guys. It's very
scary. You know? Very. And, Iwas facing the, like, the
entrance with my back, so Ididn't really see what they did.
Yeah. But I saw, like, youkinda, like, getting how do I
(04:24):
say it? Like, aware aware ofthat.
Yeah. And that's when I was,like, okay. Like, something is
up. Yeah. And I did tell you,like, sometimes I gotta, like,
remind myself that I'm inAmerica. Like Yeah. Anything can
happen, so that's kinda, like,scary.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (04:41):
It it's really scary. So the reason
we're even talking about thisand the reason I'm gonna be in
the studio later today withLiliana having her tell this
story is because every personneeds to understand that no
matter where you think you are,you are not excluded or exempt
from something possiblyhappening. And the next day
(05:04):
after that happened at thetennis court, Liliana and I were
at her dermatologist and shesaid, mommy, do you have a gun
in that purse? And I said, I do.And she said, I'm so happy that
you carry that. I think that'sthe only reason that those men
didn't come into the court. Andit was just a horrible, thought,
feeling, all of it. So thanksfor listening.
(05:27):
(To Liliana) Tell me what youremember about that particular
day when you were there takingyour lesson and I had joined
you.
Liliana (05:32):
Well, so, you know, I kinda just sort of like, we
started warming up, and then westarted hits, passing. Then you
joined us after, so, 30 minutes.And then there was these guys.
And remember they, like Ofcourse. Came down when they they
(05:58):
walked, and they I think theywere trying to get into the
gate.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (06:03):
They did. So they they walked directly on
the eastern side of the chainlink fence. There was a chain
link fence there, and I don'tknow what caused me to sprint
from the northern side of thecourt over to the southern side.
Remember, my purse was over atthe bench. Mhmm.
(06:25):
So I sprinted over to it, andthen I had you and Alisha stand
to the side and behind me. Mhmm.What else do you remember after
that?
Liliana (06:34):
I remember that...
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (06:36):
they How many were there?
Liliana (06:38):
There was 6, I think. 6 to 8. There was a lot of them.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (06:43):
Yep.
Liliana (06:43):
There's, like, a whole group.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (06:45):
Do you remember how old they looked?
Liliana (06:46):
They looked, like, 25. They looked young. Had, like,
baggy clothes on.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (06:53):
Really baggy.
Liliana (06:54):
Like, dirty and, like, all I was just, like they
looked, like, in the hood. I'msorry.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (07:05):
And so Maybe the yeah. Like, they're
from a different part of townfor sure.
Liliana (07:10):
And I don't think they were aware of the area that we
were in.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (07:14):
Or maybe they were.
Liliana (07:15):
Or maybe they were in there just being not smart in
that situation. And I rememberthey put their hand on the lock.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (07:27):
To Oh, the latch. That's right. That's
right.
Liliana (07:29):
So they were standing there, and they were all gonna
come into the area, but theydidn't.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (07:36):
They didn't whenever they saw me
Liliana (07:38):
Like, put your hand in your purse.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (07:39):
In my purse, and they they knew I had
my gun.
Liliana (07:44):
Mhmm. Mhmm. Yes.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (07:44):
And were you scared or not really?
Liliana (07:48):
You know, I was a little scared because I was
just, like, unaware. Like, I wasaware, but, like, not used to
that.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett: I don't think that you or miss (07:56):
undefined
Alisha were fully aware of whatwas happening.
Liliana (07:59):
And, like, I was, like, not used to that like, a
situation like that, so I wasjust, like, you know Mhmm. A
little, like, awkward. And I waslike, and then I felt not as
scared because you were there.And I knew you had your gun, so
I and I knew you would, likeMhmm. Could defend yourself and
(08:23):
us. You know? Mhmm. Because Iknow you had a gun, and so I
wasn't, like, that scared. Mhmm.But, you know, it's just a
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (08:36):
An unnerving situation.
Liliana (08:37):
Yes.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (08:38):
It was really different. When Miss
Alisha described it today, shesaid it was weird. And remember
she said, whenever it was allover, she said, I forget that
I'm in America sometimes. And soas a mom, as a parent, as a
person, a woman, right, thosewere 6 guys that were coming
into that place where we areplaying tennis, do you think
(09:02):
that they would have been aslikely to come in there if we
had a guy with us?
Liliana (09:06):
Like, in the gate in the tennis court? No. And if you
weren't there if you weren'tthere, I don't think I think
they would have came in thegate. Yeah. And then it would
just be me and her. Yes. I do.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (09:20):
Yeah. And that's something that makes me
sick to think about, you know,how upset I was by it. But
because I think about all of myfriends, my family, who don't
arm themselves and aren't readyto protect themselves. So now I
carry a gun, and I also carrypepper spray that I hand to
(09:44):
people should I need to so thatthey have pepper spray so that
I'm not the only one who hassome form of self defense
weapon.
Liliana (09:54):
Yeah. So they can protect themselves. You know?
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (09:57):
And it's pretty common sense to you, but
there's a lot of people outthere, I think, who, like me,
thought that they were in a safeplace. Liliana, I had literally
finished writing about a crimerelated incident that happened
to a woman in her home with 4men, just maybe a mile and a
(10:22):
half, 2 miles north of where wewere. But because we were in
Highland Park, I thought I Iguess, well, out of habit, I
just take my gun wherever I go,but never in a million years
would I have thought that thatwould have happened in Highland
Park. Yeah. So thank you forsharing that.
Liliana (10:45):
Yes. And I have one more thing.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (10:46):
Uh-huh. And, also, I feel like it was
God's plan that, like, when youfinished the article, you came
in. Because, like, you were,like you you spent, like, 30
minutes on that article, andthen you came in. Mhmm. I mean,
like, that was specific timing.Because sometimes I'm with my
(11:09):
like, my nanny comes to drop meoff. And then, like, on like, in
that period of time, and I'm sothankful. You know?
I am too, more than you know. Ilove you.
Liliana (11:20):
Love you.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (11:22):
Hi, Bryce.
Bryce Martin (11:23):
Hello.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (11:24):
Thank you for joining me here. I know
you've joined me before in avery fun part of the segment.
And we had good cocktail's good.Oh my gosh. And we're neither of
us are drinking now. I'm like,yes. But thank you for being
here.
Bryce Martin (11:40):
Of course.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (11:41):
I know, you knew how badly affected I
was with the event that happenedwith Lily. I was furious and
irate, and then you called meand told me about something that
happened to you. It wasn't evena month after. And so it was a
few months ago that thishappened.
Bryce Martin (12:02):
It's the end of November. And, you know, it's
interesting because youmentioned that you had just
finished writing an articleabout a woman.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (12:11):
Yep.
Bryce Martin (12:12):
I just went to a board meeting about for a
charity called Untrafficked.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (12:17):
Mhmm.
Bryce Martin (12:18):
And it opened my eyes about what was going on.
And I started getting involvedin civic and political things.
And my eyes were opening to kindof the horrors that are
happening all around us that noone's really talking about. But
I live in a safe- I live 4minutes from you in Knox
District, one of the safestareas in Dallas, supposedly.
