When a police officer pulls the trigger, it touches off a prescribed set of events, including an investigation. But that’s not the case with security guards.
Hired Guns
Across the U.S., a haphazard system of lax laws, minimal oversight and little accountability puts guns in the hands of guards who endanger lives.
Posted inGuns, Hired Guns
Here’s how states can improve the security industry
Find out what’s working – and what’s not – in states’ efforts to regulate armed security guards.
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Armed guard paralyzes unarmed teen over stolen Cheetos
If Arizona had required gun-ownership background checks for security guards, one guard might not have begun work at a Circle K convenience store where he later shot and paralyzed an unarmed teenager.
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Posted inGuns, Hired Guns
When bad cops become bad security guards
Reveal discovered armed guards with histories of civil rights violations, excessive force and corruption that did not trail them from their former lives as police, sheriff’s deputies and corrections officers.
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Many armed guards aren’t getting the vetting regulators thought
Twelve states that reported that they are running guard applicants through an FBI records check actually are obtaining only a fingerprint-based criminal background check.
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5 ways the armed-guard industry is out of control
Private security companies have hired felons, people with mental health issues and former police officers accused of abuse. There are horror stories from nearly every state, and they all point to the same issue: an industry lacking oversight and accountability.
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Results may be deadly when armed guards don’t get mental health checks
Only four states require armed-guard applicants to undergo a mental health evaluation, which is standard for law enforcement officers.
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Security guards would face mental health exams under California bill
A bill that would require armed-guard applicants to undergo mental health evaluations is making its way through the California Senate.
Posted inGuns, Hired Guns
Unlike ‘Mall Cop,’ guards say their work is no laughing matter
Security guards on the big and small screens constantly flout their patrols and sleep on the job. But in reality, it’s one of the country’s most dangerous professions, with guards at a higher risk of violent injury on the job than police.
Posted inGuns, Hired Guns
California security firm involved in 3 shootings sees few consequences
Cal Force Security has voluntarily surrendered its license. But in its wake, the company left a trail of violent encounters that led to few, if any, consequences, according to readily available public reports.