Problems with local records searches, delays in accessing FBI database create challenge for private security industry. Bill Whitmore, SecurityInfoWatch.com

The most significant issue facing the security officer sector today is background check standardization. Our country has no national background check system to ensure all private security officer personnel can be quickly vetted and screened. Information about arrests and convictions are available in the National Crime Information Center (NCIC), but those computerized records are only available to law enforcement except in select states such as Florida and Arizona. State-wide background checking information does not go far enough. We need a clearinghouse similar to the banking industry. The reality is that this system is broken, and it’s time for a radical change.

Private security officers provide a primary line of defense for much of the country, securing countless lives and tens of thousands of important sites each and every day. As the largest American owned security officer services’ firm, our company was called to testify by the United States House of Representatives’ Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism and Homeland Security. We were queried on our experience using the criminal history database of the FBI to help screen applicants as well as our views on the Attorney General’s June 2006 Report on Criminal History Background Checks.

Today, when we seek to hire security personnel, we have to conduct state-wide or county-by-county and court-by-court criminal record checks. In our global world, where anyone can jump on a plane or drive five states away in a few hours, statewide information is of very limited value. Without timely access to the records of the Criminal Justice Information Services Division of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, no investigation of security personnel can be considered complete.

The Attorney General’s Report concluded that a comprehensive and reliable criminal history background check cannot be accomplished without timely access to the records of the Criminal Justice Information Services Division of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. I agree whole heartedly with that statement. Our experience has proved that to be true.

Without access to federal records, the only records available to an employer are those in the states and their political subdivisions, where the records are typically kept at the courthouse in each county. Since there is no practical way to check all the counties for every employee, employers usually request a record check in the counties in which the applicant says they have recently lived or worked. This leaves the employer blind to any criminal history records in states for which the applicant failed to disclose.

There are commercial databases that aggregate criminal history information from multiple states but these are not truly national because not all states, courts, or agencies make their records available. Moreover, these databases are only updated periodically and, thus, may lack current data. These commercial databases are not adequate substitutes for information contained in the FBI-maintained database.

Congress — with the support of many individuals in the security industry — acted in good faith to provide private security officer employers with access to that federal database in 2004. Unfortunately, in doing so, Congress required that the employers always go through the state identification bureaus in order to get that access. In other words, we must submit the employee information to the state bureau, which then forwards the request to the federal level. If the FBI record check is completed, the results come back to the state, which then notifies the employer.

Significant delays in getting responses to criminal history record requests are unfair to employers and applicants, and present potential security risks. To address this problem, private sector employers should be able to screen job applicants against the FBI’s criminal history records, with the states serving as the employers’ primary access point for criminal background checks only if they can meet the Attorney General standard. If a state cannot provide timely background check results that incorporate both state and FBI data, employers should be able to make direct requests to the FBI for criminal history records utilizing digitized fingerprints.

A national background screening protocol will elevate the security officer sector and revolutionize the industry. Our government needs to work with the private security sector and place a high priority on establishing a clearinghouse where we can electronically submit applicant fingerprints and review the background of applicants across the country, immediately uncovering criminal records and other liabilities that may exist. By implementing these recommendations for the private security industry — specifically by insuring employers’ timely access to FBI criminal records while preserving employee rights — we will make our nation safer and ensure that the hard-working men and women in the physical security sector can benefit from the increased professionalism and standardization that is vital to our sector.

 Despite requirements, more than half of potential licensees not signed up

Evening Times (Glasgow)
via NewsEdge Corporation 

MORE than half of Scotland’s bouncers and security firms have failed to sign up to a licensing scheme that comes into force in a week.

New rules introduced by regulatory body the Security Industry Authority will affect around 17,000 security and door staff in Scotland, including up to 7000 in the Glasgow area.

But a week before the scheme, which is designed to get rid of rogue security workers, comes into force only 8000 have secured the licence they will need to do their job.

It means up to 9000 workers could face fines of up to GBP5000 or six months in prison for not having the required paperwork.