(12:41):
I've been incredibly lucky thatI haven't faced, like, dangerous
situations in this way.
I've had friends that have, butI work hard to be able to afford
a place that's that's expensivebecause it's safe. And I think,
you know, I've I've been insketchy situations, but never
like this. But I think it'sinteresting that, you know, our
(13:03):
eyes were open to things that wenever really face.
And within
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (13:08):
weeks weeks of each other.
Bryce Martin (13:09):
Yes. And that that has never happened to me In
Dallas, Highland Park, you nameit. It has not ever happened to
me. My time living in this city,that experience that I had with
Liliana and then had a weekafter in Highland Park Village.
And then you. So can you tellour viewers and listeners a
(13:30):
little bit about what happened?
It was a Saturday night, 11 PM.And I there are some office and
retail spots in front of myapartment building, and I was
driving up to go to the stopsign in front of my building.
And as I was driving up, downthe road, these 2 cars come
(13:53):
barreling around the corner, hopthis flower bed curb And come
and park right in front of thisoffice retail spot in front of
my apartment building.
They're speeding and drivingthrough. I was like, what is
happening? And I stop at thestop sign that's just happened
to be directly in front of them,and they get out of their car.
(14:13):
Their cars have completely blacktinted windows. Both front and
back license plates were removedbecause I tend to look- I've
been trained.
We have these discussions. Like,you mentioned with Lily
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (14:25):
We're very aware.
Bryce Martin (14:25):
We are very aware. People we are trained, and we
have these discussions to besafe. So I look for that. They
get out of their car. They're inall black Ski masks, like a
scene out of a movie. And sorry.I'm like, reliving it. It's it's
more difficult than I expected.You know? And I stop, and I
(14:47):
look, and I make direct eyecontact with one of them. They
all have something in theirhands. I also am in a panic. You
know, you look back at these andgo, like, did not handle this
the way that I was trained to.At this point, I don't have my
gun. I have a knife and mytaser. But in that moment, it
(15:10):
was abundantly clear that theywere about to go hit this office
spot that you can it's allwindows. You can see in. There's
all this really high endtechnology.
I was like, oh, they're about torob this place. So I immediately
dial 911 on my phone, like, hitthe emergency button. And then
stupidly, and I feel so shamefulafter the fact, I went to pull
into my safety, which was myapartment, which was next door.
(15:32):
So I, like, turn and then go topull in to the locked garage
with security. And I'm on thephone with the operator. I'm
like, hey. This block or thisblock, there's about to be a
robbery go down. It's 2 cars.
I give the descriptors of blackski mask, and I'm I'm pulling
into my gate. And as I pull in,I'm on the phone with the
(15:53):
operator who is pretty muchuseless to me. She's like, oh,
cops are backed up. We'll sendthem when we can. I said, well,
when is it gonna happen? Thesemen look armed.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (16:04):
And this is in Dallas. This is in Dallas.
This is in Knox District On thethe west side Of 75 Right
outside Highland Park, like,core Dallas. And the late it's
just so nonchalant, and I'mlike, there's probably
hundreds of thousands ofdollars worth of tech about to
be stolen actively, and I couldI'm seeing it happen. Yep. I
(16:28):
pull into my apartment building.I'm talking to the operator.
Bryce Martin (16:32):
I'm like, oh, of course. Here we go. You know? So
understaffed. It's not theirfault. We know it's not their
fault. I talked to so manyofficers during the Dallas Hero.
I've had so many conversationswith them, you know, in support
of it for a reason.
I pull in, and as I'm going downthe hill, I hear brake
screeches, and both cars werefollowing in behind me. And they
(16:58):
caught the gate as it wasclosing, and it reopened.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (17:00):
Oh my gosh. I don't recall this.
Bryce Martin (17:06):
And they followed me in while I was on the phone
with the operator. And as I'mtalking to her, I'm like, they
and I'm freaking out. And I'mlike, I feel so stupid because I
knew better. And as they'rechasing me, I'm like, they just
tailgated me, and both of themare behind me. What do I do?
(17:26):
What do I do? And I'm Yeah.Panicking. She literally told me
to, quote, unquote, get tosafety, and she can't advise me.
She gave me no advice. And Idon't have gotten them. I'm,
like, in a panic. So I'm, like,looking at their cars, and I'm
laying on the horn. Operatorshe's like, what's and I'm like,
(17:49):
I'm describing the cars,describing it, like, at the
front, and I'm giving thedescriptors. Like, there's no
license plate. This is it. I'mtrying to describe the 3 men
because I'm, like, in thismoment, I'm like, what's about
to happen? I'm like, what do Ido? What do I do? And in that
moment she was useless. And so II go through in the corner and
(18:15):
to try to, like, speed around,and one stayed directly behind
me and the other one turnedbecause you can go down and go
to the right and left. The otherone turned, the Charger, and
sped, and then they locked me infront and back.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (18:28):
Oh god. And all got out of the car. And
so they got out. And now I'mtalking to the officers. What's
happening? At that point, I'm,like, grabbing my knife,
grabbing my you know? BecauseI'm and I'm like, please send
someone. Please send someone.Like, they're getting out of the
(18:49):
car. And I think my naive, like,brain is like, oh, they're gonna
take my car. Right? You youwanna think that. But and I'm
freaking out. Operator's notdoing anything, saying anything,
not sending anybody. And then bythe grace of God, I'm praying.
(19:11):
That's all at that point, that'sall I had.
Bryce Martin (19:14):
Yeah. 2 cars pulled into my parking garage,
and I lay on my horn. And theyget back in their vehicles, and
I move, and I'd, like, go aroundand speed out, and the
operator's still on the phone.And I get out. I'm like, I got
out. I got where do I go? Wheredo I go? Where do I go? What if
they follow me? She's like, theofficer didn't send anyone.
(19:37):
Still at that point had notchanged the urgency of the call.
And I go, and I, like, justwanted to get to people.
And so there's a gas station inthe area that and it was full of
cars, so I go and I just go sitin the parking lot, like, please
send someone. I'm like, what doI do? Like, where do I go?
Again, feels foolish for I knowwhere to go. I know what to do.
(19:58):
But in that moment, it was justI mean, I'm shaking thinking
about it. It was...
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (20:04):
It's awful.
Bryce Martin (20:05):
It's and so I sit in the gas station, and I can,
like, look at my buildingbecause I also was like, you
need to send someone right now.They're still in the parking
garage. Like, the trucks justpulled in, they it they'd
followed me out too because Ithink they could tell something
was going on, but I know there'sall these young women that live
(20:26):
in the building, and I'm like,you need to send someone right
now. Like, they're still in mythey're they're in the gate.
Like, they are in the gate rightnow. And it's 11 PM on a
Saturday. Like, people areactive at this point. And she
says nothing. Like, I can'tadvise you. Just get to safety.
I'm like, where? Where? Youknow? And I'm in a way, and then
(20:46):
I see them pull out, and they goand they move, and they I I
watch them, like, pull on thehighway and just flee. Hung up
on 911. She's like, I'm sendingofficers, and and I'm like,
when? She's like, I don't knowhow long it's gonna be. I'm
like, great. Perfect. And I'mjust shaking Mhmm. Praying,
thanking God, nervous. I'm like,what if they target like, what
(21:11):
if they come back?
