Dallas Security Officer Gunned Down

[1stWatch]

Dallas, TX:
A security officer named Henry Hernandez was shot in the chin and groin while escorting an irate person out of a plasma donation center in southeast Dallas who was turned away from making a donation. The suspect was arrested by police and the security officer is in the hospital in stable condition.

http://www.nbc5i.com/news/8058205/detail.html?rss=dfw&psp=news

[Mr. Security]

Why aggravated assault instead of attempted murder? Wonder what the charge would have been if it were a cop that was shot instead. :(

[Lawson]

Wonder what the charge would have been if it were a cop that was shot instead. :(

Probably 3 gunshot wounds to the Face.

[oldfart]

I guess the guy is lucky to be alive at this point and that is a plus in my opinion. I also think the charges should be attempted murder. :mad:

[1stWatch]

Why aggravated assault instead of attempted murder? Wonder what the charge would have been if it were a cop that was shot instead. :(

According to its standard operating procedure, Dallas does not file "attempt" charges on people. It is a source of frustration for us to hear them say there's nothing they'll do when an armed robber kicks in someone's door but runs away ("attempted burglary") or if someone tries to steal a car but doesn't get away with it ("attempted unauthorized use of vehicle") or even fires weapons at people ("attempted murder"). The city also does not recognize a private citizen arrest, even though it is clearly outlined in the state law. The aggravated assault charge is just as good, though.

It is actually "aggravated assault with deadly weapon on public servant", a first degree felony. This is a greater felony than attempted murder. The charge of assault is the same now, since 2003, when committed on security as on police.

http://www.capitol.state.tx.us/statutes/docs/PE/content/htm/pe.005.00.000022.00.htm#22.02.00

[1stWatch]

It should also be noted I believe this gentleman was unarmed. Since I have been to that place before several years ago, I can say I remember an unarmed guard walking around there. This brings me back to one of my chief complaints, of there being absolutely zero training given to security, especially in the unarmed sector which is more commonly used, in officer safety and conflict resolution.

Escorting an irate person out is a lot more dangerous of a situation than the average person would believe. It is clear to me the suspect was not patted down, therefore a weapon was not detected. A close proximity between the guard and the suspect was not maintained and there was no awareness of where the suspect's hands were.

If this person's orders were like most security guard post orders I've seen, if there were any at all, it said for him to simply tell someone to leave and then call the cops if they don't and it would prohibit him from touching or handcuffing the person. Hands off policies like these are what got this person hurt.

[Mr. Security]

......
If this person's orders were like most security guard post orders I've seen, if there were any at all, it said for him to simply tell someone to leave and then call the cops if they don't and it would prohibit him from touching or handcuffing the person. Hands off policies like these are what got this person hurt.

Actually, what got this guard shot was his failed attempt to escort the unwelcome party out of the facility. If he told this man to leave and he refused, he should have called the police and let them handle it. The police would have found the gun and commended the guard for requesting police assistance.

[1stWatch]

Actually, what got this guard shot was his failed attempt to escort the unwelcome party out of the facility. If he told this man to leave and he refused, he should have called the police and let them handle it. The police would have found the gun and commended the guard for requesting police assistance.

From what I gather of the situation, the man was already irate and embroiled with anger. In my position as an armed officer, I would have patted the individual down before taking further action. As an unarmed officer with the type of training I received, I would do the same thing; however, it seems to be a catch-22 situation where the client management is standing around this threatening individual while patients are lying down with catheters stuck in their arms. They want this person out "now". That place is a plasma donation center. They'll pay somebody $25 to donate several pints of plasma. A person is barred from donating if they are std positive, have been with a prostitute, or test positive for drugs. My bet is the guy not only tested positive for drugs, he was sky high on them.
Sure, you can call the police there, but in south Dallas don't expect them to show up before he starts shooting the place up. They're most likely working multiple disturbances just like it right around the corner, as well as a couple of murders, gang fights, rounding up drug dealers, or chasing stolen cars. Proactive force is often the only way to go in that city to remove someone from a building. A problem arises when that force is necessary and the person expected to do something is not trained in defensive tactics and is not equipped. Common sense and reasoning with the person won't cut it when faced with this situation.

