California Security News

Would-be bank robber shot with own gun by bank security

By ABC 7 News

LOS ANGELES -- A man suspected of trying to rob a Wells Fargo bank branch today in downtown Van Nuys was apparently shot with his own gun during a struggle with a security guard and bank patrons.
The attempted bank robbery and shooting was reported at 12:27 p.m. at the bank branch at 6800 Van Nuys Boulevard, within two blocks of the Van Nuys Police Station, said Brian Humphries of the Los Angeles Fire Department.
The suspect entered the bank wearing a disguise of some sort, possibly a mask or a fake mustache and beard, and carrying a semi-automatic weapon, ABC7 reported.
A bank security guard apparently confronted and struggled with the suspect, said Kate Lopez of the Los Angeles Police Department.
"It was a good knockdown fight between the security guard and the suspect," Capt. Jim Miller of the LAPD told the TV station. "On its face it appears that the suspect may have been beginning to gain the upper hand when the customers joined in to assist."
Witnesses said bank customers jumped in to subdue the suspect.
"He grabbed him and took him down and the older lady and those three guys just ran on top of him and choked him and pulled on him," bank customer Juan Gonzalez said.
The suspect was hit by one bullet and the security guard may have been grazed.
It was unclear if the gun went off during the struggle, if the suspect fired or was shot by someone else.
The guard suffered minor injuries, Lopez said. The suspect was hospitalized in unknown condition.

Two guards injured in brawl with Baker prisoners

The Associated Press

BAKER, Calif.—A fight broke out between inmates and guards at a minimum-security prison in the San Bernardino County desert, sending two guards to the hospital with minor injuries, officials said.

The brawl at the Baker Community Correctional Facility occurred about 1 p.m. when a guard tried to handcuff a disruptive inmate and he resisted, said Charles Seigel, a spokesman for Cornell Corrections, the company that operates the prison.

Several other inmates jumped in, prompting authorities to lock down the facility, Seigel said.

The guards were taken to a Las Vegas hospital for treatment.

The prison houses 262 inmates who are typically transferred from other prisons to carry out the last 18 months of their sentences before being paroled, Seigel said. The facility is 155 miles east of Los Angeles.

Happy 4th of July!

Thousands of security guards fail to get state license

By DOUGLAS QUAN, The Press-Enterprise

Tens of thousands of security guards working in California have not complied with state licensing requirements, including going through rigorous criminal background checks, officials say.

Among the biggest violators are guards working in the hospitality industry and at short-term events, such as music festivals and fairs.

Registering with the state is the only way to ensure that guards do not pose a threat to the public, officials say.

"If you're in a uniform, you're in a position of trust," said Rolando Taeza, an enforcement field worker with the state Bureau of Security and Investigative Services, which regulates the industry.

The bureau is trying to improve compliance by conducting random checks at businesses and at venues that employ guards.

One problem is that the Bureau of Security and Investigative Services only has a team of four enforcement workers traveling the state looking for violators. They also do not have the ability to punish violators.

Taeza said the bureau has sent information packets to police agencies, which can cite businesses for not complying with the law.

State Sen. Abel Maldonado, R-Santa Maria, who has been behind much of the state's security guard laws, said Thursday he is considering legislation that would give the bureau more enforcement powers.