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (21:11):
Yeah. They know your car.
Bryce Martin (21:13):
They know my car.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett: They know where you live...or drove in... (21:14):
undefined
or probably would assume thatyou live there. .
Bryce Martin (21:21):
Yeah. And so it was 11:02 when I called 911. I
was on the phone with them for 7minutes. Yeah. What's the
average call supposed to be?
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (21:29):
I don't know.
Bryce Martin (21:30):
Less than 7 minutes.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (21:32):
Yeah. Of course. Yeah.
Bryce Martin (21:35):
And and so I get off the phone with 911. I I just
I get I I at this point, I justwanna lock myself in my bed
like, in my apartment, in mybedroom, and just that was,
like, the one thing I justwanted in that moment.
So they were gone. I waited andwaited and waited. Eventually, I
(21:57):
had driven home, got to myapartment, just a mess, cops
call me, the officers, 32minutes later. And I tell them
what happened, And they tell methat they're on their way, and
they'll be there in 10 minutes.And I wait and I wait and I
(22:17):
wait. 2 hours later, it's anunknown number. You can't call
them back. I'm not gonna it tooka while for anyone to answer.
I'm not gonna flood that. Atthat point, I knew they're not
coming. Yeah. So I waited till,like, 2 in the morning.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (22:31):
What did the officers say?
Bryce Martin (22:32):
They told me nothing. They just said, well,
we need you to be there to,like, we're coming to check to
make sure they're gone. Do a,you know, check on the floors to
get your statement. I was like,well, how long am I supposed to
wait? Because they wouldn'tinitially tell me, like, we're
10 minutes away, and thenobviously they got called
somewhere else or back, youknow, a million other things or
they lied to appease me.
I don't know. I don't blame forsure. They never showed up, and
(22:56):
I'd never got a callback fromthem either. And I talked to my
leasing center. There was noinvestigation.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (23:04):
If you had a redo, what would you do
differently?
Bryce Martin (23:09):
I wouldn't have stopped at the stop sign, and I
would have just driven off. Andnot pulled in. I feel so stupid.
You know?
Like, that's
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (23:21):
I didn't call the Highland Park Police.
Bryce Martin (23:23):
Yeah.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (23:24):
So do you know how stupid that is? I mean,
I reiterate that fact so oftenbecause I get so mad at myself
because had they come becausetheir response time in Highland
Park is fast, and that's why welive there, and I didn't call
them, And they could havedetained 6 guys who were up to
(23:48):
no good. God knows what theywere gonna do. Why were they
gonna go in there with 3 women?We're dealing with hardened
criminals that have no fear.
Okay. So here's what I wanted tosay, and this is really, really
important. I was going tointerview someone from Venezuela
(24:10):
to talk about what these peopleare like. This gentleman wanted
to be behind a wall, did notwant his name to be known. He
told me that he never oncethought about getting a gun
(24:31):
while in America until herealized the type of people that
were coming here from his homecountry. He's from Venezuela,
and he has a lot of insight asto how they operate. And he
said, these people aren't herefor robbery. They're here to
kill. They kill. Maybe it's morelucrative for them to traffic
(24:56):
people. I don't know. I can'tspeak to it. I'm not from
Venezuela, but we're surroundednow by people who are not afraid
of guns. They are not afraid tocause harm. They're not afraid
of perceived safe areas. Peoplethat are living in bubbles like
(25:18):
us, they're not bubbles.
Bryce Martin (25:21):
They're not.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (25:21):
They're not. No. They're not bubbles.
And, I mean, after that point, Ihave not gone anywhere.
Normally, I might even be alittle bit lax, and I'd be I'd
say, okay. I'm going here. I'mnot gonna carry inside of here,
or I carry everywhere I go,everywhere I go, and now I take
(25:44):
pepper spray to hand out toadditional people after that
event so that I can give it topeople who are with me. Thank
you for being with us. Bryce,thank you for being here.
Liliana, thank you for coming onand talking with us. Love you.
After covering these verydifficult conversations and
topics, I just wanted to end ona lighter, more upbeat tone. On
days when the weather is bad orif it's a little too cold or if
(26:06):
tennis just isn't your thing, Ithought it'd be fun to round up
some of my friends and go playsome pickleball. We went to the
brand new Pickleball Kingdom,Dallas North. It's right off the
Dallas North Tollway, just southof Spring Valley. And let me
tell you, if pickleball has beenon your radar, this place is
absolutely amazing, and Ipromise you're gonna love every
minute of it. Be sure to tellLucky, the general manager, that
(26:27):
you saw this beautiful place onLet's Talk Local. Thanks so much
for being here.
So we are at Pickleball Kingdom.I'm here with some of my really
good friends.
We wanted to just try somethingdifferent. None of us are
pickleball players, so to speak.We're we're all kinda novice.
I played maybe once or twice inmy life. I dabble in tennis as
(26:50):
of late. I never grew up playingit. And also following that
really heavy, commentary thatjust happened, I thought, okay.
This is indoors.
It's like 40 degrees outside, sowe're here. Some are more
fashionable than others. But butit's it's a new place that just
opened off the toll road. Andlet me introduce you to these
(27:11):
amazing women. This is Jen.
Jen York (27:12):
Hi. I'm Jen.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (27:14):
Have you played?
Jen York (27:15):
I've never played before.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (27:16):
Okay. You've never played.
Jen York (27:17):
I've never played, but I wanna learn. So I'm glad to be
here.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (27:22):
Yes. And then I told you my stuff. This
is Julia.
Julia Catherine (27:25):
I'm Julia. Yeah. And I've played a few
times. I did read that last yearpickleball was the number one
injury in the country.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett: So I think it's because a lot of (27:33):
undefined
older people. Maybe seniors,
Julia Catherine (27:36):
yeah, playing. I played. I'm pretty
competitive.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (27:36):
We'll see how it goes.
And then Alexa?
Alexa Gooden (27:44):
Hi. I'm Alexa. And I need I only played pickleball
with my son. That's about it.But, we hit the ball, but I'm a
tennis player. So I think itkinda comes to me.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (27:55):
She's the one tennis player. So they're an
alcohol free environment. Sopeople are here to play and to
sweat. So that's why we're gonnastrip a little bit and see what
(28:19):
it's like. They offer,pickleball 101 for pickleball
curious people. I'm not sure ifLucky, the manager or the GM, is
gonna be able to talk to y'allabout it, but I am excited to
play. I'm gonna be YouTubingsome tips and tricks on the
rules because that's how novicewe are. And Yeah.
Julia Catherine (28:40):
And then it goes to 14 points.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (28:43):
I didn't even know that.
But we will come up to to speedvery quickly. Okay. I love to be
back. I love you do look likeyou're ready. The skirts? Team
skirts, team pants? I like thoseskirts. Oh, hi, Aaron!
Hi. You're able to help us?Okay. So is there any way you
could just instruct us on whatwe're doing? Because right now,
(29:03):
we're just hitting.
