Church Fire Crisis Facts

5 Signs of a Possible Predator

Avoid This Tool for Church Security

Church Usher Pistol-Whipped

Report Writing for Church Security Teams

Top Church Security Trends to Watch in 2023:  Expert Analysis

BB Gun in Church //  Did They Over React?

Suicidal Man Shot at Vista Church

What do we tell the congregation about our security plans?

2 Church Stabbings Since Easter

The Church Security Answer Man discusses current violence trends, security issues and safety ideas with a goal to improve the stable operation of our churches and ministries.  Show topics include relative incidents which occur or have occurred, ways to improve safety and security as well as ways that we can train our staff and volunteers and preplan for unfortunate incidents.

This is one of my favorite  podcasts. So much useful information always right on target.
I am part of my Church security team and find all Cpt Joe&#39;s information very useful.
Thank you Sir for all your hard work.
God Bless
John Mitchell

Great podcast very  informative

Church Security Answer Man

The Top 10 Safety and Security Issues We should be prepared for in our Ministries.         Medical Emergencies  Trip and fall – heart attack – loss of consciousness      Disorderly Conduct or Service Interruptions     Domestic Related Issues (Custody or Disputes)     Restraining Order Violations  (No Contact Orders)     Issues in the Parking Lot or Around Perimeter     (Vandalism, Attack, Abduction, Arson)     Natural Disaster  (Earthquake)(Power Outage)     Child Abuse / Child Abduction     Members Attacked  (Arriving or Departing)     Violent Intruder / Active Shooter

The Top 10 Safety and Security Issues We should be prepared for in our Ministries. Medical Emergencies Trip and fall – heart attack – loss of consciousness Disorderly Conduct or Service Interruptions Domestic Related Issues (Custody or Disputes) Restraining Order Violations  (No Contact Orders) Issues in the Parking Lot or Around Perimeter   (Vandalism, Attack, Abduction, Arson) Natural Disaster  (Earthquake)(Power Outage) Child Abuse / Child Abduction Members Attacked  (Arriving or Departing) Violent Intruder / Active Shooter

Episode 003: The Top 10 Safety and Security Issues at Church

We can remove disruptive people.  Churches are private property, open to the public. You can restrict or revoke a persons access to your property We can remove disruptive people - Preferring Screening people at the door and keeping them out is preferred We should train greeters and ushers to spot potential problems We should train in good communication skills We should try to avoid physical confrontation Don't be afraid to call 911 and get police responding Police are trained to deal with difficult people and these situations If a person interrupts our service - I believe we should press charges Don't be afraid, the law is on your side, that you can ask them to leave

We can remove disruptive people. <ul> <li>Churches are private property, open to the public.</li> <li>You can restrict or revoke a persons access to your property</li> <li>We can remove disruptive people - Preferring</li> <li>Screening people at the door and keeping them out is preferred</li> <li>We should train greeters and ushers to spot potential problems</li> <li>We should train in good communication skills</li> <li>We should try to avoid physical confrontation</li> <li>Don't be afraid to call 911 and get police responding</li> <li>Police are trained to deal with difficult people and these situations</li> <li>If a person interrupts our service - I believe we should press charges</li> <li>Don't be afraid, the law is on your side, that you can ask them to leave</li></ul>

Season 2, Episode 1: Can We Remove Disruptive People?

#1 Risk Assessments and Security Evaluations Internal risks involve threats that exist inside the institution’s campus or building. External risks are those that stem from the site’s physical location.     #2 Harden the Target   A strengthening of the security of an individual premise with the goal of reducing or minimizing potential criminal attack, risks, or vulnerabilities.   #3 Protecting Financial Assets                                                                   Financial threats to a house of worship include the crimes of robbery, embezzlement, theft, and fraud.   #4 is Protecting our Children and Youth  Every Ministry should operate within policies and procedures that balance the mission of the ministry with the inherent risks associated with children’s programming  #5  A Media Strategy or a Reputation Strategy  No discussion of crisis response would be complete without addressing the need to be prepared to respond to inquiries from the media and the public. A “no comment” response is not considered a response; it is a dodge

#1 Risk Assessments and Security Evaluations Internal risks involve threats that exist inside the institution’s campus or building. External risks are those that stem from the site’s physical location. #2 Harden the Target A strengthening of the security of an individual premise with the goal of reducing or minimizing potential criminal attack, risks, or vulnerabilities. #3 Protecting Financial Assets                                                                 Financial threats to a house of worship include the crimes of robbery, embezzlement, theft, and fraud. #4 is Protecting our Children and Youth Every Ministry should operate within policies and procedures that balance the mission of the ministry with the inherent risks associated with children’s programming #5  A Media Strategy or a Reputation Strategy No discussion of crisis response would be complete without addressing the need to be prepared to respond to inquiries from the media and the public. A “no comment” response is not considered a response; it is a dodge

Episode 016: Five Important Security Strategies for Ministries to Consider

What should we focus on after the Texas Church shooting?

What should we focus on after the Texas Church shooting?

