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The holiday season brings a spike in both house burglaries and retail crime, leaving businesses and security guards grappling with how to manage increasingly bold shoplifters. For many security guards, their role is limited to observation, leaving them feeling powerless to intervene.
Limited Powers Under Current Laws
Scott, a security guard in Christchurch, described his job as being akin to a “classroom monitor,” confined to watching and reporting incidents rather than taking action. This limitation stems from current legal frameworks.
Under the Crimes Act 1961, security guards have the same rights as private citizens to use reasonable force in specific circumstances, such as assisting with an arrest, preventing a breach of the peace, or defending property. However, the definition of “reasonable” is highly subjective, leaving guards vulnerable to legal consequences if their actions are deemed excessive.
READ: Perception of Security Officers: Current Sentiment and Future Aspirations
Most retailers adopt a risk-averse stance, prohibiting security officers from physical intervention. As a result, many guards are relegated to “observe and report” roles, as confirmed by Andy Gollings, executive director of Red Badge Group, a leading security firm.
The Need for Legislative Clarity
The vague language in the Crimes Act and conflicting provisions in other laws exacerbate the challenges faced by security personnel. Gollings highlighted the risks involved, noting that officers and their employers could face liability for excessive force, harm, or accusations of discrimination.
To address these issues, Gollings suggests a comprehensive overhaul of outdated legislation to provide clarity and protection for security guards.
Empowering Security Guards
Gollings and others argue for equipping highly trained security guards with greater powers and protections to effectively combat retail crime. These enhanced measures could include:
- Recording Identification Details: Allowing guards to request and document IDs from suspected offenders.
- Recovering Stolen Property: Empowering guards to retrieve items stolen from retail stores.
- Detaining Offenders: Permitting guards to arrest or detain individuals until police arrive.
- Trespass Enforcement: Strengthening the Trespass Act to give guards more authority to remove individuals from premises.
- Specific Legal Protections: Establishing “assault on a security officer” as a specific offence to deter violence against guards.
The Argument for Advanced Training
While granting additional powers is crucial, Gollings emphasizes that only highly trained officers who complete advanced licensing should be entrusted with these responsibilities. Advanced training would ensure officers have the skills and judgment needed to act within legal boundaries while effectively deterring crime.
A Balanced Approach to Empowering Security Guards
Retailers and security firms must strike a balance between empowering security guards and maintaining customer trust. Providing guards with expanded powers could help reduce retail crime, but it must be paired with safeguards to prevent misuse of authority and racial profiling.
The current limitations of the “observe and report” model leave both guards and businesses vulnerable. Empowering guards with the tools, training, and legal clarity to act decisively could make them a more effective deterrent against retail crime while ensuring they operate within a well-defined legal framework.
3 Responses
In Texas a Commissioned Security Officer can Server Warrants for bonding companies and so can a Private Investigator. We server Civil Process, and prisoner transport. If we see a crime, we can act accordingly and if we arrest another, they must go before a judge. We cannot field release them. A Security Officer can be a very dangerous person to test because the Officer could change a person’s life. It’s a felony to assault a security officer, and taking something from one or touching without consent is assault by contact. Security needs to form a nationwide brotherhood same as police and support each other in time of crisis.
I do believe you have to be a licensed process server to deliver legal documents like subpoenas, complaints, summonses, and writs. Just because you’re a level 2, 3, 4, or PI, does not automatically give you the ability to deliver civil processes.
Also correct when you see a crime but, you can only act accordingly if it is a crime that is one listed as a felony and is committed in your presence and view. You can detain an individual but technically once the peace officers arrive, he can affect any arrest at that time if he feels it’s necessary. You can release a detained individual; it just depends on the situation and your reason for placing them in handcuffs at that moment.
It is considered a 3rd degree felony assault on a public servant if you strike a security officer while performing their duties, just depends on the situation, and circumstances leading up to the assault. If you look at it as you stated, “taking something from one or touching without consent is assault by contact.” Then we all know a ton of security officers that need to be arrested. In this line of work taking away something or touching someone without consent is pretty much what every security officer does on a daily basis, It’s the manner and the force used that will determine if it’s considered an assault or not.
As far as brotherhood and stuff like that will never happen, we’ve tried to do that here in our area, but officers could not or would not get along or they start accusing each other of stealing contracts or trying to steal employees.
Until we can raise the professionalism and get pretty much every security officer on the same page of professionalism, knowledge of the laws, and training then maybe you could create some type of security officer association, union, or charter that would show respect to all officers throughout the state and country. It’s kind of just like when a police officer dies, you have all these police officers from all over the country that show up to pay their respects. There’s no reason why Security cannot do that too. But it’s the fact that this industry lacks professionalism and respect, I know that no two companies are the same, some run it strictly by the book, and some cut corners every chance they get, just like some officers are complete professionals, and some officers are just complete dirt bags.
How many police officers do you see telling other officers outside of their areas that they need to disarm or remove uniform shirts, you don’t. But walk into a store, restaurant, event center, hospital, or office building and what is the first thing that happens when that security officer sees another company uniform or logo? All hell breaks loose, and professional courtesy is thrown out the door. Again, just my opinion and thoughts.
We don’t use the term ‘Guard’ we use ‘Security Specialist’ or ‘crime prevention’’ officer. We don’t guard anything, we Protect and Defend. Upgrade your terminology to grasp the attention of potential clients. Our uniforms are upgraded from traditional uniforms to look more professional. Sloppy appearance and un-groomed does not attract positive feedback. Police also reject the person just because of appearance, no matter the education.
Become defenders not pretenders. Carry more than a radio and a flashlight, you just down graded you reputation and loss of community trust and respect. Wear complete duty belt with all the bells and whistles. People look at us much differently and the level to trust and respect increased overwhelmingly. Just a thought!