Aaron Tom (29:05):
Sure. So you drop the ball into Okay. Yeah. So every
time that you play a point out,it's basically a rally. Right?
And the only way that you canscore a point is when the
serving team wins their rally.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (29:20):
That makes sense.
Players (29:20):
Yes. That might make sense.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (29:21):
Clear. That tracks.
Aaron Tom (29:22):
Right? You basically have your two sides of the court
And you get to switch sides whenyou are the serving team every
single time that you score apoint.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (29:33):
Oh. Oh. Only when you score.
Players (29:35):
Only when you score, and you can only score when you
are serving.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (29:40):
Serving.
Aaron Tom (29:41):
Okay? So if you stop the serving team from scoring,
it's called the side out. Sokinda like volleyball, if you
ever played volleyball. Yeah. Soside out. It takes 2 side outs
in order for the other team toget their chance to start
serving. Okay? You only get onechance to get your serve in.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (30:01):
With doubles. Right?
Aaron Tom (30:02):
Yeah. Well, same thing as singles. Oh. You get
one chance to get your serverin. So Okay.
Players (30:08):
What if it's like this and it lands in here?
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (30:11):
In the kitchen. On your server.
Aaron Tom (30:13):
Lands in the the kitchen Mhmm. It's a fault.
Okay. So it it would go toeither the next server Ah. Or it
would go to the opposite sidedepending on what side out you
were on.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (30:22):
Got it. Okay. You don't have, like, a
let.
Aaron Tom (30:24):
There's so if you're playing in a Pro division You
would play a let.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (30:29):
Oh, god.
Aaron Tom (30:33):
They're thinking about implementing the let for
all divisions.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (30:40):
This is cool. Oh, yes. I can totally get
on board with this. Yes. I canplay tennis, but is there a way
that we could just, like,pretend that we're playing a
game?
Aaron Tom (30:51):
Absolutely.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (30:57):
So can people get memberships here?
Aaron Tom (30:59):
Absolutely.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett: How much are the memberships? (31:00):
undefined
Players (31:01):
That's hard for me to know because it's really my
first day on-site.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (31:06):
Oh, gotcha. Congratulations.
Jen York (31:08):
Yeah. Oh, that's a grand opening. Right?
Aaron Tom (31:09):
No. The grand opening was the 11th. All the pricing
stuff is up there. Cool. Yeah.Basically, what it gets you is,
unlimited free open play becauseif not, you normally have to pay
for those. There's 3 open playsa day, 7 days a week. So there's
a 7 to 10, 11 to 2 5 to 8.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (31:31):
Gotcha.
Shanon says it was packedwhenever she came here last
week.
Aaron Tom (31:36):
Yeah. And then, like, so we also have free 101
pickleball classes for, like,beginners. That was great.
Because they're all included inyour in your membership.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (31:50):
Okay. Cool.
Aaron Tom (31:51):
If you wanted, like, additional lessons, so, like, if
it was with me or another coachThen there's different rates
that are associated with that.It also gives you access to,
like, booking and reservingcourts during non open play
times.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (32:06):
Neat. Yeah.
Aaron Tom (32:06):
And, you know, certain discounts on, like,
tournaments that we host ordifferent social events that are
also hosted.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (32:14):
Amazing. Mhmm. Cool. Okay. Thank you.
Players (32:16):
Try and Yeah.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (32:17):
We'll try. Yeah. Let's do it. We'll
try and do our you guys start doour deal.
Players (32:22):
Oh. Oh. So that would be a fault? A fault. As all
things started, they're gonnaget the service.
Yes. So the score is 0.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (32:32):
But I need to be ready to move back.
Right?
Players (32:38):
Nice. Excellent bounce. Right? Oh. Oh, yeah.
Here she goes. Here she goes.Nice. Oh.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (32:52):
So it's point.
Players (32:55):
Sweet. Okay. Switch. There you go. And so it's 1-0?
1 stroke. Let's go. Nice.
Player (33:32):
Woo hoo. But they that's 4. Oh. Oh. Oh my god.
Jen York (33:39):
Oh my god. Oh my god. I admire your dedication. Alexa,
that was perfect. Oh, man.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (33:57):
She can take it.
Team Pants (34:07):
Nice. Oh, okay. We won. We won. Oh.
All Talking (34:28):
Cool. I like it. Yeah. That's fun. It's really
cool.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (34:32):
Yeah. That was like that was my first
pickleball game. Yeah. I've justtaken the lessons.
Aaron Tom (34:37):
Congratulations. Yeah. I know it gets better.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (34:41):
Cool. And honestly, I have to say, I
didn't think that there was muchof a workout, before playing
this because I was always like,I'd rather learn how to play
tennis and, like, really, like,run across the court. But this I
can see how you can, like Yeah.Get some movement. Yeah. You
could absolutely do this,especially since it's more
social than just being at thegym. Right. A 100%. And then I
(35:03):
get really tired of just, like Ilove those workouts, but just to
kind of vary it, and then sincetennis, it's too cold right now.
I know. Thank you guys so much.
Players (35:12):
Oh my god.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (35:16):
Thank you, guys.
Players (35:17):
I know!
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (35:17):
it was super last minute.
Players (35:18):
That was great.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (35:19):
And and just kind of looking for
something that's in the theme ofbeing indoors and safer. I was
like, that's a goodlocation. Seriously, thank you guys so much!
Hi there. Today, we're diving into a topic
that hits a little too close tohome, our safety here in Dallas.
While some parts of the cityfeel safer than others, the
truth is you can never truly letyour guard down. I'm Sarah
Zubiate Bennett, and this is ahard reality I've had to face,
especially after a couple ofterrifying experiences right in
Highland Park. One of thosemoments involved my daughter,
(00:20):
Liliana, and she's here with metoday to share her perspective
on what happened. I've alsoinvited my niece, Bryce Martin,
to join us to talk about atroubling experience she went
through. Together, we'll unpackthese stories and reflect on
what they've taught us aboutstaying vigilant. Here's a
takeaway I hope you'll leavewith. Until we have enough
police officers to meet thedemands of our city, we all have
(00:40):
a role in protecting ourselvesand our loved ones. Thank you
for tuning in to this importantconversation. Don't forget to
like, subscribe, and share thisepisode with someone who might
need to hear it.
(01:00):
Hi there. I'm Sarah. This isAlicia.
Alisha Moldakhmetova (01:03):
Hi.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (01:03):
Alicia, where are you from?
Alisha Moldakhmetova (01:05):
I'm from Kazakhstan. Central Asia.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett: Central Asia. So she is my and (01:08):
undefined
the kids' private tennis coach.And we're here in, a beautiful
neighborhood in Highland Park,known for being very safe. But
one of the last times we werehere, we were playing at a court
that is now under construction.Yep. And it was a very
(01:31):
unfortunate event, thatparticular day. It was hot
summer, and so we were veryhappy to be on the court, which
is covered with foliage on thenorthern, eastern, and the
southern sides. And as we werethere, she she was giving my
(01:51):
daughter, Liliana, and myself aprivate lesson. And at that
point, we while playing, spotteda group of how many guys was it?