[Mr. Security]

From what I gather of the situation, the man was already irate and embroiled with anger. In my position as an armed officer, I would have patted the individual down before taking further action. As an unarmed officer with the type of training I received, I would do the same thing; however, it seems to be a catch-22 situation where the client management is standing around this threatening individual while patients are lying down with catheters stuck in their arms. They want this person out "now"............... My bet is the guy not only tested positive for drugs, he was sky high on them.
Sure, you can call the police there, but in south Dallas don't expect them to show up before he starts shooting the place up.......

If this guy was threatening to hurt anyone and had tested positive for drug use, the guard needs to convey this to the dispatcher when he calls. In addition, telling the dispatcher that violence is imminent will ensure that the call is given priority. If the guard nonchalantly tells the dispatcher that he has a party on the premises that is refusing to leave and doesn't communicate the seriousness of the situation, then yes, the police may not arrive in time.

[1stWatch]

If this guy was threatening to hurt anyone and had tested positive for drug use, the guard needs to convey this to the dispatcher when he calls. In addition, telling the dispatcher that violence is imminent will ensure that the call is given priority. If the guard nonchalantly tells the dispatcher that he has a party on the premises that is refusing to leave and doesn't communicate the seriousness of the situation, then yes, the police may not arrive in time.

I see you've not had to work in south Dallas. Of course those details should be relayed correctly. Actually, police may show up within a reasonable period depending on their workload at the time. Keep in mind, however, that area has a very big problem with violent offenses. Very often they do not show up on time, no matter how well you articulate the call. I've had to call on similar incidents before and had to wait more than an hour or even two or three hours before they come strolling in.
This is what you get when the population of the city is around 1,200,000 and the police force only has 2,700 positions, of which roughly 2,400 are staffed.

[Mr. Security]

Are you telling me that if I dial 911 and tell dispatch that I have a man under the influence of drugs, possibly armed, and threatening violence at a Red Cross Center, that the police are going to take 30 min. to an hour to respond?

[N. A. Corbier]

If this guy was threatening to hurt anyone and had tested positive for drug use, the guard needs to convey this to the dispatcher when he calls. In addition, telling the dispatcher that violence is imminent will ensure that the call is given priority. If the guard nonchalantly tells the dispatcher that he has a party on the premises that is refusing to leave and doesn't communicate the seriousness of the situation, then yes, the police may not arrive in time.

Um, actually... I "conveyed a sense of urgency" to the 911 dispatcher during a shooting in progress, at which one point I was about >< close to engaging the suspects during the grid search.

Tampa Police responded in 1 hour, 27 minutes, and stated that they were "busy with calls, they couldn't get enough people out here." What they really did was call a 2 man car from South Tampa to come up to North Tampa to respond. Drive time: 35 minutes.

[N. A. Corbier]

Are you telling me that if I dial 911 and tell dispatch that I have a man under the influence of drugs, possibly armed, and threatening violence at a Red Cross Center, that the police are going to take 30 min. to an hour to respond?

Yes.

The police will
1) Not respond till they have 2-4 units ready to go.
2) Stage till all 4 units are nearby.
3) Discuss the situation.
4) Roll on scene in force.

This was the general SOP for Tampa Police when I worked in their jurisdiction. I'm pretty sure that's normal for Dallas, too, considering their workload.

They are not going to risk one officer, alone, for an obviously irate individual. He will wait for backup before going on scene.

The worse you make it sound, the longer you wait till more units clear their calls, call enroute to the scene, stage with everyone else, and then pull up together.

We had a huge guy in one of our projects. Standed there with the guy, myself and my partner, for 1 hour for TPD to arrive to throw the guy off the property. He was too damn huge to throw off ourselves, and he was careful not to physically threaten us so we couldn't simply hose and stomp. Not that I really wanted to in the first place, guy was freaking huge, and he noted, "I should tell you, officer pig, that OC dosen't affect me in the slightest bit. Not even that can of Sabre Red you have." Anyone who can pull the brand name of my OC in a closed pouch knows his s--t. My reply, heh, was, "I see, and I thank you for warning me about that. I'm afraid I'm out of force options if you become violent, so we'll just have to shoot you till you stop resisting. Oh, I have Hydra-Shok +P rounds." He looked at me and noted I was serious, and was carrying a .357 magnum. He was cooperative with us till the PD arrived, and then ran like a sprinter.

[Mr. Security]

I don't know about Tampa, but I would be surprised if Dallas operates 1 man cruisers instead of 2. If they have 2 in a patrol car, I don't believe that they would wait for a second unit before responding to the call, especially this call since the guy wasn't brandishing an assault rifle.

