AUSTIN (KXAN) — Teghan Hahn, CEO of Wild About Music, is sick of her staff having to deal with repeated shoplifters.
Especially when it escalates.
“They’ve been hit, spit on, scratched,” she said.
Nearby Congress Avenue businesses are seeing similar circumstances. So, at one one point, they all pitched in for a security guard.
“It started out as a good deterrent,” Hahn said. “Then we did we did start to have issues though with them showing up, or with them being overly aggressive or overly passive depending on the guard.”
Ultimately, she said, the group nixed the security company after a few months.
“All we really want to do is create a fun and safe environment for our people to come to work and it’s so hard to not be able to snap our fingers and fix it for them,” Hahn said, adding that they discovered using security guards also presented unexpected liabilities.
That why Glen Bhimani, CEO of San Antonio-based BPS Security, said having properly trained, licensed security guards is imperative.
He didn’t provide security guard’s for Hahn’s case, but explained that in general – security guards don’t have the same privileges police officers do. For example, when it comes to using force, guards have to abide by the same rules everyone else does when it comes to defending people or property.
“We’re allowed to use the minimum force necessary to stop the threat,” he said. “You can be arrested if you’re a security guard, that doesn’t protect us in any way.”
Bhimani said beyond that, rules for security guards vary by company.
“A lot of security companies will terminate an employee for using force. Others will not. It depends on the company and the agreement they have with the client,” he said.
The Austin Police Department said this week it is down 315 police officers. When KXAN last asked about APD’s ability to proactively patrol downtown, a spokesperson said “APD officers patrol Austin areas proactively to deter crime and provide a safe environment for the community we serve and protect based on our available resources.”
This month, the city provided an update on the Safer Sixth Street initiative, a program launched following the June 2021 mass shooting aimed at improving safety downtown.
The latest updates include completed active shooter training for 35 bar owners, managers and staff members.
Upcoming training options include overdose prevention, de-escalation, door staff and by stander intervention.
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