It's like 6. 7.
Alisha Moldakhmetova (02:04):
6 or 7. Yeah.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (02:05):
Something like that. And they they were
not old. They were younger,like, maybe twenties, maybe late
teens or twenties. They were notsmall. They look like they were
Latinos.
What caught my eye was that noneof them had a tennis racket, and
something inside of me just toldme to run to Alisha's side of
(02:27):
the court where my purse wassitting, and I had a gun in it
because they were stringingtheir hands kind of along the
chain link fence that was justlike this. Wasn't it, Alisha?
Alisha Moldakhmetova (02:36):
Yeah. It was like that. Yeah.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (02:37):
So they were kinda doing that bit along
the chain link fence, and I sawthem eyeing the 3 of us in
there. So I sprinted across thecourt, which is the same size as
this, from that side all the wayto that southern side at the
other court, and I held up mypurse and they knew that within
(03:00):
it I had a gun because I guessmy stance, and then I asked
Alisha and Liliana to stand tothe back of me. At that point,
right kinda when I was holdingthe gun, they had the latch to
enter from the eastern side ofthe court opened, but then at
that point, they shut it. Theyclosed it and they just went
(03:24):
away. Then they walked up thestairs. I did not call, Highland
Park Police, which I shouldhave. I think it's because I
didn't know if my gut instinctwas correct, that they were
there to cause harm in some way.I almost was in disbelief.
(03:47):
Actually, I was in disbeliefbecause I thought this is a
neighborhood where it's renownedfor being extremely safe, and,
certainly, this didn't justhappen here. What were your
feelings After that?
Alisha Moldakhmetova (04:04):
I was kinda like it was weird. Like,
we saw, like, 7 men just walkingand, like Big guys. It's very
scary. You know? Very. And, Iwas facing the, like, the
entrance with my back, so Ididn't really see what they did.
Yeah. But I saw, like, youkinda, like, getting how do I
(04:24):
say it? Like, aware aware ofthat.
Yeah. And that's when I was,like, okay. Like, something is
up. Yeah. And I did tell you,like, sometimes I gotta, like,
remind myself that I'm inAmerica. Like Yeah. Anything can
happen, so that's kinda, like,scary.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (04:41):
It it's really scary. So the reason
we're even talking about thisand the reason I'm gonna be in
the studio later today withLiliana having her tell this
story is because every personneeds to understand that no
matter where you think you are,you are not excluded or exempt
from something possiblyhappening. And the next day
(05:04):
after that happened at thetennis court, Liliana and I were
at her dermatologist and shesaid, mommy, do you have a gun
in that purse? And I said, I do.And she said, I'm so happy that
you carry that. I think that'sthe only reason that those men
didn't come into the court. Andit was just a horrible, thought,
feeling, all of it. So thanksfor listening.
(05:27):
(To Liliana) Tell me what youremember about that particular
day when you were there takingyour lesson and I had joined
you.
Liliana (05:32):
Well, so, you know, I kinda just sort of like, we
started warming up, and then westarted hits, passing. Then you
joined us after, so, 30 minutes.And then there was these guys.
And remember they, like Ofcourse. Came down when they they
(05:58):
walked, and they I think theywere trying to get into the
gate.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (06:03):
They did. So they they walked directly on
the eastern side of the chainlink fence. There was a chain
link fence there, and I don'tknow what caused me to sprint
from the northern side of thecourt over to the southern side.
Remember, my purse was over atthe bench. Mhmm.
(06:25):
So I sprinted over to it, andthen I had you and Alisha stand
to the side and behind me. Mhmm.What else do you remember after
that?
Liliana (06:34):
I remember that...
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (06:36):
they How many were there?
Liliana (06:38):
There was 6, I think. 6 to 8. There was a lot of them.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (06:43):
Yep.
Liliana (06:43):
There's, like, a whole group.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (06:45):
Do you remember how old they looked?
Liliana (06:46):
They looked, like, 25. They looked young. Had, like,
baggy clothes on.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (06:53):
Really baggy.
Liliana (06:54):
Like, dirty and, like, all I was just, like they
looked, like, in the hood. I'msorry.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (07:05):
And so Maybe the yeah. Like, they're
from a different part of townfor sure.
Liliana (07:10):
And I don't think they were aware of the area that we
were in.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (07:14):
Or maybe they were.
Liliana (07:15):
Or maybe they were in there just being not smart in
that situation. And I rememberthey put their hand on the lock.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (07:27):
To Oh, the latch. That's right. That's
right.
Liliana (07:29):
So they were standing there, and they were all gonna
come into the area, but theydidn't.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (07:36):
They didn't whenever they saw me
Liliana (07:38):
Like, put your hand in your purse.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (07:39):
In my purse, and they they knew I had
my gun.
Liliana (07:44):
Mhmm. Mhmm. Yes.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (07:44):
And were you scared or not really?
Liliana (07:48):
You know, I was a little scared because I was
just, like, unaware. Like, I wasaware, but, like, not used to
that.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett: I don't think that you or miss (07:56):
undefined
Alisha were fully aware of whatwas happening.
Liliana (07:59):
And, like, I was, like, not used to that like, a
situation like that, so I wasjust, like, you know Mhmm. A
little, like, awkward. And I waslike, and then I felt not as
scared because you were there.And I knew you had your gun, so
I and I knew you would, likeMhmm. Could defend yourself and
(08:23):
us. You know? Mhmm. Because Iknow you had a gun, and so I
wasn't, like, that scared. Mhmm.But, you know, it's just a
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (08:36):
An unnerving situation.
Liliana (08:37):
Yes.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (08:38):
It was really different. When Miss
Alisha described it today, shesaid it was weird. And remember
she said, whenever it was allover, she said, I forget that
I'm in America sometimes. And soas a mom, as a parent, as a
person, a woman, right, thosewere 6 guys that were coming
into that place where we areplaying tennis, do you think
(09:02):
that they would have been aslikely to come in there if we
had a guy with us?
Liliana (09:06):
Like, in the gate in the tennis court? No. And if you
weren't there if you weren'tthere, I don't think I think
they would have came in thegate. Yeah. And then it would
just be me and her. Yes. I do.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (09:20):
Yeah. And that's something that makes me
sick to think about, you know,how upset I was by it. But
because I think about all of myfriends, my family, who don't
arm themselves and aren't readyto protect themselves. So now I
carry a gun, and I also carrypepper spray that I hand to
(09:44):
people should I need to so thatthey have pepper spray so that
I'm not the only one who hassome form of self defense
weapon.
Liliana (09:54):
Yeah. So they can protect themselves. You know?
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (09:57):
And it's pretty common sense to you, but
there's a lot of people outthere, I think, who, like me,
thought that they were in a safeplace. Liliana, I had literally
finished writing about a crimerelated incident that happened
to a woman in her home with 4men, just maybe a mile and a
(10:22):
half, 2 miles north of where wewere. But because we were in
Highland Park, I thought I Iguess, well, out of habit, I
just take my gun wherever I go,but never in a million years
would I have thought that thatwould have happened in Highland
Park. Yeah. So thank you forsharing that.