SE 4, Ep 1: What Do We Do Now

So how should we be preparing to use our concealed weapons……one of the first things I tend to note with people is often times we don’t want to talk about how much we practice with our firearms.  When is the last time you have practiced with your firearm?   Or how about the folks that you consider to be part of your security team……or the ones you are thinking about making part of your team…..we all carry these firearms and when are we actually practicing with them?   What scares me is when I hear some pastors say that they know people carry concealed weapons in the congregation and those people will take care of anyone who comes into the church shooting. Now here is what I want us all to consider, whether you are the one carrying a concealed weapon, or you are the one asking people to carry a concealed weapon or you are the ministry leader who says my congregation has concealed weapons and will take care of it if something goes wrong…….think about this for a minute with me…..when something goes wrong how easy is it to use that weapon?  How easy is it….. when someone is firing their weapon at me or other in church to duck to find cover, reposition myself to get my gun out of the holster or concealed carry location, draw it and fire it……as my stress and nerves are taking control?      Think about that……if you have to use your weapon to defend yourself, it is not like being at the gun range…..no one is going to say OK put on your eye protection and your hearing protection and now are you ready?   OK begin firing………no this is shock and overwhelming rush of emotions….coupled with indecision and disbelief……     Let me apply some statistics to this for you to prove my point……many years ago The Police Policy Studies Council looked at 29 police shootings at one agency (and I will leave them anonymous because this is not about the agency….it is about the use of firearms in the heat of battle).   These 29 police involved shootings occurred over a 4 year period….by the way this study was done to propose the officers needed more training ……..   In this study it was determined that the police fire a total of 186 shots total in these 29 officer involved shootings.   Their hit ratio?  Of the total rounds fired they hit the intended person 112 times…….so you do the math that means they missed 40 percent of the time…..so the point I want to make with this is that police officers train often with their weapons, many agencies require officers to shoot a 90 or 100 percent hit measurement in practice 3 or 4 times a year… some of the agencies also have practice time dealing with holster systems and then shoot don’t shoot decision making drills or discussions.   That means these officers might be thinking about weapons use and or practicing as much as 6 or 8 times a year at a minimum for up to 40 hours total time per year…..and what is there accuracy rate?     So now you are carrying your concealed weapon around with you and your have not practiced in 3 years…..you have not shot your weapon, you have not practiced drawing your weapon and you have not practiced or even thought about doing those two things while you are trying to fall to the ground or take cover, practicing while on the move?  What is your accuracy rate going to be?    I am guessing if the police training 40 hours per year 6 to 8 time during the year and have a miss rate of 40 percent…what might our miss rate be……I am afraid we might not even be able to get our weapons out of the concealed holster on our belts or in our purses….and if we do get the weapon out during all the chaos ….we might have a 100 percent miss rate when we do fire……   So the next question is where are your bullets going when they miss there intended target?   Think about that for a minute….again we are not on the gun range where they go down range and into a pile of dirt or sand trap when we miss……those are what we call in law enforcement……million dollar rounds when we are firing our guns and missing our target in the middle of a crowd……those misses might hit innocent people and it is very costly…..money cost…..but also emotional costs and I do not want that for you or for your ministry.   So practice is important…..we need to practice drawing our firearm…..which we can do once it is safely unloaded in our bedroom, shop or other private and safe location.  Practice, Practice, Practice……draw…successfully practicing drawing that weapon 5000 times might improve your ability to draw it under the pressure of an actual shooting incident.   It becomes easier and just natural when you practice drawing your weapon that many times……then it is just second nature for you.   When we practice drawing, we might want to simulate how we might be drawing it …….if we are practicing for church are you seated?   Probably a good chance…or are you standing?   So simulating what we think the situation would be is a great way to practice…..real world simulation meaning we trying to think of the dynamics of what will happen if a violent shooting incident happens…..I am going to move for cover, I am going to draw my firearm and then I might use it.    Practicing the mechanics of drawing, moving and firing……is what our goal should be…..and practice in a safe manner.