Security Industry Authority bosses say the industry has known about the legislation, which is effective from next Thursday, for two years and people have had plenty of time to apply for a licence.

A spokeswoman said: “There are always going to be those who think they do not need a licence, but there is no reason why they should not have one. No-one can say they did not know about it.

“Our mantra has always been – be licensed and be legal.”

From next Thursday door supervisors, security guards, CCTV operators and bodyguards will all require a licence.

The documents, which come with a photographic security badge and individual number, are approved and distributed by SIA, which manages licensing of the private security industry in the UK.

They show the individual is properly trained, qualified and fit and proper for the role.

Those requiring a licence should have applied by the beginning of September to ensure they received their badge.

However, licensing experts believe there are a backlog of applications still being dealt that has been partly caused by the recent postal strike.

Eddie Tobin, of Glasgow Nightclub Forum, said: “In recent weeks there has been an enormous number of applications, but they have not been processed.

“The SIA said it would take four to six weeks to process, but that has been extended to eight.

“You would be mad to to think everybody will have their badge by next week, but they should have applied for one.

“I am sure there are some people who are ignoring the legislation, but that is a foolish thing to do.”

TIMESFILE

More than 100,000 doormen are employed by UK pubs and clubs.

The tough legislation comes in on November 1 but was first proposed in 2003. It brings Scotland in line with England and Wales.

Criminal record and identity checks are mandatory for anyone wanting to work as a doorman and they must undergo training.

It will be an offence to work in the security business without a licence

 City releases video evidence of security guards napping while on shift, abandoning their posts

Fran Spielman and Frank Main, The Chicago Sun-TimesChicago Sun Times

Surveillance cameras inside Chicago’s two water-filtration plants have captured dozens of instances of private security guards sleeping on the job and abandoning their posts, City Hall sources said Monday.

Video evidence against Honor Guard Security was turned over to the city’s Department of Procurement Services to support canceling its $13.3 million contract before the end of the month. The five-year contract was awarded in December.

Some of the digital photos have been shown to Honor Guard President William McCurdy. He reportedly responded by offering to get rid of individual employees. But that wasn’t acceptable to city Water Management officials, who have been at loggerheads with Honor Guard since its employees showed up in April to staff more than 60 posts around the clock.

The Chicago Sun-Times reported Monday that Honor Guard’s unarmed employees have been yanked out of the city’s two water-filtration plants amid concerns about safeguarding Chicago’s drinking water.

“It’s a chronic problem that doesn’t get better. . . . There are stacks of examples of them not performing and sleeping on the job,” said a source familiar with the investigation.

A company vice president said she felt the city never wanted Honor Guard to hold the contract and was being unfair in criticizing its employees’ performance.

Although the firm won the Water Management work last year, its bids to guard less sensitive departments such as Animal Control and Cultural Affairs weren’t accepted, public records show.

The company told the city it also held a contract with the state Department of Military Affairs to man six military installations with 110 security officers. And the firm said it provided the state Department of Children and Family Services with 47 security officers at 11 locations throughout Cook County from 2004 to 2005.

Surveillance cameras inside the filtration plants are monitored by Chicago Police officers at outside checkpoints. The images are also linked to the city’s 911 emergency center.

Honor Guard was hired to provide security guard services for several city departments, including Water Management, after submitting the low bid. That’s even though Water Management officials ranked the company dead last among finalists. The $13.3 million contract is now being re-bid.

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The deception of perception

KEITH R. LAVERY
Officer.com & SecurityInfoWatch.com

Remember the old adage, “Never judge a book by its cover”? I think it is safe to say that most of us still do, even though we are supposed to be “trained observers” or think from an investigative perspective. However, I have experienced that when law enforcement officers (LEOs) interact with security officers, the police types seem to shun those not driving a black and white.