Liliana (10:45):
Yes. And I have one more thing.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (10:46):
Uh-huh. And, also, I feel like it was
God's plan that, like, when youfinished the article, you came
in. Because, like, you were,like you you spent, like, 30
minutes on that article, andthen you came in. Mhmm. I mean,
like, that was specific timing.Because sometimes I'm with my
(11:09):
like, my nanny comes to drop meoff. And then, like, on like, in
that period of time, and I'm sothankful. You know?
I am too, more than you know. Ilove you.
Liliana (11:20):
Love you.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (11:22):
Hi, Bryce.
Bryce Martin (11:23):
Hello.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (11:24):
Thank you for joining me here. I know
you've joined me before in avery fun part of the segment.
And we had good cocktail's good.Oh my gosh. And we're neither of
us are drinking now. I'm like,yes. But thank you for being
here.
Bryce Martin (11:40):
Of course.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (11:41):
I know, you knew how badly affected I
was with the event that happenedwith Lily. I was furious and
irate, and then you called meand told me about something that
happened to you. It wasn't evena month after. And so it was a
few months ago that thishappened.
Bryce Martin (12:02):
It's the end of November. And, you know, it's
interesting because youmentioned that you had just
finished writing an articleabout a woman.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (12:11):
Yep.
Bryce Martin (12:12):
I just went to a board meeting about for a
charity called Untrafficked.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (12:17):
Mhmm.
Bryce Martin (12:18):
And it opened my eyes about what was going on.
And I started getting involvedin civic and political things.
And my eyes were opening to kindof the horrors that are
happening all around us that noone's really talking about. But
I live in a safe- I live 4minutes from you in Knox
District, one of the safestareas in Dallas, supposedly.
(12:41):
I've been incredibly lucky thatI haven't faced, like, dangerous
situations in this way.
I've had friends that have, butI work hard to be able to afford
a place that's that's expensivebecause it's safe. And I think,
you know, I've I've been insketchy situations, but never
like this. But I think it'sinteresting that, you know, our
(13:03):
eyes were open to things that wenever really face.
And within
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (13:08):
weeks weeks of each other.
Bryce Martin (13:09):
Yes. And that that has never happened to me In
Dallas, Highland Park, you nameit. It has not ever happened to
me. My time living in this city,that experience that I had with
Liliana and then had a weekafter in Highland Park Village.
And then you. So can you tellour viewers and listeners a
(13:30):
little bit about what happened?
It was a Saturday night, 11 PM.And I there are some office and
retail spots in front of myapartment building, and I was
driving up to go to the stopsign in front of my building.
And as I was driving up, downthe road, these 2 cars come
(13:53):
barreling around the corner, hopthis flower bed curb And come
and park right in front of thisoffice retail spot in front of
my apartment building.
They're speeding and drivingthrough. I was like, what is
happening? And I stop at thestop sign that's just happened
to be directly in front of them,and they get out of their car.
(14:13):
Their cars have completely blacktinted windows. Both front and
back license plates were removedbecause I tend to look- I've
been trained.
We have these discussions. Like,you mentioned with Lily
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (14:25):
We're very aware.
Bryce Martin (14:25):
We are very aware. People we are trained, and we
have these discussions to besafe. So I look for that. They
get out of their car. They're inall black Ski masks, like a
scene out of a movie. And sorry.I'm like, reliving it. It's it's
more difficult than I expected.You know? And I stop, and I
(14:47):
look, and I make direct eyecontact with one of them. They
all have something in theirhands. I also am in a panic. You
know, you look back at these andgo, like, did not handle this
the way that I was trained to.At this point, I don't have my
gun. I have a knife and mytaser. But in that moment, it
(15:10):
was abundantly clear that theywere about to go hit this office
spot that you can it's allwindows. You can see in. There's
all this really high endtechnology.
I was like, oh, they're about torob this place. So I immediately
dial 911 on my phone, like, hitthe emergency button. And then
stupidly, and I feel so shamefulafter the fact, I went to pull
into my safety, which was myapartment, which was next door.
(15:32):
So I, like, turn and then go topull in to the locked garage
with security. And I'm on thephone with the operator. I'm
like, hey. This block or thisblock, there's about to be a
robbery go down. It's 2 cars.
I give the descriptors of blackski mask, and I'm I'm pulling
into my gate. And as I pull in,I'm on the phone with the
(15:53):
operator who is pretty muchuseless to me. She's like, oh,
cops are backed up. We'll sendthem when we can. I said, well,
when is it gonna happen? Thesemen look armed.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (16:04):
And this is in Dallas. This is in Dallas.
This is in Knox District On thethe west side Of 75 Right
outside Highland Park, like,core Dallas. And the late it's
just so nonchalant, and I'mlike, there's probably
hundreds of thousands ofdollars worth of tech about to
be stolen actively, and I couldI'm seeing it happen. Yep. I
(16:28):
pull into my apartment building.I'm talking to the operator.
Bryce Martin (16:32):
I'm like, oh, of course. Here we go. You know? So
understaffed. It's not theirfault. We know it's not their
fault. I talked to so manyofficers during the Dallas Hero.
I've had so many conversationswith them, you know, in support
of it for a reason.
I pull in, and as I'm going downthe hill, I hear brake
screeches, and both cars werefollowing in behind me. And they
(16:58):
caught the gate as it wasclosing, and it reopened.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (17:00):
Oh my gosh. I don't recall this.
Bryce Martin (17:06):
And they followed me in while I was on the phone
with the operator. And as I'mtalking to her, I'm like, they
and I'm freaking out. And I'mlike, I feel so stupid because I
knew better. And as they'rechasing me, I'm like, they just
tailgated me, and both of themare behind me. What do I do?
(17:26):
What do I do? And I'm Yeah.Panicking. She literally told me
to, quote, unquote, get tosafety, and she can't advise me.
She gave me no advice. And Idon't have gotten them. I'm,
like, in a panic. So I'm, like,looking at their cars, and I'm
laying on the horn. Operatorshe's like, what's and I'm like,
(17:49):
I'm describing the cars,describing it, like, at the
front, and I'm giving thedescriptors. Like, there's no
license plate. This is it. I'mtrying to describe the 3 men
because I'm, like, in thismoment, I'm like, what's about
to happen? I'm like, what do Ido? What do I do? And in that
moment she was useless. And so II go through in the corner and
(18:15):
to try to, like, speed around,and one stayed directly behind
me and the other one turnedbecause you can go down and go
to the right and left. The otherone turned, the Charger, and
sped, and then they locked me infront and back.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (18:28):
Oh god. And all got out of the car. And
so they got out. And now I'mtalking to the officers. What's
happening? At that point, I'm,like, grabbing my knife,
grabbing my you know? BecauseI'm and I'm like, please send
someone. Please send someone.Like, they're getting out of the
(18:49):
car. And I think my naive, like,brain is like, oh, they're gonna
take my car. Right? You youwanna think that. But and I'm
freaking out. Operator's notdoing anything, saying anything,
not sending anybody. And then bythe grace of God, I'm praying.
(19:11):
That's all at that point, that'sall I had.