So how should we be preparing to use our concealed weapons……one of the first things I tend to note with people is often times we don’t want to talk about how much we practice with our firearms.  When is the last time you have practiced with your firearm?   Or how about the folks that you consider to be part of your security team……or the ones you are thinking about making part of your team…..we all carry these firearms and when are we actually practicing with them?   What scares me is when I hear some pastors say that they know people carry concealed weapons in the congregation and those people will take care of anyone who comes into the church shooting. Now here is what I want us all to consider, whether you are the one carrying a concealed weapon, or you are the one asking people to carry a concealed weapon or you are the ministry leader who says my congregation has concealed weapons and will take care of it if something goes wrong…….think about this for a minute with me…..when something goes wrong how easy is it to use that weapon?  How easy is it….. when someone is firing their weapon at me or other in church to duck to find cover, reposition myself to get my gun out of the holster or concealed carry location, draw it and fire it……as my stress and nerves are taking control? Think about that……if you have to use your weapon to defend yourself, it is not like being at the gun range…..no one is going to say OK put on your eye protection and your hearing protection and now are you ready?   OK begin firing………no this is shock and overwhelming rush of emotions….coupled with indecision and disbelief…… Let me apply some statistics to this for you to prove my point……many years ago The Police Policy Studies Council looked at 29 police shootings at one agency (and I will leave them anonymous because this is not about the agency….it is about the use of firearms in the heat of battle).   These 29 police involved shootings occurred over a 4 year period….by the way this study was done to propose the officers needed more training ……..   In this study it was determined that the police fire a total of 186 shots total in these 29 officer involved shootings.   Their hit ratio?  Of the total rounds fired they hit the intended person 112 times…….so you do the math that means they missed 40 percent of the time…..so the point I want to make with this is that police officers train often with their weapons, many agencies require officers to shoot a 90 or 100 percent hit measurement in practice 3 or 4 times a year… some of the agencies also have practice time dealing with holster systems and then shoot don’t shoot decision making drills or discussions.   That means these officers might be thinking about weapons use and or practicing as much as 6 or 8 times a year at a minimum for up to 40 hours total time per year…..and what is there accuracy rate?  So now you are carrying your concealed weapon around with you and your have not practiced in 3 years…..you have not shot your weapon, you have not practiced drawing your weapon and you have not practiced or even thought about doing those two things while you are trying to fall to the ground or take cover, practicing while on the move?  What is your accuracy rate going to be?    I am guessing if the police training 40 hours per year 6 to 8 time during the year and have a miss rate of 40 percent…what might our miss rate be……I am afraid we might not even be able to get our weapons out of the concealed holster on our belts or in our purses….and if we do get the weapon out during all the chaos ….we might have a 100 percent miss rate when we do fire…… So the next question is where are your bullets going when they miss there intended target?   Think about that for a minute….again we are not on the gun range where they go down range and into a pile of dirt or sand trap when we miss……those are what we call in law enforcement……million dollar rounds when we are firing our guns and missing our target in the middle of a crowd……those misses might hit innocent people and it is very costly…..money cost…..but also emotional costs and I do not want that for you or for your ministry. So practice is important…..we need to practice drawing our firearm…..which we can do once it is safely unloaded in our bedroom, shop or other private and safe location.  Practice, Practice, Practice……draw…successfully practicing drawing that weapon 5000 times might improve your ability to draw it under the pressure of an actual shooting incident.   It becomes easier and just natural when you practice drawing your weapon that many times……then it is just second nature for you. When we practice drawing, we might want to simulate how we might be drawing it …….if we are practicing for church are you seated?   Probably a good chance…or are you standing?   So simulating what we think the situation would be is a great way to practice…..real world simulation meaning we trying to think of the dynamics of what will happen if a violent shooting incident happens…..I am going to move for cover, I am going to draw my firearm and then I might use it.    Practicing the mechanics of drawing, moving and firing……is what our goal should be…..and practice in a safe manner.

Episode 010: Concealed Weapons Practice and Considerations

So I always want to start out these type of discussions reminding us about balance.  We have to have balance between a safe and secure environment for our people, families and ministry staff and a friendly and welcoming environment.  So you may have a ministry leader that talks about being “low key” on security or a leader who talks about scaring off people with too much of a security presence.   I want to say that even though I am very big on the idea of needing some security for our ministries, I am a definite supporter of balance.  When I train church security personnel in seminars I always mention that fact that I think for most churches, security should be a plain clothes team that is not detected, trained as much as they can, with a solid plan of operation.  Having a solid operation is key in my mind.  What I mean by that is that I challenge myself and my team often enough that when something happens I handle it or we handle it.   If someone stands up and interrupts the ministry service, you or your team get up from your positions, walk forward, ask the person in a solid voice and speech rate to go with you outside, and you then escort them out.  It happens and it happens right now and the process flows just like you practiced in your mind or in your team meeting.  And while you are going through this process to restore order, you do it with the least amount of distraction as possible, remembering that there are families and children watching you. That is a solid operation. As an usher or greeter you are very valuable to the security plan in a ministry.  You tend to know what is going on.   You especially know who generally attends church and how do most people conduct themselves.  So you can spot a suspicious person or a suspicious circumstance very quickly, in fact quicker than most everyone else including ministry leaders. The next issue is what is your plan or what would the rest of the ministry team like you to do if you do spot something suspicious or someone who is acting suspicious?     So within the ministry are you just eyes and ears, so are you going to notify someone or are you now going to begin to deal with this issue?   If it is a suspicious person, are you going to intentionally meet and greet them and begin to ask them questions?   I would certainly recommend that if you are asked to handle something like a suspicious person, that we do go up and speak to them like anyone else.   We are friendly, maybe we offer them coffee or water, if that is what we do for others, then ask them if this is their first time….and so on with the questions.  Get to know them a bit and determine if your thinking they are suspicious is correct by how they respond to your normal questions, or if they are just fine.   If they are suspicious, and you continue to be concerned about them entering the service, then how are you going to deal with that.  Ask them to sit to the side of the lobby and you are going to get someone to speak with them?  Or what else might you do or your ministry leaders want you to do? That idea of what are you going to do as an usher or greeter if you see someone suspicious is an important question to answer ahead of time.   If you are the leader of the usher team or greeter team, it is important that you give direction when it comes to security direction.  What do you want them to do in many different circumstances.    As a member or a leader of the team, challenge them with recent articles or stories about what has happened in churches and how the ushers reacted.   For instance if I was in charge of the ushers or greeters or I was filling one of those rolls, I would want to challenge us with discussion of a recent event.   On the church security facebook page on May 20, 2014 we listed a news story about a man who robbed the church offering from a couple of ushers as they walked the money bags to the office.   They eventually chased the guy down and got the money back…..    This would be a great discussion to have with the ushers and or greeters.   First, how might we handle the offering differently ?  Do we have 2 or 3 ushers walk the money to the office?   Then we challenge everyone on the team and as the leader we give them direction on how we want the money handled and then what we want them to do if someone tries to rob them.   Certainly giving them your thoughts on if the person has a gun or is unarmed, what do you want them to do.   And I hope your discussion talks about letting the money go in either case, but especially in the case of someone having a weapon.     This thinking ahead of time or talking to your team is invaluable should this situation actually happen. So realistically the primary role of an usher or greeter should be to observe, make an assessment of the situation you see and then get assistance or take action.    To do this we need to be aware, alert and ready to get someone to handle this or help us deal with the situation. Next there is another area that Ushers and Greeters can help with and that is what we might call intel or information.   You might be more in touch with the members or congregation than other in the ministry.   So part of that intel or information gathering might be knowing or hearing about family conflict, spouses that are having turmoil outside of church.  You might also know about complaints former members or current members have about the church or people within the church.   You may also know about people who have been kicked out of the church.  You might also be aware of recent divorces or separations or child custody battles between spouse and/or church members.    You might also become aware of people having stalkers, or people having health issues that may make them violent at times.   When you become aware of this information you might share this with the rest of your team, or if you see these people that are going through difficulties arriving to the church or ministry location you might alert the rest of the team. If your ministry has a security team, alert them of the issue with this person or persons and their arrival. It would not hurt also to speak as a team of how you might operate as a team.   Who or when might it be a good time to walk through the parking lots. If a problem happens in church who will warn people, who will call 911 and who will lock doors to keep the bad person out or escort people to safety?    All of these thing are topics I believe we should be discussing on a monthly basis at a minimum. The last thing I want to talk about is where do we position people.  If you have 3 or 4 ushers or greeters, obviously we are going to have them near the ministry entrance.  But then what do we do with them.  Do a few of them go to sit with their familes?  Then do we ask a couple of them to be observers and greet late people?   If we do have them stay, what are good locations for them to be at.   Where they can see people entering the church and maybe see what is going on inside the church or outside in the parking lot.  What are your anticipated issues that day or that month? Remember this security concept is really based on preplanning, thinking about things ahead of time and defining roles.   It is most important if you are a leader of the ushers or greeters that you tell them What you would like them to do in the event of these different emergencies or issues and then discuss them every so often to refresh in everyones minds what we should do.  Remember when something happens as in a crisis or emergency, most of the time our brains are going to freeze for a moment and then begin to react.   So it is important to discuss options and preplan so that when our brain comes out of the shock or freeze, we can begin to react quickly and do what we were trained to do or talked about doing.

