Why Private Security and Law Enforcement Should Work Together

In most places there is obvious disconnect between private security officers and public law enforcement. Private security is looked down upon and labeled as "rent a cops." When in reality they serve in important roles such as: transporting money, guarding military facilities, moving inmates, and monitoring retail establishments. These private security officers are an important part of the law enforcement community. Instead on conflict, interdependence and communication should be the goal of both entities.

In most circumstances cooperation to meet objectives is widely encouraged. It is no different when law enforcement is concerned. Both the public and private sector has distinctive qualities and resources that are used in law enforcement. Using them in conjunction will encourage the exchange of ideas and produce innovation. An excellent way to advance their relationship is by forming official partnerships. Some police departments have already formed partnerships with private security agencies within their districts to enhance communication. One notable partnership is the Area Police/Private Security Liaison (APPL). APPL is a partnership between the New York Police Department and local security managers in New York City. They use APPL to share information, facilitate training, and to inventory private closed circuit television for the NYPD (Gunter, Kidwell, 2004).

There are many different applications for private security in public sector law enforcement. Police departments often have to train their employees to perform certain investigative methods such as computer crime. Police can contract out background and computer investigations to established private experts for analysis, which can work in concert with detectives. This will free up detectives to focus on other facets of the investigation. Another option is private security administrators working in an advisory role to police leadership. Private security is a profit based business, which gives private security administrators the upper hand in financial and business related matters. They could use this experience to help police departments analyze their financial data and give input and recommendations regarding budgets and allocations.

In an operational standpoint it is very important to have cooperation between both sectors. Especially in large metropolitan cities that have a large density of security professionals, such as New York City. Police officers can use security guards as force multipliers by sharing observations and monitoring trends in their area. Officers can communicate to the security personnel the possible threats in the area and give them photos of wanted individuals to look for. Police agencies can organize training sessions that help private security understand their role and ways they can assist. Using two-way communication in a variety of methods can enhance mutual respect and support communication between private and public sector law enforcement.

Works Cited

Gunter, W. & Kidwell, J. (2004) Law Enforcement and Private Security Liaison:

Partnerships for Cooperation. International Foundation of Protective Officers. Retrieved 20 November 2008 at http://www.ifpo.org/articlebank/lawprivateliaison.html