Bryce Martin (19:14):
Yeah. 2 cars pulled into my parking garage,
and I lay on my horn. And theyget back in their vehicles, and
I move, and I'd, like, go aroundand speed out, and the
operator's still on the phone.And I get out. I'm like, I got
out. I got where do I go? Wheredo I go? Where do I go? What if
they follow me? She's like, theofficer didn't send anyone.
(19:37):
Still at that point had notchanged the urgency of the call.
And I go, and I, like, justwanted to get to people.
And so there's a gas station inthe area that and it was full of
cars, so I go and I just go sitin the parking lot, like, please
send someone. I'm like, what doI do? Like, where do I go?
Again, feels foolish for I knowwhere to go. I know what to do.
(19:58):
But in that moment, it was justI mean, I'm shaking thinking
about it. It was...
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (20:04):
It's awful.
Bryce Martin (20:05):
It's and so I sit in the gas station, and I can,
like, look at my buildingbecause I also was like, you
need to send someone right now.They're still in the parking
garage. Like, the trucks justpulled in, they it they'd
followed me out too because Ithink they could tell something
was going on, but I know there'sall these young women that live
(20:26):
in the building, and I'm like,you need to send someone right
now. Like, they're still in mythey're they're in the gate.
Like, they are in the gate rightnow. And it's 11 PM on a
Saturday. Like, people areactive at this point. And she
says nothing. Like, I can'tadvise you. Just get to safety.
I'm like, where? Where? Youknow? And I'm in a way, and then
(20:46):
I see them pull out, and they goand they move, and they I I
watch them, like, pull on thehighway and just flee. Hung up
on 911. She's like, I'm sendingofficers, and and I'm like,
when? She's like, I don't knowhow long it's gonna be. I'm
like, great. Perfect. And I'mjust shaking Mhmm. Praying,
thanking God, nervous. I'm like,what if they target like, what
(21:11):
if they come back?
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (21:11):
Yeah. They know your car.
Bryce Martin (21:13):
They know my car.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett: They know where you live...or drove in... (21:14):
undefined
or probably would assume thatyou live there. .
Bryce Martin (21:21):
Yeah. And so it was 11:02 when I called 911. I
was on the phone with them for 7minutes. Yeah. What's the
average call supposed to be?
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (21:29):
I don't know.
Bryce Martin (21:30):
Less than 7 minutes.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (21:32):
Yeah. Of course. Yeah.
Bryce Martin (21:35):
And and so I get off the phone with 911. I I just
I get I I at this point, I justwanna lock myself in my bed
like, in my apartment, in mybedroom, and just that was,
like, the one thing I justwanted in that moment.
So they were gone. I waited andwaited and waited. Eventually, I
(21:57):
had driven home, got to myapartment, just a mess, cops
call me, the officers, 32minutes later. And I tell them
what happened, And they tell methat they're on their way, and
they'll be there in 10 minutes.And I wait and I wait and I
(22:17):
wait. 2 hours later, it's anunknown number. You can't call
them back. I'm not gonna it tooka while for anyone to answer.
I'm not gonna flood that. Atthat point, I knew they're not
coming. Yeah. So I waited till,like, 2 in the morning.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (22:31):
What did the officers say?
Bryce Martin (22:32):
They told me nothing. They just said, well,
we need you to be there to,like, we're coming to check to
make sure they're gone. Do a,you know, check on the floors to
get your statement. I was like,well, how long am I supposed to
wait? Because they wouldn'tinitially tell me, like, we're
10 minutes away, and thenobviously they got called
somewhere else or back, youknow, a million other things or
they lied to appease me.
I don't know. I don't blame forsure. They never showed up, and
(22:56):
I'd never got a callback fromthem either. And I talked to my
leasing center. There was noinvestigation.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (23:04):
If you had a redo, what would you do
differently?
Bryce Martin (23:09):
I wouldn't have stopped at the stop sign, and I
would have just driven off. Andnot pulled in. I feel so stupid.
You know?
Like, that's
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (23:21):
I didn't call the Highland Park Police.
Bryce Martin (23:23):
Yeah.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (23:24):
So do you know how stupid that is? I mean,
I reiterate that fact so oftenbecause I get so mad at myself
because had they come becausetheir response time in Highland
Park is fast, and that's why welive there, and I didn't call
them, And they could havedetained 6 guys who were up to
(23:48):
no good. God knows what theywere gonna do. Why were they
gonna go in there with 3 women?We're dealing with hardened
criminals that have no fear.
Okay. So here's what I wanted tosay, and this is really, really
important. I was going tointerview someone from Venezuela
(24:10):
to talk about what these peopleare like. This gentleman wanted
to be behind a wall, did notwant his name to be known. He
told me that he never oncethought about getting a gun
(24:31):
while in America until herealized the type of people that
were coming here from his homecountry. He's from Venezuela,
and he has a lot of insight asto how they operate. And he
said, these people aren't herefor robbery. They're here to
kill. They kill. Maybe it's morelucrative for them to traffic
(24:56):
people. I don't know. I can'tspeak to it. I'm not from
Venezuela, but we're surroundednow by people who are not afraid
of guns. They are not afraid tocause harm. They're not afraid
of perceived safe areas. Peoplethat are living in bubbles like
(25:18):
us, they're not bubbles.
Bryce Martin (25:21):
They're not.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (25:21):
They're not. No. They're not bubbles.
And, I mean, after that point, Ihave not gone anywhere.
Normally, I might even be alittle bit lax, and I'd be I'd
say, okay. I'm going here. I'mnot gonna carry inside of here,
or I carry everywhere I go,everywhere I go, and now I take
(25:44):
pepper spray to hand out toadditional people after that
event so that I can give it topeople who are with me. Thank
you for being with us. Bryce,thank you for being here.
Liliana, thank you for coming onand talking with us. Love you.
After covering these verydifficult conversations and
topics, I just wanted to end ona lighter, more upbeat tone. On
days when the weather is bad orif it's a little too cold or if
(26:06):
tennis just isn't your thing, Ithought it'd be fun to round up
some of my friends and go playsome pickleball. We went to the
brand new Pickleball Kingdom,Dallas North. It's right off the
Dallas North Tollway, just southof Spring Valley. And let me
tell you, if pickleball has beenon your radar, this place is
absolutely amazing, and Ipromise you're gonna love every
minute of it. Be sure to tellLucky, the general manager, that
(26:27):
you saw this beautiful place onLet's Talk Local. Thanks so much
for being here.
So we are at Pickleball Kingdom.I'm here with some of my really
good friends.
We wanted to just try somethingdifferent. None of us are
pickleball players, so to speak.We're we're all kinda novice.
I played maybe once or twice inmy life. I dabble in tennis as
(26:50):
of late. I never grew up playingit. And also following that
really heavy, commentary thatjust happened, I thought, okay.
This is indoors.
It's like 40 degrees outside, sowe're here. Some are more
fashionable than others. But butit's it's a new place that just
opened off the toll road. Andlet me introduce you to these
(27:11):
amazing women. This is Jen.
Jen York (27:12):
Hi. I'm Jen.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (27:14):
Have you played?