So I always want to start out these type of discussions reminding us about balance.  We have to have balance between a safe and secure environment for our people, families and ministry staff and a friendly and welcoming environment.  So you may have a ministry leader that talks about being “low key” on security or a leader who talks about scaring off people with too much of a security presence.   I want to say that even though I am very big on the idea of needing some security for our ministries, I am a definite supporter of balance.  When I train church security personnel in seminars I always mention that fact that I think for most churches, security should be a plain clothes team that is not detected, trained as much as they can, with a solid plan of operation.  Having a solid operation is key in my mind.  What I mean by that is that I challenge myself and my team often enough that when something happens I handle it or we handle it.   If someone stands up and interrupts the ministry service, you or your team get up from your positions, walk forward, ask the person in a solid voice and speech rate to go with you outside, and you then escort them out.  It happens and it happens right now and the process flows just like you practiced in your mind or in your team meeting.  And while you are going through this process to restore order, you do it with the least amount of distraction as possible, remembering that there are families and children watching you. That is a solid operation. As an usher or greeter you are very valuable to the security plan in a ministry.  You tend to know what is going on.   You especially know who generally attends church and how do most people conduct themselves.  So you can spot a suspicious person or a suspicious circumstance very quickly, in fact quicker than most everyone else including ministry leaders. The next issue is what is your plan or what would the rest of the ministry team like you to do if you do spot something suspicious or someone who is acting suspicious?     So within the ministry are you just eyes and ears, so are you going to notify someone or are you now going to begin to deal with this issue?   If it is a suspicious person, are you going to intentionally meet and greet them and begin to ask them questions?   I would certainly recommend that if you are asked to handle something like a suspicious person, that we do go up and speak to them like anyone else.   We are friendly, maybe we offer them coffee or water, if that is what we do for others, then ask them if this is their first time….and so on with the questions.  Get to know them a bit and determine if your thinking they are suspicious is correct by how they respond to your normal questions, or if they are just fine.   If they are suspicious, and you continue to be concerned about them entering the service, then how are you going to deal with that.  Ask them to sit to the side of the lobby and you are going to get someone to speak with them?  Or what else might you do or your ministry leaders want you to do? That idea of what are you going to do as an usher or greeter if you see someone suspicious is an important question to answer ahead of time.   If you are the leader of the usher team or greeter team, it is important that you give direction when it comes to security direction.  What do you want them to do in many different circumstances.    As a member or a leader of the team, challenge them with recent articles or stories about what has happened in churches and how the ushers reacted.   For instance if I was in charge of the ushers or greeters or I was filling one of those rolls, I would want to challenge us with discussion of a recent event.   On the church security facebook page on May 20, 2014 we listed a news story about a man who robbed the church offering from a couple of ushers as they walked the money bags to the office.   They eventually chased the guy down and got the money back…..    This would be a great discussion to have with the ushers and or greeters.   First, how might we handle the offering differently ?  Do we have 2 or 3 ushers walk the money to the office?   Then we challenge everyone on the team and as the leader we give them direction on how we want the money handled and then what we want them to do if someone tries to rob them.   Certainly giving them your thoughts on if the person has a gun or is unarmed, what do you want them to do.   And I hope your discussion talks about letting the money go in either case, but especially in the case of someone having a weapon.     This thinking ahead of time or talking to your team is invaluable should this situation actually happen. So realistically the primary role of an usher or greeter should be to observe, make an assessment of the situation you see and then get assistance or take action.    To do this we need to be aware, alert and ready to get someone to handle this or help us deal with the situation. Next there is another area that Ushers and Greeters can help with and that is what we might call intel or information.   You might be more in touch with the members or congregation than other in the ministry.   So part of that intel or information gathering might be knowing or hearing about family conflict, spouses that are having turmoil outside of church.  You might also know about complaints former members or current members have about the church or people within the church.   You may also know about people who have been kicked out of the church.  You might also be aware of recent divorces or separations or child custody battles between spouse and/or church members.    You might also become aware of people having stalkers, or people having health issues that may make them violent at times.  When you become aware of this information you might share this with the rest of your team, or if you see these people that are going through difficulties arriving to the church or ministry location you might alert the rest of the team. If your ministry has a security team, alert them of the issue with this person or persons and their arrival. It would not hurt also to speak as a team of how you might operate as a team.   Who or when might it be a good time to walk through the parking lots. If a problem happens in church who will warn people, who will call 911 and who will lock doors to keep the bad person out or escort people to safety?    All of these thing are topics I believe we should be discussing on a monthly basis at a minimum. The last thing I want to talk about is where do we position people.  If you have 3 or 4 ushers or greeters, obviously we are going to have them near the ministry entrance.  But then what do we do with them.  Do a few of them go to sit with their familes?  Then do we ask a couple of them to be observers and greet late people?   If we do have them stay, what are good locations for them to be at.   Where they can see people entering the church and maybe see what is going on inside the church or outside in the parking lot.  What are your anticipated issues that day or that month? Remember this security concept is really based on preplanning, thinking about things ahead of time and defining roles.   It is most important if you are a leader of the ushers or greeters that you tell them What you would like them to do in the event of these different emergencies or issues and then discuss them every so often to refresh in everyones minds what we should do.  Remember when something happens as in a crisis or emergency, most of the time our brains are going to freeze for a moment and then begin to react.   So it is important to discuss options and preplan so that when our brain comes out of the shock or freeze, we can begin to react quickly and do what we were trained to do or talked about doing.