As I look back over my police career, spanning the last 17 years, I can vividly recall responding to incidents where the local security officer was at the scene first. After clearing the call, officers I worked with would make snide remarks toward the security officer, such as “wannabe,” “just a (expletive) guard,” or something negative to that effect. I also remembered when I was in college and working part-time as an LEO I decided to work with a private investigator for additional hours so that I could make ends meet. This particular PI was a former police sergeant for a decent-size Ohio agency who told me, and evidently I have never forgotten it, “You will either get into security and then police work, or retire from police work and then go to security.” The PI told me that one is a natural extension of the other. He left public service for the private sector because he had a wife and three kids; he doubled his salary. He wanted to give his family what he never had growing up, and he found out that the private sector was a lot more lucrative than working rotating shifts for the city. If you have done the job long enough and are like most cops, you can probably recall chasing bad guys on foot through dark alleys at “zero dark 30″ in the morning for what seemed like nickel and dime compensation. Heck, I can remember doing just that for $6.00 an hour, and that was in 1993.

So why do cops treat security officers, or “guards”–whatever you want to call their occupation, although I think the term “guard” is most often used rudely–as a “lesser than”? Is it because LEO’s have clear statutory authority? We protect the public, and they protect buildings? Training standards for uniformed physical security are generally lower than those than police? Maybe it’s none of the above, or all of the above and then some. Personally, I think it boils down to ignorance on behalf of the cop, coupled with good old-fashioned police ego…if I am allowed to generalize. This is my article, so therefore, I will. Now, remember, I am still a police officer, so before you fire off thousands of hate mails my way, keep reading. I would argue that as human beings there is a natural tendency to believe what we see, no matter how well we are trained to be critical thinkers, and that is dangerous.

That’s the danger of perception; it’s shallow in depth. Therefore, it is limited in truth.

Remember being angry when you overheard someone say at the local dinner or coffee shop that “cops must not do anything because they are always sitting here” and you just arrived to eat your lunch four hours overdue and after you answered 15 calls within the last three hours? The public’s perception of you can be nothing more than pure stupidity, right? The truth is that citizen who was judging you simply does not know your job, what you are trained to do, what you just did, and how you account for your every hour of your tour. They just saw you sitting there drinking coffee. Now, how many times have you been judgmental to others? I know I have been, too often.

At some point in your career as a cop, you will stop being a cop. We will not carry the badge forever. You will either retire with a full pension, partial pension, or disability. Then what do you do? Well that is up to you, but as that old PI once told me “…one is a natural extension of the other,” and when the private sector can pay in the six figure range for well qualified security managers, who wouldn’t want to make that transition? My wife and I recently returned from vacationing in the U.S. Virgin Islands. While at the resort I thought, “what is would be like to be the security manager here, waking up in paradise every morning, earning double what I made as a street cop?” But how would you get there if you wanted to make that change? What’s required? Say, for instance, that you did not want to work in the security sector that focuses on a lodging environment. Are there other venues? You bet. There are many different aspects to working as a professional within the security industry. I will not cover them here; this is just the beginning.

About the author: Keith R. Lavery, M.A., is a full-time criminal justice educator teaching secondary education and having taught law enforcement, criminal justice and security courses at the post-secondary level. Keith had a very diverse police career for over 17 years, working in urban and rural law enforcement settings with assignments ranging from patrol to specialized functions, and to stay current in the field, works part-time as a patrol officer in Northeastern Ohio. Keith is currently the Law Enforcement Liaison for the Cleveland, Ohio, Chapter of ASIS International.

Guard shot when trying to break up group of men throwing eggs at cars, peopleThe Associated Press

MOUNT VERNON, N.Y. — A security guard died a day after being shot in the head and chest while trying to stop Halloween revelers from throwing eggs.

Neville Webb, 52, of White Plains, died Thursday night at a New York City hospital, where he was taken in extremely critical condition following the gunfire in Mount Vernon north of the city, said Police Commissioner David Chong.

Webb, a former correction officer, went out to break up a group of young men who were throwing eggs at cars and people on Halloween night, Chong said.

“When he went out to stop them it appears that one individual shot him,” the commissioner said after the shooting. “This poor security guard was just doing his job.”