Jen York (27:15):
I've never played before.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (27:16):
Okay. You've never played.
Jen York (27:17):
I've never played, but I wanna learn. So I'm glad to be
here.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (27:22):
Yes. And then I told you my stuff. This
is Julia.
Julia Catherine (27:25):
I'm Julia. Yeah. And I've played a few
times. I did read that last yearpickleball was the number one
injury in the country.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett: So I think it's because a lot of (27:33):
undefined
older people. Maybe seniors,
Julia Catherine (27:36):
yeah, playing. I played. I'm pretty
competitive.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (27:36):
We'll see how it goes.
And then Alexa?
Alexa Gooden (27:44):
Hi. I'm Alexa. And I need I only played pickleball
with my son. That's about it.But, we hit the ball, but I'm a
tennis player. So I think itkinda comes to me.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (27:55):
She's the one tennis player. So they're an
alcohol free environment. Sopeople are here to play and to
sweat. So that's why we're gonnastrip a little bit and see what
(28:19):
it's like. They offer,pickleball 101 for pickleball
curious people. I'm not sure ifLucky, the manager or the GM, is
gonna be able to talk to y'allabout it, but I am excited to
play. I'm gonna be YouTubingsome tips and tricks on the
rules because that's how novicewe are. And Yeah.
Julia Catherine (28:40):
And then it goes to 14 points.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (28:43):
I didn't even know that.
But we will come up to to speedvery quickly. Okay. I love to be
back. I love you do look likeyou're ready. The skirts? Team
skirts, team pants? I like thoseskirts. Oh, hi, Aaron!
Hi. You're able to help us?Okay. So is there any way you
could just instruct us on whatwe're doing? Because right now,
(29:03):
we're just hitting.
Aaron Tom (29:05):
Sure. So you drop the ball into Okay. Yeah. So every
time that you play a point out,it's basically a rally. Right?
And the only way that you canscore a point is when the
serving team wins their rally.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (29:20):
That makes sense.
Players (29:20):
Yes. That might make sense.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (29:21):
Clear. That tracks.
Aaron Tom (29:22):
Right? You basically have your two sides of the court
And you get to switch sides whenyou are the serving team every
single time that you score apoint.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (29:33):
Oh. Oh. Only when you score.
Players (29:35):
Only when you score, and you can only score when you
are serving.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (29:40):
Serving.
Aaron Tom (29:41):
Okay? So if you stop the serving team from scoring,
it's called the side out. Sokinda like volleyball, if you
ever played volleyball. Yeah. Soside out. It takes 2 side outs
in order for the other team toget their chance to start
serving. Okay? You only get onechance to get your serve in.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (30:01):
With doubles. Right?
Aaron Tom (30:02):
Yeah. Well, same thing as singles. Oh. You get
one chance to get your serverin. So Okay.
Players (30:08):
What if it's like this and it lands in here?
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (30:11):
In the kitchen. On your server.
Aaron Tom (30:13):
Lands in the the kitchen Mhmm. It's a fault.
Okay. So it it would go toeither the next server Ah. Or it
would go to the opposite sidedepending on what side out you
were on.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (30:22):
Got it. Okay. You don't have, like, a
let.
Aaron Tom (30:24):
There's so if you're playing in a Pro division You
would play a let.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (30:29):
Oh, god.
Aaron Tom (30:33):
They're thinking about implementing the let for
all divisions.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (30:40):
This is cool. Oh, yes. I can totally get
on board with this. Yes. I canplay tennis, but is there a way
that we could just, like,pretend that we're playing a
game?
Aaron Tom (30:51):
Absolutely.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (30:57):
So can people get memberships here?
Aaron Tom (30:59):
Absolutely.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett: How much are the memberships? (31:00):
undefined
Players (31:01):
That's hard for me to know because it's really my
first day on-site.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (31:06):
Oh, gotcha. Congratulations.
Jen York (31:08):
Yeah. Oh, that's a grand opening. Right?
Aaron Tom (31:09):
No. The grand opening was the 11th. All the pricing
stuff is up there. Cool. Yeah.Basically, what it gets you is,
unlimited free open play becauseif not, you normally have to pay
for those. There's 3 open playsa day, 7 days a week. So there's
a 7 to 10, 11 to 2 5 to 8.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (31:31):
Gotcha.
Shanon says it was packedwhenever she came here last
week.
Aaron Tom (31:36):
Yeah. And then, like, so we also have free 101
pickleball classes for, like,beginners. That was great.
Because they're all included inyour in your membership.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (31:50):
Okay. Cool.
Aaron Tom (31:51):
If you wanted, like, additional lessons, so, like, if
it was with me or another coachThen there's different rates
that are associated with that.It also gives you access to,
like, booking and reservingcourts during non open play
times.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (32:06):
Neat. Yeah.
Aaron Tom (32:06):
And, you know, certain discounts on, like,
tournaments that we host ordifferent social events that are
also hosted.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (32:14):
Amazing. Mhmm. Cool. Okay. Thank you.
Players (32:16):
Try and Yeah.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (32:17):
We'll try. Yeah. Let's do it. We'll
try and do our you guys start doour deal.
Players (32:22):
Oh. Oh. So that would be a fault? A fault. As all
things started, they're gonnaget the service.
Yes. So the score is 0.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (32:32):
But I need to be ready to move back.
Right?
Players (32:38):
Nice. Excellent bounce. Right? Oh. Oh, yeah.
Here she goes. Here she goes.Nice. Oh.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (32:52):
So it's point.
Players (32:55):
Sweet. Okay. Switch. There you go. And so it's 1-0?
1 stroke. Let's go. Nice.
Player (33:32):
Woo hoo. But they that's 4. Oh. Oh. Oh my god.
Jen York (33:39):
Oh my god. Oh my god. I admire your dedication. Alexa,
that was perfect. Oh, man.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (33:57):
She can take it.
Team Pants (34:07):
Nice. Oh, okay. We won. We won. Oh.
All Talking (34:28):
Cool. I like it. Yeah. That's fun. It's really
cool.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (34:32):
Yeah. That was like that was my first
pickleball game. Yeah. I've justtaken the lessons.
Aaron Tom (34:37):
Congratulations. Yeah. I know it gets better.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (34:41):
Cool. And honestly, I have to say, I
didn't think that there was muchof a workout, before playing
this because I was always like,I'd rather learn how to play
tennis and, like, really, like,run across the court. But this I
can see how you can, like Yeah.Get some movement. Yeah. You
could absolutely do this,especially since it's more
social than just being at thegym. Right. A 100%. And then I
(35:03):
get really tired of just, like Ilove those workouts, but just to
kind of vary it, and then sincetennis, it's too cold right now.
I know. Thank you guys so much.
Players (35:12):
Oh my god.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (35:16):
Thank you, guys.
Players (35:17):
I know!
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (35:17):
it was super last minute.
Players (35:18):
That was great.
Sarah Zubiate Bennett (35:19):
And and just kind of looking for
something that's in the theme ofbeing indoors and safer. I was
like, that's a goodlocation. Seriously, thank you guys so much!
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