Episode 012:  Greeters and Ushers in Church Security

In this episode we are going to discuss different options for armed security for your church.              Those 4 options include; Off-duty or previously employed and trained law enforcement personnel.  Your own personnel or Internal Security Staff, Contracted outside security officers, and the concealed carrying members of the congregation.   The first option for discuss is a great option.  The people with the best training and most current knowledge for armed security options would be any of the already attending law enforcement officers to your services.        The next option for discussion is having your own security staff or volunteers internally.  This option is certainly one that you can track and control more, especially with maintaining a balance between the ministry and the security operation.   When you take on this option however keep in mind you take on the regulations, the screening, supervision, training and all of the liability.                  The next option for you to consider is hiring an outside security officer or guard.  Using an outside professional security guard company provides several benefits.   First, you certainly would want to do your homework in looking for a reputable security officer company.  After that it takes some of the liability off of you or certainly provides a layer of protection for you, the church leadership and the church.  The last option I want to briefly discuss is relying on those people in your congregation who might be lawfully carrying concealed weapons.   I have heard ministry leaders talk about this option and consider it to be a valid option.  Not knowing who you have in your congregation, I certainly do not want to immediately write this option off but I do want to make sure and discuss a couple of items.  The first is the biggest issue for me.   Most people who get concealed weapons permits or are allowed to carry firearms at church by law, certainly like to talk about taking action and stopping violent offenders, but my concern is their actual ability to take this action safely.  Most of these folks, use their firearms in the course of getting their carrying permit or at some point they have practiced.   However, how long has it been since they have actually fired that gun?   I propose to you that many to most people who carry a firearm within the guidelines of the law have not shot the firearm in many many months to many years.   That is frightening to me.                                                           Training Topic for this episode  For our training discussion in this episode I just want to share a brief thought with you about tracking the training you do with your staff, security persons, ushers or anyone else.  Documenting by filing training paperwork or using a sign up roster during the training session or documenting it in an excel file is something you need to think about soon, if you have not already.  You will see at different times I will put briefing training papers or resources out on the website at churchsecurityanswerman.com, for example in the show notes attached to episode 3 of this podcast on churchsecurityanswerman.com I attached a sheet which you can download to discuss with your people.  The discussion is about a factual situation that occurred at one church, it was a man playing his guitar, during service and refusing to stop.   The training sheet has a discussion question after you read the incident, it is designed to challenge discussion for you and your people. 

