HD11 - Private Security
Executive Summary: Under the Code of Virginia, § 54-729.33, an armed contractual private security guard has the authority to effect an arrest for an offense (not limited to shoplifting offenses) occurring in his presence while on the premises he was contracted to protect or in the presence of a merchant with probable cause to believe the arrestee has committed willful concealment of goods. This broad grant of authority to armed contractual security guards raised concern on the part of industry personnel and the public due to the guards' minimal training. According to the compulsory training standards established by the Criminal Justice Services Board, an armed contractual security guard is required to undergo only 16 hours of training, only 4 of which are in the study of legal authority. The subcommittee recommends that § 54-729.33 be retained in its current form. In addition, the subcommittee recommends that the Virginia State Crime Commission request the Criminal Justice Services Board to reevaluate the firearms training requirements for armed guards. In contrast, unarmed contractual security guards have no arrest authority under the Code of Virginia. Rather, they have only the arrest authority of an ordinary citizen. According to the training standards established by the Criminal Justice Services Board, unarmed contractual security guards must undergo 12 hours of training. This training is identical to that of armed guards absent the 4 hours of firearms training; nevertheless, unarmed guards are without arrest authority. The subcommittee recommends that the Commission refrain from taking official action regarding the arrest authority of unarmed contractual security guards, but continue to monitor the industry to determine whether corrective action proves necessary. |
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