At any rate, even with 1 police officer per unit, the police in this area respond immediately to the call with back-up in route. If that's the way calls are handled in your area, it's unfortunate. :(

[N. A. Corbier]

I don't know about Tampa, but I would be surprised if Dallas operates 1 man cruisers instead of 2. If they have 2 in a patrol car, I don't believe that they would wait for a second unit before responding to the call, especially this call since the guy wasn't brandishing an assault rifle.

At any rate, even with 1 police officer per unit, the police in this area respond immediately to the call with back-up in route. If that's the way calls are handled in your area, it's unfortunate. :(

Isn't it, though? In Kenosha, its small enough that one man units patrol, and will answer calls alone. They usually don't request backup, either.

[1stWatch]

Are you telling me that if I dial 911 and tell dispatch that I have a man under the influence of drugs, possibly armed, and threatening violence at a Red Cross Center, that the police are going to take 30 min. to an hour to respond?

Basically, yes.

[Mr. Security]

Basically, yes.

Already acknowledged and replied to.

[1stWatch]

I don't know about Tampa, but I would be surprised if Dallas operates 1 man cruisers instead of 2. If they have 2 in a patrol car, I don't believe that they would wait for a second unit before responding to the call, especially this call since the guy wasn't brandishing an assault rifle.

At any rate, even with 1 police officer per unit, the police in this area respond immediately to the call with back-up in route. If that's the way calls are handled in your area, it's unfortunate. :(

Dallas has one-man elements and two-man elements. There are more one-mans than two-mans on any given shift. The two-mans are normally in demand for higher priority calls than the one described. The issue of response time is one that is cussed and discussed a lot here. It has improved somewhat since they hired a competent chief back in 2004. According to him, however, it will take 6 or 7 years to make everything they need to start looking up.

They certainly have made some achievements. Dallas currently leads the nation in the number of arrests made on violent and para-military Central American gang members during 2005. The murder rate dropped substantially since those round-ups started. So, they aren't exactly sitting on their asses somewhere napping, at least not anymore.

In order for responses to start to be within a desirable time frame, Dallas would need to nearly double its force. That is something the officers would absolutely love to see happen, but the city government squawks every time it is mentioned, saying they don't have a big enough budget, the city isn't that dangerous, or coming up with some lame duck excuse as to why they won't even address the idea. I am of the same opinion some grassroots organizations are, that it is a big priority and a tax increase would be favorable, even supported by the residents just for that purpose.

It would also be nice to see them with improved equipment. The city got some new Dodge Intrepids and Chevrolet Impalas recently, but they still have some of their more ancient CVPI's and Caprices out there that have more than 250,000 miles on them. Funny principle, considering they moved away from using Fords while suing them after one of their officers got killed in a rear-ending collision that caused the car to blow up. The old equipment needs to go away, even if it's just for the principle. The helicopters they have are the same ones they had back in 1973. They also still have that mainframe they installed in 1969 with modern terminals hooked up to it. The officers are allowed to purchase their own (!) AR-15's. The city needs to foot the bill for that. Don't tell somebody "we realize you need this equipment, but you're going to have to spend your own $3,500 on it".

Getting back to security's role in this, however. A good proactive security officer should be able to keep the number of 911 calls down by conducting duties that directly prevent crime and quell disturbances. Saying that seems like a simple thing. You know, be a good visual deterrance, etc. - wrong. There are very specific skills one would have to be trained in to be able to effectively do this without having to call the police each and every time something happens out there. To train in all of them effectively in a certified fashion, there would be several hundred training hours included. That simply doesn't happen here. However, I can break them down distinctly.

1) Appearance - the wear and upkeep of the uniform, hygiene, posture, and the things that create your command presence.

2) Interpersonal skills - this is one of the most highly underrated skills out there. In a proactive sense, the officer would contact as many people as possible on the property at any given time. This is usually done through brief socializing and it seems simple, but when you get to where you can read each person you can tell if there's a problem that needs addressing. If not, that person may well come back to you when there is a problem because you've gained that person's trust. It also adds to your command presence. Most people won't even know you're there if you don't speak to them.

3) Verbal Judo - this is also part of interpersonal skills, but it involves the art of mediation. This is difficult at times because people will do whatever they can to push your buttons and make you lose your temper. There's a course for this. Take it if you can. People I work with who are good in this area can successfully work things like domestic disturbances and get one or both parties to either leave or come to a compromise.