In this episode we are going to discuss different options for armed security for your church.  Those 4 options include; Off-duty or previously employed and trained law enforcement personnel.  Your own personnel or Internal Security Staff, Contracted outside security officers, and the concealed carrying members of the congregation. The first option for discuss is a great option.  The people with the best training and most current knowledge for armed security options would be any of the already attending law enforcement officers to your services.   The next option for discussion is having your own security staff or volunteers internally.  This option is certainly one that you can track and control more, especially with maintaining a balance between the ministry and the security operation.   When you take on this option however keep in mind you take on the regulations, the screening, supervision, training and all of the liability. The next option for you to consider is hiring an outside security officer or guard.  Using an outside professional security guard company provides several benefits.   First, you certainly would want to do your homework in looking for a reputable security officer company.  After that it takes some of the liability off of you or certainly provides a layer of protection for you, the church leadership and the church. The last option I want to briefly discuss is relying on those people in your congregation who might be lawfully carrying concealed weapons.   I have heard ministry leaders talk about this option and consider it to be a valid option.  Not knowing who you have in your congregation, I certainly do not want to immediately write this option off but I do want to make sure and discuss a couple of items.  The first is the biggest issue for me.   Most people who get concealed weapons permits or are allowed to carry firearms at church by law, certainly like to talk about taking action and stopping violent offenders, but my concern is their actual ability to take this action safely.  Most of these folks, use their firearms in the course of getting their carrying permit or at some point they have practiced.   However, how long has it been since they have actually fired that gun?   I propose to you that many to most people who carry a firearm within the guidelines of the law have not shot the firearm in many many months to many years.   That is frightening to me.   Training Topic for this episode For our training discussion in this episode I just want to share a brief thought with you about tracking the training you do with your staff, security persons, ushers or anyone else.  Documenting by filing training paperwork or using a sign up roster during the training session or documenting it in an excel file is something you need to think about soon, if you have not already.  You will see at different times I will put briefing training papers or resources out on the website at <a href="http://churchsecurityanswerman.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">churchsecurityanswerman.com</a>, for example in the show notes attached to episode 3 of this podcast on <a href="http://churchsecurityanswerman.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">churchsecurityanswerman.com</a> I attached a sheet which you can download to discuss with your people.  The discussion is about a factual situation that occurred at one church, it was a man playing his guitar, during service and refusing to stop.   The training sheet has a discussion question after you read the incident, it is designed to challenge discussion for you and your people.

Episode 004: Armed Security Options for Your Ministry

In this episode we are going to discuss different training suggestions for your security personnel.   What courses should we offer to make sure they are prepared both for protecting us but also training that covering our liabilities. So the first topic I believe you should focus on is making sure that all members who you are considering as part of the security team, need to have training on what leadership wants and what the policies of the ministry are, what some of you might also call an orientation.    How do you want them to handle medical situations, how do you want them to handle disruptions or crimes within the church ministry.       You would also want to make sure they know your direction on domestic violence issues, disruptive issues, how to handle suspicious people around the service areas, and how you would like your personnel to interact with law enforcement when something more serious happens. Next I would suggest that we have to discuss in detail “use of force” issues.  There needs to be some discussion of what level of force is needed for various situations that might arise. Then we might as well discuss training for your armed personnel if you have them in your team.  They obviously need to know the requirements to be able to carry a firearm, those state or special laws and regulations.   Then use of force needs to be an important training topic along with discussions about carrying the firearm and how you want them to conceal and or control the firearm with holsters.   Then we need to discuss the big issue for our gun toters and that would be actual training time at the gun range.                   Some really good verbal communication skills are a really good component of training for a security staff member.   Learning how to talk to people is a skill many of us have not mastered. Last the basic training should include discussion of how we will handle general emergencies as an individual security person or as a group. 

In this episode we are going to discuss different training suggestions for your security personnel.   What courses should we offer to make sure they are prepared both for protecting us but also training that covering our liabilities. So the first topic I believe you should focus on is making sure that all members who you are considering as part of the security team, need to have training on what leadership wants and what the policies of the ministry are, what some of you might also call an orientation.    How do you want them to handle medical situations, how do you want them to handle disruptions or crimes within the church ministry. You would also want to make sure they know your direction on domestic violence issues, disruptive issues, how to handle suspicious people around the service areas, and how you would like your personnel to interact with law enforcement when something more serious happens. Next I would suggest that we have to discuss in detail “use of force” issues.  There needs to be some discussion of what level of force is needed for various situations that might arise. Then we might as well discuss training for your armed personnel if you have them in your team.  They obviously need to know the requirements to be able to carry a firearm, those state or special laws and regulations.   Then use of force needs to be an important training topic along with discussions about carrying the firearm and how you want them to conceal and or control the firearm with holsters.   Then we need to discuss the big issue for our gun toters and that would be actual training time at the gun range.  Some really good verbal communication skills are a really good component of training for a security staff member.   Learning how to talk to people is a skill many of us have not mastered. Last the basic training should include discussion of how we will handle general emergencies as an individual security person or as a group.

Episode 005: Training Suggestions for Security Staff

Season 3, Episode 5: Security Purpose, Requirements & Expectations

Season 2, Episode 6: Placing A Leader into the Security Team

Season 2, Episode 5: Church Violence Prevention Strategies and Risks

Season 3, Episode 4: Observing Problem Behavior Indicators

Season 2, Episode 8: Five Components of Defusing Crisis

Schizophrenia - General Indicators•Breakdown of personality•Withdrawal from reality•Distortion of thought   (absurd, illogical, bizarre)•Hallucinations;   Sight, Smell, Hearing•Auditory problems;  “God (Voices in my head) told me….”•Delusions; False beliefs with no reality, grandeur•Delusions and behavior is Anxiety and Suspiciousness•Excessively religious•Frequent hostile or aggressive behaviorBipolar Disorder (Depressive) Indicators•Lasting sad, anxious or empty mood•Feeling hopelessness and/or guiltand fatigued•Loss of interest in their normal activities•Chronic pain – Persistent body problems/symptoms•Thoughts of death, suicide or suicide attempts•Difficulty concentrating, remembering or making decisions•Change in appetite – Unintended weight loss•Sleep too much or not at all•Talking fast, irritable and increased increase in energy•Excessive alcohol or drug abuse•Denies that anything is wrongDo's or Should Do's•Mentally ILL people are PEOPLE with feelings &amp; rights•Always assess for the degree of danger when contacting•Maintain adequate space for your safety/level of training•BE CALM•Be helpful to them (ask about their basic needs)•When time…..give firm and clear directions•Respond to general feelings not content of their discussion•Respond to hallucinations &amp; delusions by discussing them as their FEELINGS rather than what they are saying.Dont's or Should Not's•Don’t join into their behavior related to their crisis•Don’t stare at them – normal eye contact (50%)•Don’t confuse them (follow through -Directions/commands)•Don’t Touch unless you are moving them forcefully•Don’t give them multiple choices •Don’t whisper, joke or laugh•Don’t deceive them – Don’t make promises you cant’ keep•Don’t demand their obedience or power struggle•Don’t call their bluff, act afraid, act laugh inappropriately•Don’t take issues personally with them

