NCJ Number
131377
Journal
Security Management Volume: 35 Issue: 7 Dated: (July 1991) Pages: 60-66
Date Published
1991
Length
7 pages
Annotation
Trends show that employment in private security protection is increasing at a higher rate than employment in public law enforcement and will continue to do so despite unfavorable economic forecasts.
Abstract
The growth of commercial and private property has facilitated an ongoing privatization of social orders supervised by various private protectors. This growth is also creating an increase in civil litigation, suggesting a need for increased accountability. Cited cases of negligent security practices come from 22 States, although most have occurred in California, Texas, Florida, and New York. Of 82 cases, 39 occurred on residential property such as condominiums and apartments, 12 in commercial establishments, 9 in parking lots, 5 in restaurant and entertainment establishments, 4 in health care businesses, and 13 in other businesses. Six prominent security issues were present in many of the cases: negligent hiring, negligent training, negligent supervision, inadequate physical security, inadequate human security presence, and history of prior crimes. More than $41 million was awarded to plaintiffs for injuries. Judgments ranged from $40,000 to $5 million, and the average settlement involved $890,000. The two largest awards were jury verdicts in cases involving negligent security practices by apartment owners. To establish a claim for inadequate security, the plaintiff had to prove that the business had a duty or standard of care to protect, that there was a breach of this duty and a failure to exercise care, and that harm was caused by such failure. 2 exhibits