News Reports
Listing and links to critical new for those in Church Security
Department Resources
- Gunman opens fire during San Francisco Bay area church service, wounds 2 teens
RICHMOND, Calif. - Feb 14, 2010
A man wearing a hooded sweatshirt walked into a San Francisco Bay area church and opened fire during a Sunday service, wounding two teenagers, police said.
Two other men — also wearing hooded sweatshirts — were with the gunman when the shooting took place at about 12:30 p.m. in front of about 100 people at New Gethsemane Church in Christ, Richmond police Sgt. Bisa French said.
The men walked up and down the aisles with their hoods over their heads before the gunman fired at the teens sitting in the pews, witnesses said. Charles Miller, a 64-year-old deacon at the church, said members of the congregation were about to tell the men to take off their hoods when the shooting began.
“I was listening to the choir and all of a sudden there was a ‘pop pop pop pop pop,”‘ Miller told the San Francisco Chronicle. “Everyone hit the floor. I didn’t know the shooting was inside the church at first, until I heard all of the hollering and screaming.”
A 14-year-old boy was hit in the shoulder and a 19-year-old man was struck in the leg, French said. Both victims, whose names haven’t been released, were hospitalized and were expected to survive. There were no other injuries.
The three men fled and no suspects have been arrested, French said.
“It’s terrible when you come to the house of the Lord and start doing this,” Miller said. “It’s just something you don’t do.”
Investigators believe the men were targeting someone in the church but don’t know if the two who were hit were the intended targets, French said.
“If it wasn’t the victims that were hit, it was somebody near them,” she said.
French said investigators were interviewing witnesses to see if anyone recognized the men.
A handful of congregants returned to the church after police processed the crime scene and finished the service.
“We went on and had church anyway,” Miller told the Chronicle. “We were giving thanks that nobody was killed. We wanted to go and serve the Lord anyway.”
Richmond is an East Bay city of about 100,000 people north of Oakland and Berkeley.
The city has garnered national attention because of the alleged gang rape by seven people of a 16-year-old girl outside an October homecoming dance at Richmond High School.
Read More» - Church shooting suspect in court Woman, 80, shot at church - Jan , 2010
Here is some additional information on a recent chruch shooting that happened in Youngstown, Ohio.
YOUNGSTOWN - Bond for murder suspect Jamar “Mook” Houser was set at $3 million Monday morning following a video arraignment in Youngstown Municipal Court.
Meanwhile, the man charged with murdering the 80-year-old church parishioner has two other trials pending in county and municipal courts. The city prosecutor’s office states that Houser, 18, of Volney Road, also had a “substantial” juvenile record.
Someone speaking for Houser via the video link asked that Judge Robert Milich set “a reasonable bond.” Houser told the judge he was unable to afford an attorney and requested a public defender.
“No,” Houser told the judge when he asked if he could hire his own counsel. “My parents take care of me.”
Read More» - Our Body’s Response To Stress and Tactical Breathing
When a person experiences stress, the body has a normal physiological response. Understanding how to control these responses is critical because a lack of understanding can result in injury to you, to the person you are dealing with, and it can render you useless during a critical event.
In the video below, I discuss what exactly you body experiences, and how to control it so you respond better.
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Read More» - Church Security Use of Force: Your Voice Is A Weapon
In this ten minute video, Glen Evans, Church Security Alliance, discusses the use of force and using verbal skills to de-escalate a situation, when appropriate. In addition to verbal skills, Glen talks about proper body stance, hand placement, and approach of someone causing a disturbance.
This seminar was conducted for a civilian security force that wears uniforms, however it is very applicable to everyone involved in providing security services, including you.
If you are interested in hiring CSA to host a use of force seminar in your area, simply click here to contact us after watching the video. We provide on-site seminars on verbal communication, use of force liability reduction, weapons training, and rapid response to lethal threats. Training is the key to reducing legal liability through education and proper use of techniques.
Enjoy the video!
We also provide materials so you can provide training for your team. Click here to go to our store
Read More» - Priest arrested in Brunswick County, charged with sexual offenses
Authorities with the Brunswick County Sheriff’s Office have arrested a 47-year-old priest for sexual offenses, said Marty Folding, public affairs officer with the department.
Father Edgar Sepulveda was charged with one count of second degree sexual offense and one count of sexual battery. The victim is a juvenile male, Folding said.
Sepulveda, who is part of the Raleigh Diocese of North Carolina and a St. Beulaville, N.C., resident, was visiting church members in Brunswick County in May when the offenses occurred, Folding said.
Read More»Sepulveda has been placed under a $100,000 secured bond.
He is the pastor of Maria Reina de las Americas Parish in Mount Olive, N.C., and a supervising pastor of Mission Parish of Santa Clara in Magnolia, N.C., according to the Catholic Diocese of Raleigh Web site.