Schizophrenia - General Indicators •Breakdown of personality •Withdrawal from reality •Distortion of thought   (absurd, illogical, bizarre) •Hallucinations;   Sight, Smell, Hearing •Auditory problems;  “God (Voices in my head) told me….” •Delusions; False beliefs with no reality, grandeur •Delusions and behavior is Anxiety and Suspiciousness •Excessively religious •Frequent hostile or aggressive behavior Bipolar Disorder (Depressive) Indicators •Lasting sad, anxious or empty mood •Feeling hopelessness and/or guiltand fatigued •Loss of interest in their normal activities •Chronic pain – Persistent body problems/symptoms •Thoughts of death, suicide or suicide attempts •Difficulty concentrating, remembering or making decisions •Change in appetite – Unintended weight loss •Sleep too much or not at all •Talking fast, irritable and increased increase in energy •Excessive alcohol or drug abuse •Denies that anything is wrong Do's or Should Do's •Mentally ILL people are PEOPLE with feelings &amp; rights •Always assess for the degree of danger when contacting •Maintain adequate space for your safety/level of training •BE CALM •Be helpful to them (ask about their basic needs) •When time…..give firm and clear directions •Respond to general feelings not content of their discussion •Respond to hallucinations &amp; delusions by discussing them as their FEELINGS rather than what they are saying. Dont's or Should Not's •Don’t join into their behavior related to their crisis •Don’t stare at them – normal eye contact (50%) •Don’t confuse them (follow through -Directions/commands) •Don’t Touch unless you are moving them forcefully •Don’t give them multiple choices •Don’t whisper, joke or laugh •Don’t deceive them – Don’t make promises you cant’ keep •Don’t demand their obedience or power struggle •Don’t call their bluff, act afraid, act laugh inappropriately •Don’t take issues personally with them

Episode 007: Dealing With Mentally ILL Persons Entering Our Services

April 22, 2014 –  On Tuesday, April 22, 2014 a funeral was being held at the Galilee Baptist Church in Trenton, New Jersey.   The funeral was for 19 year old Cagney Roberts who had been shot to death on April 9th in a street shooting.  Hundreds of people were in attendance at the church for the funeral.  Just after noon, As the sermon in the sanctuary was about to begin, gunfire could be heard outside the church.   Police reports say that shooters opened fire in front of the church injuring 3 people.   During this chaos there was also one person who was trampled as people were fleeing the church.   April 9, 2014 – In Cicero, Illinois a man who served as an authority figure within the roles of Youth Minister, Church Photographer and a Teacher at the church is accused of engaging in sexual conduct with several juvenile boys within the church between the ages of 9 and 17.  As the information is coming out it is alleged that this misconduct took place over 6 years and in numerous locations including his own apartment and two youth retreat camps.     February 12, 2014 – An Intoxicated Male at the Seagate Baptist Church in Naples, Florida causes a disorderly drunken disturbance at the church and in the parking lot. The report accuses Thomas Wilson, 52 years of age, a homeless man, of being heavily intoxicated and yelling profanities at church members as people were arriving for an evening church service.   He refused to leave so law enforcement was called to the church.    February 2, 2014 – A shooting incident at the Double Springs Community Church in Cookeville, Tennessee left two people dead. 

April 22, 2014 –  On Tuesday, April 22, 2014 a funeral was being held at the Galilee Baptist Church in Trenton, New Jersey.   The funeral was for 19 year old Cagney Roberts who had been shot to death on April 9th in a street shooting.  Hundreds of people were in attendance at the church for the funeral.  Just after noon, As the sermon in the sanctuary was about to begin, gunfire could be heard outside the church.   Police reports say that shooters opened fire in front of the church injuring 3 people.   During this chaos there was also one person who was trampled as people were fleeing the church. April 9, 2014 – In Cicero, Illinois a man who served as an authority figure within the roles of Youth Minister, Church Photographer and a Teacher at the church is accused of engaging in sexual conduct with several juvenile boys within the church between the ages of 9 and 17.  As the information is coming out it is alleged that this misconduct took place over 6 years and in numerous locations including his own apartment and two youth retreat camps. February 12, 2014 – An Intoxicated Male at the Seagate Baptist Church in Naples, Florida causes a disorderly drunken disturbance at the church and in the parking lot. The report accuses Thomas Wilson, 52 years of age, a homeless man, of being heavily intoxicated and yelling profanities at church members as people were arriving for an evening church service.   He refused to leave so law enforcement was called to the church.  February 2, 2014 – A shooting incident at the Double Springs Community Church in Cookeville, Tennessee left two people dead.

