On a recent Saturday afternoon, my doorbell rang with its usual authority. When I answered the call I found two smartly dressed young people wearing forest green uniforms with appropriately contrasting yellow and red emblems sewn on and sporting a larger, six-pointed star badge which I thought was that of the Los Angeles Sheriff. In short order I found that they were not deputies, they were members of ACS security patrol and they were soliciting subscriptions to their service. I found this to be disturbing. In residential areas such as West Hollywood West, we rely on the Los Angeles County Sheriff to provide police protection. Gated communities may favor private security patrols for the same reasons they wish to be removed from the rest of us. But, such forms of “policing” actually subvert the role of sworn peace officers such as Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department (LASD). As our Sheriff Jim McDonnell recently noted in a letter to the Los Angeles Times, commenting on Metro’s use of private guards, “they do not have peace officer powers. They still must call on law enforcement to make an arrest.” Checking with the West Hollywood Public Safety Department elicited the response “This is not something that city hall or the sheriff is supporting.”
But, there’s more to this story.
ACS is a well-respected company based locally in Bel Air. A gated community such as Bel Air probably has the cost of a security patrol within its other fees and, with the mindset of its residents about security concerns, such an arrangement is probably quite workable. ACS would charge $50 monthly for “patrol services” and an additional $25 monthly if one wished “armed response.” ACS says that they provide services to over 30 homeowner associations throughout Los Angeles County. Such a statement provoked my concern and I began to investigate the use of private security services by cities around the country.
“As cities lay off police, frustrated neighborhoods turn to private cops.” Christian Science Monitor.
“Cash-strapped cities try private guards over police.” Dow Jones News.
The city that keeps being used as an example of the success of private security patrols is Oakland, where the crime rate is constantly increasing, San Francisco commuters are growing in number and the police department is reduced to having 682 sworn officers for every 100,000 residents – a ratio that cannot provide the protection the citizens feel they need. According to a young friend who worked several years on the Oakland police force, only the business districts and one area of expensive homes in a “restricted” part of town employed private security. He said he responded to quite a few alarms from the private security companies, most of which were of “no consequence” – in other words, false alarms. Not what an overworked police department needs. However, the private guards remain popular.
But, just who are these private security guards? Where do they get their training? One answer is – online. Just what I was afraid to read. Compare that to a six-month course at a city or county police academy with plenty of hands-on training and guidance. In August of 1976 a report was prepared for the U.S. Department of Justice on a growing phenomenon. The report was titled: “Scope of Legal Authority of Private Security Personnel. A full reading of the 200-page report would be a soporific, but a glance through it provided enough information to see the fuzzy separation between the private and public security forces with respect to how laws govern their activities. Though I did not check further to find updates, I am convinced that residential security must be supplied by sworn police offers.
Taxes pay for police protection. Police are part of the governing administration and are bound by the oath they take to protect and serve as well as established norms of behavior – regardless of current chaotic shootings. The police can be held accountable for their actions, both good and bad and serve at the pleasure of the citizens whose taxes pay for them. They are (or should be) a very visible part of the community.
Beyond police, citizens have a responsibility to assist in maintaining good order in their communities. One popular form is the formation of Neighborhood Watch groups. This is the grassroots program for neighborhoods in any city, in any neighborhood. The program also promotes neighborliness, wherein people get to know each other. During the 40-plus years in which we have lived on our block, wonderful friendships have been established. We speak often with each other, be it on the sidewalk or at a local café. Births and deaths are well noted and, in one particular instance, with the death of a dear neighbor, a “recognition of life party” was held at one house in his honor and attended by 20 people just from this block. The Watch program is offered by Public Safety. Get involved.
Privatization is a current phenomenon in the U.S.A. The in-coming president and his advisors will be promoting more privatization than ever. We see it already in so-called “charter schools,” once formed on a specific teaching platform, now for-profit schools. Many prisons are run by private companies. The very idea of “public service” is threatened by such moves. When profit is the principal driver, what gets left out of the process?
A question for private security patrols: What happens to those who do not subscribe yet are part of a community you might patrol? I recall a news story some years ago whereby a volunteer fire department simply stood by and watched a house burn to the ground because the owner had not paid his annual fee. Could this apply to security patrols’ degree of responsibility? If the community feels it needs more or better or different policing, it must petition the city council and press for change. Of course, money is at the heart of many city decisions and there may be some restraints – that’s why I bring Neighborhood Watch into the picture. And, I’d love to see the bike patrols the COPS program provided some time back, rather than any thought of private security patrols.
This security company is canvasing the west side of West Hollywood West. They have one client and think they can get more.
When they knocked on my door I told them I already have an alarm system and the local Sheriff for protection. I told them to tell the person that sent them that we still live in a good and safe neighborhood and to not come back again soliciting business.
Thanks Carl for a great opinion piece.
I feel compelled to comment on the incident in which a fire department stood by and watched a house burn when they might have saved it. This was a fire department from the next county who had agreed to service this area where there was no fire department, so the residents were not taxed for it. The homeowners were, however, required to pay a nominal yearly fee to assure that this fire department would respond if there ever was the need. Those who did not pay were reminded yearly that they were taking a risk. When this house caught on… Read more »
Well written article. Minor point: Bel-Air is not a gated community as most people would interpret those two words. While there is an East and a West gate, anyone can drive through them. You can circumvent those “gates” by entering Bel-Air from Beverly Glen on the east and Stone Canyon from the west. Oh, when I lived on the east side of WeHo for some 37:years, despite many attempts, I was unable to find or create a Neighborhood Watch group. It was very frustrating.