He said police had some leads to follow in the search for the shooter. No arrests had been made early Friday.

Webb’s son, Christopher Webb, is a candidate in Tuesday’s Mount Vernon City Council elections.

“My family is grieving and his friends are grieving,” Christopher Webb said Thursday. “That man would not have harmed anyone.”

In San Francisco, Service Employees International Union faces off with security companies  SecurityInfoWatch.com November 2007

In the San Francisco Bay Area, the Local 24/7 of the Service Employees International Union, which represents security officers, is squaring off with security companies over union negotiations.

At issue is the cost of health insurance program, with the security companies alleging that not enough information had been provided about the health insurance program suggested from the SEIU.

According to a spokesperson for the security companies, one of the challenges has been a lack of communication between the SEIU Local. The spokesperson, Guy Thomas, sadded that the security companies felt that they had a “flexible and generous healthcare plan” in their offering, which has also included raising average wages by 20 percent over the next 5 years.

Firms grouped together in the current negotiations include AlliedBarton, ABM Security Services, Securitas Security Services and Universal Protection Services.

 (rediff.com) November 2007

The cameras installed by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police at the Surrey (British Columbia) house of Indo-Canadian journalist Tara Singh Hayer were reportedly not working the night he was assassinated on November 18, 1998, the Air India inquiry, now in progress in Ottawa, was told on Thursday.

Pretoria News - November 15 2007

Security Services News

Armed men made off with hundreds of thousands of rands during two daring daylight robberies this week.

On Wednesday a pension payout point in Winterveld and an FNB branch in Midrand were attacked.

In the Winterveld robbery five gunmen shot at pensioners as they stormed into the payout point in Mmakaunyana. They escaped with R84 000.

Police spokesperson Inspector Paul Ramaloko said no arrests had been made.

In Midrand 10 gunmen held up FNB staff and customers at the Carlwald Lifestyle Shopping Centre before fleeing with an estimated R200 000.

No one was injured in either of the robberies.

Centre manager Christien Kruger said the attack was over within minutes.

She said the robbers had entered the store one at a time before holding up staff and customers and robbing them of cellphones, jewellery and money.

Midrand police station spokesperson Captain Martin Hulk said the robbers gained access to the safes after threatening a staff member.

On Tuesday a group of men attacked and FNB commercial branch in Meyerspark.

Ramaloko said the men held up staff for nearly an hour.

Human resources co-ordinator Queen Sullo locked some of the gunmen in an office and ran to the kitchen, where she hid and called the police. The men escaped with cellphones and other valuables.

Anyone with information on these attacks can call Crime Stop on 08600 10111.

Pretoria News – November 2007

Security Guard News 

Seven armed men got away with an undisclosed amount of money after robbing a cash in transit vehicle in Soweto on Wednesday, police said.

Captain Yolande Bouwer said a Fidelity vehicle stopped to collect cash at a hardware store at the corner of Union and Klip Valley roads in Kliptown, when the seven men confronted the security guards.

All seven were armed, one with a rifle and the other six with handguns.

They demanded cash and a firearm belonging to one of the security guards.

The men fled with one cash box containing an undisclosed amount of money in two vehicles and abandoned a third vehicle. Bouwer said at this stage police did not believe that the abandoned vehicle was stolen.

No shots were fired and no injuries were reported, she said.

The seven men were still at large and police were investigating, she said. – Sapa

Pretoria news – 15 November 2007, 20:54

Johannesburg – A security guard was shot and wounded during a robbery at a jewellery store at the new Irene Mall in Centurion on Thursday, Pretoria police said.

Captain Lucas Sithole said three armed men entered the South African Diamond store and opened fire on the security guard.

“The security guard was shot once and is in a serious condition. The robbers escaped with an undisclosed amount of cash and jewellery.

“We have received reports that other people were also treated at the scene but none had serious injuries,” said Sithole.

No arrests have been made and police are investigating a case of attempted murder and armed robbery. – Sapa

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