Episode 006: Four Recent Church Security Incidents Reviewed

Season 3, Episode 1: Who Needs Radios and What Kind

The first thing that I think is necessary to mention is that a sexual predator or pedophile does not have a certain look….they don’t stand out in looks in fact they generally look like the rest of us a fit in pretty well.  In fact they are typically a kind and helpful person.  They are encouraging and they are there when you need them.   Now I am not an expert in the detection, conduct, treatment or recidivism rates of Sexual predators, but I do know the things I am aware of because of my law enforcement experiences and knowledge and studies.  So lets talk about what to look for.   Studies and testimony from pedophiles show that they generally begin with an act of grooming a child.    They spend time, energy and maybe even money to get children and their parents often times to feel comfortable with the situation between them and the child.     After trust is established then the predator will become a little more risky or intrusive….pushing the limits a bit if you will, so that they can test boundaries.         This stuff you might see could be hugging the child, kissing, tickling, wrestling and maybe even be slightly improper while the child is dressing, changing clothes or using the restroom…..   The restroom within your ministry should be a big concern when it comes to the safety of the children by the way.      Some of the touching that goes on may be claimed to be an accident, again as part of that testing to see how the child reacts and any parents or other teachers and leaders present react.   Also keep in mind all of this prep work and becoming a trustworthy friend to the child and the adults around the child helps prevent people from reporting if the pedophile gets caught.  This trust system works for them, that one reason why they get away with the predator behavior for so long.   So lets look at some clues or signs to look for that a pedophile might be grooming or working on your child:   The person tells the child that he or she is a “special” friend   They give the child special gifts   They may talk to a child about adult topics including sex or marriage problems.   They may give a child adult items like cigarettes or alcohol.   They may try to arrange a child to spend the night or be close to them, maybe in the same cabin or tent, if they go to a camp together.   A little more detail is added to this process for us by retired FBI agent Kenneth Landing.  He has published five steps to help us identify the process most sexual predators use to groom children to be their victims.      First, he tells us that pedophiles have different victims that they are searching for, but most of the time they find their victim has some vulnerability.   Next, Agent Landing tells us that a pedophile will then collect as much info on the child victim they are targeting as they possibly can.   Most of the time they do this through conversations with the child, parents or guardians.   Third, the pedophile then looks to become part of the child’s life by fulfilling a need.  If the child is poor for an example the predator will provide him/her with expensive toys.   If the child is lonely the pedophile becomes a friend.   Next Agent Landing tells us that a pedophile will work to lower the Child’s inhibitions concerning sexual matters.   He may use games or activities that involve getting undressed, making sexual comments or show the child pornography.   In stage 5, Agent Landing say the pedophile begins to sexually abuse the child.

The first thing that I think is necessary to mention is that a sexual predator or pedophile does not have a certain look….they don’t stand out in looks in fact they generally look like the rest of us a fit in pretty well.  In fact they are typically a kind and helpful person.  They are encouraging and they are there when you need them. Now I am not an expert in the detection, conduct, treatment or recidivism rates of Sexual predators, but I do know the things I am aware of because of my law enforcement experiences and knowledge and studies. So lets talk about what to look for.   Studies and testimony from pedophiles show that they generally begin with an act of grooming a child.    They spend time, energy and maybe even money to get children and their parents often times to feel comfortable with the situation between them and the child.     After trust is established then the predator will become a little more risky or intrusive….pushing the limits a bit if you will, so that they can test boundaries.  This stuff you might see could be hugging the child, kissing, tickling, wrestling and maybe even be slightly improper while the child is dressing, changing clothes or using the restroom…..   The restroom within your ministry should be a big concern when it comes to the safety of the children by the way.   Some of the touching that goes on may be claimed to be an accident, again as part of that testing to see how the child reacts and any parents or other teachers and leaders present react.   Also keep in mind all of this prep work and becoming a trustworthy friend to the child and the adults around the child helps prevent people from reporting if the pedophile gets caught.  This trust system works for them, that one reason why they get away with the predator behavior for so long. So lets look at some clues or signs to look for that a pedophile might be grooming or working on your child: The person tells the child that he or she is a “special” friend They give the child special gifts They may talk to a child about adult topics including sex or marriage problems. They may give a child adult items like cigarettes or alcohol. They may try to arrange a child to spend the night or be close to them, maybe in the same cabin or tent, if they go to a camp together. A little more detail is added to this process for us by retired FBI agent Kenneth Landing.  He has published five steps to help us identify the process most sexual predators use to groom children to be their victims.   First, he tells us that pedophiles have different victims that they are searching for, but most of the time they find their victim has some vulnerability. Next, Agent Landing tells us that a pedophile will then collect as much info on the child victim they are targeting as they possibly can.   Most of the time they do this through conversations with the child, parents or guardians. Third, the pedophile then looks to become part of the child’s life by fulfilling a need.  If the child is poor for an example the predator will provide him/her with expensive toys.   If the child is lonely the pedophile becomes a friend. Next Agent Landing tells us that a pedophile will work to lower the Child’s inhibitions concerning sexual matters.   He may use games or activities that involve getting undressed, making sexual comments or show the child pornography. In stage 5, Agent Landing say the pedophile begins to sexually abuse the child.

Episode 011: Child Sexual Predators - How They Victimize

Season 2, Episode 7: Do We Need Uniforms for Church Security?

What we learn from the shooting incident

SE 4, EP 3: Part 2 Texas Church Shooting Lessons

Season 3, Episode 3: Dealing with the Homeless and Transients

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