Thread: Security Guard tossers

I did participate once with some other patrol officers at a clients premises where they took their meal break. 1st thing they did was this ritual of pulling their revolvers and sitting on the table, Then the gun fiddling started, each checking out the others ones piece ( Fire arms I meant). I love the nickle plating on your colt, Yeah I like the Pachmayer rubber grips on your SW.
I love the target sights on yours. do you find the snub nose not as accurate. Nah wouldn't have a .38, I like the stopping power of the .357 .
I never had lunch with that lot again. It wasn't my scene

Originally Posted by Roverlord off road spares

A sedan with checker boarding on the panels, the roof rack with the light rack of LED flashing YELLOW Lights ( look every body I'm a wanna be cop)

That's a bit harsh. Who's to know if he has any say over the look or style of the vehicle he drives?

As for the flippant 'wanna be cop' line - I know a few guys and girls that were guards, and are now excellent police officers. And on the other side I've never met a guard who wanted to be a cop; but plenty who used to be one

Originally Posted by Roverlord off road spares

The gut gets out, the leg holster with the glock, the bat belt, ammo pouch, the flack jacket with PATROL written on the back,the badges, the Dark wrap- a-round glasses came on as he got out of the car, but before he could enter the servo, on came the special leather gloves. This guy had more stuff on than our police a or our protective service officers.

Have you looked at what the police carry these days? Sounds like the same to me. I'd hazard a guess that as a professional armed guard that either he, or his employer, has deemed that if it's good for the cops to wear, then it's good for them too.

So overall, did he do anything that was unprofessional or detracted from the image of his employer? or is your rant just jealousy?

Originally Posted by Roverlord off road spares

I did participate once with some other patrol officers at a clients premises where they took their meal break. 1st thing they did was this ritual of pulling their revolvers and sitting on the table, Then the gun fiddling started, each checking out the others ones piece ( Fire arms I meant). I love the nickle plating on your colt, Yeah I like the Pachmayer rubber grips on your SW.
I love the target sights on yours. do you find the snub nose not as accurate. Nah wouldn't have a .38, I like the stopping power of the .357 .
I never had lunch with that lot again. It wasn't my scene

???

Don't get me started on airport security, and the glee many have in their eye when they pull me aside (with me in full uniform and airside ID clearly visible) for a check whilst letting all and sundry past unhindered.

I have been involved with the security industry for the last 23 + years.

Originally, I started as a guard, and then moved onto patrols, and then moved again into the alarms side.

I used to carry a fair bit of crap on my belt. We had no say in the firearms, they were issued to us at the start of the shift, and returned at the end. The only reason I carried a firearm, was that as part of my duties, I had to do a cash escort, and the client required the escort be armed.

However, I did carry a Maglite, handcuffs & had a baton in the car. Imagine this... you are on patrols, it is 2am, and you come across a door that has been forced open. Easy... call for backup & watch & observe until someone else arrives.

However, what if you went in a different way to the bad guys, and had no idea they were in there? The first thing you see of them, is them using a large carving knife to pry open the till. Suddenly, and without thinking, the torch is in my left hand, and the right has dropped to my waist. There was a counter between us, and as long as he didn't jump it with the knife in his hand, everyone would probably see the sun-rise.

Good thing for both of us, he dropped the knife & bolted out the door. He was using it as a tool, and not a weapon. If he had chosen the latter, I am really hoping my training would have kicked in, however, 3 rounds of 9mm parabellum, centre of mass, is not going to lead to a happy ending for anyone.

I have a stack of stories, most of which my family has never heard for obvious reasons...

Now, lets tackle some of the other issues that have come up so far...

Yes, there are some patrol companies that have their cars blinged up like quasi police cars. They are well know throughout the industry, and are thought about in a similar vein to what has already been mentioned here. However, don't tar them all with the same brush. Again, client requirments come into it a fair bit. If you had to make a vehicle or 3 look like that to satisfy the conditions of a contract worth several hundred, thousand dollars per year, wouldn't you?

As for training, and the apparent ease of getting a licence. Please, spare me. If you have not applied for a security licence in the last 5 years, then you may be surprised. Every state now requires all applicants to submit to finger-printing. Thats fine with me, and now all bar 2 states have a copy of my finger prints on file.

Some states require a stack of additional information. Yes you have to have passed the course. However, in Victoria for example, you also have to provide 2 character references. These references MUST be from a select group of people, and they must have known you personally for a minimum period. Sounds easy? I just had one guy that transferred from Queensland to Victoria, but because he didn't know anyone that fitted the criteria, he had great difficulty getting his licence.

In SA, your security licence is linked to everything else you do. If I am CHARGED with an offence under the Crimes Act, then my licence will be suspended. If I am found guilty, then it will be revoked. No grey area's here.

Like others here, I have never met anyone that was doing security work because they failed to get into police. Thats like saying "Oh, I am a nurse cause I didn't make the grade to be a doctor". Or, "I am a first aid attendant, but I really wanted to be a brain surgeon"

Yes, there are rogues, wannabees, and attention seekers in the industry. They are known, and are slowly being squeezed out. There are also "parking attendants" that wear the same, or a very similar, uniform to licenced security guards.

The industry is tightly regulated by state governments. Try doing business in each state, with NO mutual recognicion in place. Makes it hard.

Yes, the RTO's are pumping out a large number of students at alarming rates. Yes, in some cases it is almost, "pay your money, and you will get your licence" However, these are the exception to the rule, and if anyone has information to the contrary, please pass it on.

Yes, I am defensive of the industry. Yes, I know there are problems. But, for the main part, it is a good industry with only minimal issues. I have had run-in's with over zealous guards at times. I have the advantage that I know as much, or a little bit more, than they do.

These days, I am on the electronic security side more than the physical. However, next time you go to an ATM, just think for a second, that if it wasn't for a security guard, that ATM would not be there & stocked.

Don't know about you, but walking thru a shopping centre with that much cash doesn't appeal to me much any more....

Well said Basil.

I was in security because I had a skill and the level temperament for it, and needed a job to pay for uni, and then afterwards until I found my feet in my career. Im sure if I had wanted to I could have been a cop, but I never considered that path and certainly didnt take on security because I aspired to be a cop.

Hey guys I didn't mean to offend and get peoples noses out of joint, it wasn't a generalisation, it was the one I observed.
Firstly, police put themselves out their every day into situation unknown.
A security patrol checks buildings, checks gates, enter buildings.
I have entered building in the wee hours of the morning with offenders on site.
But the amount of ammo some of these security guards carry on their belts pouches, I doubt they are going to have a big shoot out American movie style.
There are cowboys in the industry and there are others that are not. Sorry if I offended any of the other.

Originally Posted by Roverlord off road spares

But the amount of ammo some of these security guards carry on their belts pouches, I doubt they are going to have a big shoot out American movie style.

I fail to see the need for them to carry so much ammo, or, for that matter, any extra ammo at all. They are NOT police, and the chances of a normal guard or patrol officer even drawing their firearm, let alone actually using it, is minimal. The odds of them EVER needing to re-load, is even less.

The exception to this, are the guards on the cash trucks. I have seen the cctv footage of a couple of these robberies, and the guard in Melbourne that was killed on duty a few years back, was one of ours. Not a job I would like.

Originally Posted by Roverlord off road spares

There are cowboys in the industry and there are others that are not. Sorry if I offended any of the other.

You are right, and I for one, am not offended. As with a lot of things, it is the rogues and cowboys that bring the attention to themselves.

If ours, and any other industry, can get rid of the bad guys, then everyone would be better off.