In most major cities across the country the local police response time is increasing at a devastating rate. As a glaring example of the danger, one night in July 2023, my team of security officers responded to a possible domestic abuse fight in progress at the client’s site. Prior to my team’s arrival we had already contacted the local law enforcement agency to respond. Once we arrived, we immediately noticed an active fight in progress and notified law enforcement then engaged to separate all parties. My team ended up fighting one male subject and a crowd of about 15 people for about 20 minutes before the first law enforcement officer arrived. Police actually appeared approximately 40 minutes after the first 911 call was made. That is just one of many incidents that I can personally attest to the lack of response from the local law enforcement.

Due to the incredibly poor local law enforcement response time, and the impact on their reputations, insurance and earnings, private business owners and residential communities are hiring private security companies to act as their own law enforcement. In most states, private security guards are still viewed and treated as “observe and report” watchdogs. In other states, they have limited powers such as detainment for certain criminal acts conducted in their presence. In a few forward-thinking states “private security” has the same level of power as a deputy sheriff on the property they are paid to protect.

It is time to start treating security as legitimate first responders. They are physically present and are the first to react in most cases. Security, if properly trained, can respond and react to medical emergencies, minor or misdemeanor criminal acts, and can even respond, react, and deter incidents of mass violence involving crowds and felonies, such as riots, arson, and battery.

Recently, my team was assigned to monitor a potentially hostile employee termination event. The subject of the termination along with two others later came back to follow through on a valid threat to shoot the staff and was confronted by our Excalibur Security Team that quickly responded and prevented the former employee from following through with her plan.

Business owners and property managers need to understand there are two different types of security. There is the “Security Guard” and by contrast there is the “Security Officer”. People often ask me what the difference is between the two types.

My answer may not resonate at first, but the “guard” is an entry level $8-$12 per hour employee that is typically untrained, not certified nor licensed. Their only job is to sit at a desk and watch a television monitor. This type of security is usually extent when owners only care about getting a discount on their insurance cost. They can check a box on their insurance application that states live security monitoring. This is hardly what is needed in today’s complex climate of upheaval and will ultimately give employees and residents a false sense of security.

The “officer” is someone that wants to make a career within the professional private security industry. This officer is not only certified or licensed at the state as a minimum, but also has several other certifications, such as de-escalation training. They may not have as much training as law enforcement; however, our Excalibur officers have advanced training to respond to a range of situations appropriately.

It is not my contention that private security alone is taking over law enforcement duties. There is still a major need for law enforcement. However, the decrease in popularity of choosing law enforcement as a career is glaring. We still have vast numbers of people that want to make a difference in their communities; however, they are choosing to work for the private sector instead of a municipality. Most of the time when asked about why they are choosing the private sector, their response is “I want to work for an agency that will back me for doing my job”.

Recently, we monitored the inbound call responders of the 911 system in Charlotte, North Carolina. During a one-month period, on average, the 911 emergency line initial hold time to reach a dispatcher was 28 minutes. That means, citizens in Charlotte are waiting for extended periods for anything from suspicious persons, all the way up to crimes like assault with a deadly weapon. After you finally reach a 911 dispatcher, it takes on average 35 minutes for an officer to respond. Imagine you are in a life and death situation and the quickest response you can elicit is an hour! The need for private security officers with advanced training has never been greater.

To contrast response times - we worked on a missing person case, and it took the assigned police officer over three hours to respond to the frantic parents’ call. During that time, our “security officers” were able to gather all the information needed to locate the missing teen. Our Private Investigators were able to travel to and meet with the parents and locate the house where the missing teen was being held. The missing teen was returned home the next morning. More information about this case will be listed in another publication to demonstrate the lack of response from local police.

Recently, a Chief of Police was on television talking about the increase in crime rate and stated that he had been in law enforcement for over 40 years and never stopped a crime in progress. Now, either that the Chief of Police was exaggerating and just wanted his 15 minutes of fame or municipality agencies are revealed to be truly reactive, instead of being proactive. The truth lies somewhere between the two most likely, after seeing firsthand and speaking to several members of Charlotte Mecklenburg Police Department. CMPD as well as most major municipalities are short staffed of police officers and only have a minor number of officers that are tasked with proactive police work.

In North Carolina, security training is 36 hours total (16 hours of unarmed and 20 hours of armed) and is still considered “Observe and Report”. They can only detain for certain situations and only if their company allows them to do it.

In South Carolina, security has the same powers as a deputy sheriff on the property they are paid to protect. However, they are only required to have a maximum of eight hours of training to facilitate making an “arrest.”

In Texas, they have several different levels of security that determine what authority they possess.

Most states’ licensing and regulations are similar to those of North Carolina. How do we overcome these limitations? First, we must change the public mindset of “you’re just security” when encountering an officer. We need to get the political powers and mainstream media involved to do that. We also need law enforcement leadership to support their partners in the private sector.

Together, with community and official support, security officers can bridge the ever-widening gap to protect our lives, liberty, and property from unwarranted attacks. “As President of Excalibur Security Team, I have devoted myself to building a professional, cohesive team of officers trained to provide the kind of protection we need in today’s world.”

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