Security Guard shot twice in the chest

[S Messina]

I will be passing this along to everyone I work with since we also patrol mobile home parks and I hope this article will help them avoid complacancy. (Also makes me wish we wore our metal badges with our patrol uniform, we have sewn on patch badges on our bdu's)

"FORT MYERS: A security guard with Allied Protective Services, has been shot twice in the chest at the Page Mobile Home Village.
He saw a suspicious black male hiding in the bushes wearing a black shirt and camouflage pants. He asked the man to show his hands and the man responded by shooting him twice in the chest.
The guard is in good condition, the first bullet hit him in his bullet proof vest and the second bullet hit his badge. He said he was conscious enough to be able to walk back to his car and call the police."

read the entire article at: http://www.nbc-2.com/articles/articl...cleid=8991&z=3

[ACP01]

Good thing he was wearing a vest.
"look for anything but expect nothing" is an old axiom that still applies today.

[N. A. Corbier]

Allied Batron had vests? Were asking people what they were doing instead of calling 911? Woah. Either this guy was grossly in violation of company policy, or these guys hired an off-duty cop and the papers don't know about it.

[Mr. Security]

Allied Batron had vests? Were asking people what they were doing instead of calling 911? Woah. Either this guy was grossly in violation of company policy, or these guys hired an off-duty cop and the papers don't know about it.

Exactly. The company stated that they train their guards to let the police handle such situations. To me, that implies that he is not armed. You DO NOT confront a suspicious looking person and bark out an order to "Let me see your hands!" when you are unarmed. At the most, he should of kept his distance and made his presence known w/ a whistle/light so that he could retreat and call the police if the man pulled out a weapon. Chances are, the guy would have bolted once he realized that he was being observed, as long as he wasn't trapped like an animal.

Of course the company capitalized on the good press because the guard wasn't hurt. If he had been killed, the company would have defended itself by emphasizing that the guard wasn't following procedure.

[LPGuy]

Allied Batron had vests? Were asking people what they were doing instead of calling 911? Woah. Either this guy was grossly in violation of company policy, or these guys hired an off-duty cop and the papers don't know about it.

The security officer works for Allied Protective Services, not Allied-Barton Security. APS sounds like a smaller company. According to the article linked to by the original poster, their officers receive "police training" as well.

[Apolo]

I'm currently un-armed at my site but since we have had a drive by shooting occur (they were aiming at our guard) and had a bus driver who was threatened with a handgun we can wear bullet proof vests if we want. we are an armed company but my post is un-armed (though I can't see why) maybe there is a law against being armed on public transportation ( I'm a uniformed rider on the buses and i patrol the major transfer stations in all 3 cities)

[N. A. Corbier]

The security officer works for Allied Protective Services, not Allied-Barton Security. APS sounds like a smaller company. According to the article linked to by the original poster, their officers receive "police training" as well.

Its Florida, though. Florida law requires that no two companies have "substantially similar" names. I'm very surprised Allied-Barton (Who has operated as Allied Security of Florida) allowed someone to use Allied in their licensed name. All it takes is a call to the Division and someone's B license is going bye-bye.

[1stWatch]

Statement from Wounded Security Guard

Mr. Nicholson gave a statement to an interviewer in which he described the circumstances of what happened.

http://www.nbc-2.com/articles/readarticle.asp?articleid=9047&z=3&p=

[N. A. Corbier]

Every warm body security manager reading that is reconsidering hiring prior military (with Iraq or Afghanistan combat experience) right now. He took fire, and completely forgot his "observe and report security guard" "training" and went straight to close quarters combat tactics - close the gap, engage the enemy, defeat the enemy.

Good for him for remembering his military tactical training. Bad for him that he wasn't armed.

[1stWatch]

Every warm body security manager reading that is reconsidering hiring prior military (with Iraq or Afghanistan combat experience) right now. He took fire, and completely forgot his "observe and report security guard" "training" and went straight to close quarters combat tactics - close the gap, engage the enemy, defeat the enemy.

Good for him for remembering his military tactical training. Bad for him that he wasn't armed.

Yes, the training certainly paid off, but it didn't say whether or not he was armed.

[N. A. Corbier]

Yes, the training certainly paid off, but it didn't say whether or not he was armed.

He worked for Allied Barton (Under Allied Security), since they're the only licensed company with the use of the name Allied. (Allied-Barton uses the Allied brand in Florida, and has for many years.) There is no "Allied Protective" in the State of Florida, so if he truly works for them, the state wants to know about it.

Kevin A. Nicholson might of been armed. He holds a Class D license, a Class G license, and a Class CC (Private Investigator Intern) license. However, I can't realistically see Allied-Barton using armed security in a mobile home park.

[LPGuy]

He worked for Allied Barton (Under Allied Security), since they're the only licensed company with the use of the name Allied. (Allied-Barton uses the Allied brand in Florida, and has for many years.) There is no "Allied Protective" in the State of Florida, so if he truly works for them, the state wants to know about it.

Kevin A. Nicholson might of been armed. He holds a Class D license, a Class G license, and a Class CC (Private Investigator Intern) license. However, I can't realistically see Allied-Barton using armed security in a mobile home park.

If that's so, then I may have been wrong. Having worked as an unarmed uniformed security officer with Allied Security (right before they became Allied-Barton Security), I can tell you, however, that they are a strictly unarmed security company. The company would not let me carry even so much as my own personal canister of OC spray while on the job.

I'd be very surprised to hear that they were issuing vests to their officers, or even accepting contracts where they felt vests would be needed. That doesn't sound like the company I worked for. And I certainly didn't receive "police training," as the news report described, only "Security Officer Basic Training" and your typical OJT.

Then again, maybe their regional divisions operate differently, perhaps...

[LPGuy]

Browsing around on the Internet, though, I consistently see Florida positions with "Allied-Barton Security Services," which all point back to their King of Prussia, PA address, and then references to both "Allied Protection Services" and "Allied Protective Services," which are associated with various Florida-based addresses.

[N. A. Corbier]

The State of Florida has no company licensed as Allied Protective. Keep in mind, Florida law rules that "Allied Protective" and "Allied Protection" are the same company - they will not issue licenses to "deceptively similar" corporation names. Your corporation name is approved via the state license.

They may point to the PA address, but in Florida, you MUST have a physical location for your primary state licensee (B license), and a physical location for each branch license of that licensee. Allied actually gets a distinct B license and names their companies:

Allied-Barton Security
Allied Security Services (Orlando), LLC
Allied Security (Fort Lauderdale), LLC

There is no company called "Allied Protective" or "Allied Protection" licensed in the State of Florida. As I said. If someone is operating a company that isn't a DBA of Allied Security of Whatever, the state really wants to know about it.

[LPGuy]

Could be the reporter just got the company's name wrong then.

I got the Allied Protection/Protective references from online yellow pages, though.