4) Officer Safety - a good officer safety curriculum and defensive tactics program is one of the most lacking things I see out there. Often when a security guard gets into a physical incident he is not proficient and gets into a severe brawl or shooting or the suspect overcomes him and takes his weapon, beats him, or simply gets away. This is important whether you're armed or not. Many people who have gotten hurt doing this job could have avoided the consequences if they were aware of the prevention. Also, if you do carry weapons, practice with them all the time. It is rather embarrassing to see somebody get hurt because he had trouble pulling his asp out of the scabbard in time or had it taken away from him.

5) Legal Scope of Authority - study each aspect of what authority the state gives you and denies you. In the case of Texas, you have the authority to mediate, to give notice to leave, and to arrest for felony, offense against peace, and theft. Weigh out the safety issues and legal issues before you decide to approach and then decide whether it's more worth your time to have someone just leave the property or to arrest. Don't bite off more than you can chew.

Some things can be dealt with by removal. On more than one occasion when I caught someone with drugs I simply took the drugs from them, had them leave, then destroyed the drugs. The same applies to hookers or bums on the property. Most of those people will gladly leave since they don't want police called on them. Problem solved for the property and no additional backlog made to the list of 911 calls.

Remember though, the act of making someone leave is an act of force even though you may have just done it verbally. Once you commit to that force, your opponent can escalate it since that person's focus is on you. Retreat becomes much less of an option, especially if you're a guard on foot.

I am more apt to arrest somebody if they are committing a violent offense toward the person I am there to protect, like the one at the plasma donation center described in the initial topic. If that is the case, that person gets hooked up first. When acting alone, the model of control-search-cuff-arrest isn't very plausible since people can turn on you. A more practical idea to work on is cuff-search-arrest. The person is already out of control, so gaining that through intimidation normally doesn't work.

6) Effective Patrol - you can keep most problems under the lid by constantly moving around on the property. The idea of sitting in your car or standing around at a door for 30 minutes or so and then "making rounds" is pretty mechanical and does not accomplish constant deterrance. Tiring as it may be, keep moving the whole time. Don't vegetate and try not to move in the same pattern all the time.

7) Documentation - every detail of an incident should be written. Audio and video documentation is also a great thing, but the good old incident report is still the staple of security work. Some say if you didn't write it down, it didn't happen. That is only half true. If you didn't write it down, you falsified documents and can be sued like hell, fired, or even brought up on charges. Anything you write may also be sequestered in court.

Basically with all that said, the only time I really feel I should call the police is if we have someone in handcuffs who needs to go to jail. If there wasn't the issue of being charged $200 cash per prisoner and other difficulties with the local and county jails, I would be able to forego that as well and transport an arrestee to jail since the state law does allow for it.

This model of doing things doesn't always work since some incidents require more than one security officer to resolve because of issues with safety and/or accountability and you may not have backup available. There are a few times recently I did call the police to check on things I normally would, such as an open door on a large expensive residence where an alarm was going off, but that was because no cover of my own was available at the time. An increase of our own patrol forces would solve that.

[1stWatch]

I had the privilege of speaking with someone who worked with this security officer before. It turns out he did have training in defensive tactics and was a certified personal protection officer (bodyguard with concealed handgun license) and a bail enforcement agent. He was used to dealing with force. The idea remains though, there were some tactical mistakes made that got him shot. I also have no idea what was said between the two.

[Mr. Security]

Good points 1st watch. I agree. :) Working for WBS does have its drawbacks. However, my post is not open to the public and it's easy for me to control who gets in. My doors are locked 24/7 and if someone who doesn't belong requests access, I can tell them to leave w/o much of a problem.

When trespassers are on site, I make a judgment call about whether or not I should simply approach them and kindly ask them to leave or maintain a safe distance and give the same direction with a bullhorn. Under no circumstances do I approach anyone at night, since I cannot discern what I may be dealing with and I am unarmed. I use a spotlight and my bullhorn in such a situation.

Basically, the only time I can't handle a problem at this site is when an intruder actually breaches a locked exit door and gains access to the building. My CCTV and security systems would alert me to this instantly. Its never happened, but I know what to do if it does.

[1stWatch]

Yes, indoor security is a bit different than what I was envisioning with the general public in high crime areas.

[Bill Warnock]

1st Watch, you have presented a common sense tutorial that should impress all of us in a favorable manner. Clear and concise are the bywords that should be a guide for us. Thank you.
Enjoy the day,
Bill