The Most Rev. Michael F. Burbidge, Bishop of Raleigh, announced Friday that he has suspended the priestly faculty of Sepulveda.
The diocese announced in September that Sepulveda had been placed on administrative leave after receiving an allegation of sexual abuse. Church officials said at the time that an investigation was being pursued.
The diocese said that a criminal background check was completed prior to Sepulveda’s first appointment in the diocese in 2004 and a second background check was completed prior to his incardination in the diocese in 2006. Both background checks, the diocese said, displayed no criminal record.
More information will be posted as it becomes available.
- NC Church Robbed at Gunpoint Jan 2010 Read More»
http://www.newsobserver.com/news/story/264488.html
The Associated Press
STATESVILLE, N.C. — Authorities say a masked man walked into a North Carolina church, demanding money then kidnapping two women after finding out the church safe was empty.
Police told multiple media outlets the man let the women go unhurt after using their ATM cards to get money during the Thursday afternoon robbery.
The Rev. Donald Shuman says the suspect was wearing a ski mask and gloves when he came to Broad Street United Methodist Church in Statesville, sticking a gun in the face of the church’s receptionist and business manager.
Police say the women did what the robber demanded, begging him to not harm them.
A surveillance camera at one of the ATMs got a picture of the suspect, who investigators have not identified.
- The Northwest Flight 253 Terrorist Attack and Church Security
On Christmas Day, a terrorist attempted to blow up an airplane as it approached the Detroit airport.
A Nigerian terrorist has been able to hide explosive chemicals on his body and was attempting to combine them when a fire broke out instead of an explosion.
Dutch tourist Jasper Schuringa, saw what was going on, and took immediate action. The interview with him shows why this man is being called a hero, while the other 200 passengers sat idly by and watched him leap into action.
Why did hundreds watch the drama and fail to intervene while Shuringa is being hailed a hero?
1. The By-stander Effect.
Television has made it normal to be a voyeur. We see shows like World’s Scariest Videos, Cops, and videos on You Tube that have desensitized us to the reality that violence occurs. It happens on a regular basis, but as we watch those shows or videos we are entranced by the violence, and conditioned to stand by and watch, as opposed to doing something.
2. The Belief It Cannot Happen Here And It Cannot Happen To Me.
Human beings abhor violence. It is against the nature of most people to be violent, and it is repulsive to take part in it. With this in mind, when people see a video of violence, they secretly say to themselves, “Thank God it is happening to them and not to me.”
Those who become heroes have said to themselves, “It can happen here, it can happen to me, and by God’s help, I have the power to stop it.”
When potential heroes take this stance, they have already cleared the hurdle of denial that wastes precious time in a scenario. Denial robs us of response time, and critical seconds to stop a violent action.
Had Shuringa waited just a minute, flames would have engulfed the plane, and hundreds would have perished in a terrible death.
3. Mental Planning
Once a person has agreed bad things can happen to them, and that they are likely to observe it someday, they begin mentally preparing for that eventuality.
Most of the passengers on the plane boarded the plane and only had a passing thought of terrorism. Shuringa most likely boarded the plane, scanned the passengers and identified those he thought had the potential to be a terrorist. He most likely had already worked out a plan if he spotted suspicious behavior, and made a note to enact the plan if something happened.
This saved precious life saving seconds off his response time. He attacked the problem when he saw it and remained calm during the execution of his plan.
Pre-planning is the key between disaster and death and calmness and life.
The vast majority of people in the world do not want to be a hero, avoid violence, and will simply watch when bad things happen.
Thankfully, Dutch tourist Jasper Schuringa was not one of those people. He thought about it in advance, he mentally rehearsed what he would do, and in the moment of truth, he reacted and saved lives.
Training, even if it is mental training, is a powerful weapon in stopping violence against you, your church, or your family.
Need help with training? Visit our online store for videos and manuals.
Stay Safe,
Glen Evans
Read More» - Salvation Army Employee Shot and Killed
Little Rock, Arkansas-I am sorry to report a Salvation Army employee, Phillip Wise, was murdered on Christmas Eve while dropping off donations at the local Salvation Army office.
You can read the full story here.
Mr. Wise was robbed at gun point and shot while his children watched.
CSA was notified by member Dan G, a friend of Mr. Wise. Please pray for his family and friends.
Read More» - New articles
Archbishop of Mosul Laments Attack on Church
Church attacked after Sunday Mass
Armed Attack Attempt On Protestant Church In Ankara
Read More» - Church Burglarized By Former Police Officer Turned Church Security Guard
A former LAPD officer acting as a church security guard was arrested after being accused of stealing from Saddleback Church.
The initial news reports stated the man stole many things from the church including computers, cell phones and other electronic equipment.
The man began working for security in August 2008 and quit in December of the same year. However, police report the crimes continued until August of 2009.
Below is a video from a local news station. This news is hard to hear, and our prayers go out to the Saddleback community, and this man who saw a need to steal from God’s house.
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