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How Secure is Your Church?
This issue of Ekklesia is dedicated to the subject of church security. The first
question you might ask is, “What does security have to do with conflict?” In a
word, everything!
The church that does not have a security plan is a lawsuit waiting to happen. The
first thing that happens after a major incident involving an intruder, assault, or
theft, is people demanding to know why you were not prepared. Guess who the
primary target is most likely to be? The pastor, of course.
“We just didn’t get around to it,” or “It never happened before,” or “The cost was
too high,” are not viable defenses. The church that does not have a working
security plan is vulnerable.
Yes, I know those are strong words, but they are intended to get your attention.
It is a simple reality that churches attract thieves and the mentally ill. They attract
thieves because churches are easy targets where people can roam at will,
particularly during services. Doors are often left unlocked. The larger the campus
the more likely they will be unchallenged and able to take what they want.
Violence in the church is often framed in an “It can’t happen here” mentality. It
can. The most frequent victims? Church staff during the workweek. Read on. If
some of this does not send a chill down your spine, you are either very well
prepared or not paying attention. ~ Darrell Puls
Welcome to Ekklesia, the newsletter of Peacebridge
Ministries!
EKKLESIA is an ancient Greek term meaning, “those called out,” also
known as the Christian Church. Our calling is to strengthen the
Ekklesia in all of its forms.
Denver News, December 9, 2007. – “Two church
members were shot to death and three others were
injured after a gunman opened fire outside the New
Life Church in Colorado Springs as Sunday services
were wrapping up.
“ ‘The gunman was shot by a church female security
officer and was found dead when police arrived at
the scene,’ said Colorado Springs Police Chief
Richard Myers. Police said Monday that the gunman
who killed two people at a megachurch in Colorado
Springs and two people at a missionary training
school in Arvada was the same troubled 24-year-old
man.”
What few people know is that a picture of the pastor
was found in the gunman’s home. The pastor was
the primary target.
Continued on Page 2
VOLUME 2, NO. 3
Peacebridge Ministries is a non-profit
ministry serving churches, faith
communities, and Christian
organizations.
Peacebridge Ministries has been granted
IRS 501(c)(3) tax-exempt status.
For more information or to donate, visit
us at:
http://conflicttopeace.com
Our Mission: Peacebridge Ministries exists to prevent destructive conflict and to help conflicted churches,
communities of faith and Christian organizations resolve conflicts in a positive and healing manner
through consulting, coaching, training, and on-site interventions using proven, biblically-sound practices.
Summer 2012
Violence at Church
VOLUME 2, NO. 3 PAGE 2
SUMMER 2012
Violence at Church - continued
Below are some sobering figures related to violence and theft in churches.
1. Of 558 deadly force incidents (murder and killing in self-defense) in
churches from 1/1/1999 through 6/2/2012, all incidents were on adults by
adults. In 41.6% of these fatal encounters, the attack resulted in the death
of others who were not the intended target as well as the intended target.
2. None of these incidents involved children.
3. An additional 403 people were injured.
4. Known attack triggers included domestic violence spillover (17%),
personal conflict (15.44%), robbery (20.81%), gang related (11.41%),
mental illness (8.5%), religious bias (6.94%), and random acts of
violence (17.67%).
5. The most common target and place for violence to occur was to church
employees in their workplace or on the church grounds.
6. More than half (59.74%) of the fatal attacks occurred during off hours.
There are fewer people around and those on church property are
particularly vulnerable after hours.
7. Males were the attackers in 91.62% of the cases.
8. In most cases, the attacker was known to the victims! Fully one-fourth
(25.32%) of the attackers were church members, past members,
employees, or ministry volunteers.
9. The total number of violent deaths at church has been steadily increasing
and is on course to set a record of 70 in 2012.
10. In 2010 there were more than 26,600 reported cases of non-lethal
violence and crimes in churches. It is estimated that less than 10% of all
crimes in churches is reported.
11. Reported burglaries and thefts in 2009 accounted for more than
$24,000,000 in losses. Again, this figure is likely to be only 10% of
actual losses.
Source: Carl Chinn, “Violence Statistics,” www.carlchinn.com.
For a compilation of 2012 incidents, visit “Church Crime History” at:
http://www.carlchinn.com/Deadly_Force_Incidents.html.
1153 Gage Blvd. Richland, WA 99352 509.627.1109 ext. 109 Cell: 509.308.2737
PEACEBRIDGE MINISTRIES [email protected]
http://conflicttopeace.com
.
“Good Enough Never Is”
Excerpted from Tina Lewis Rowe.
Sometimes there is a reason the “road less
traveled” isn’t used often. Wise travelers have
researched it and found it will take you nowhere or
it will bypass the very things you need to see or do
or it will actually take you twice as long to get to
where you need to go–or it can lead to tragedy.
Shortcuts and seldom used roads can be interesting
but they can have many perils.
A trainer told me he doesn’t use photos in
PowerPoint because the “thumbnail” images he
copied from image searches were blurry. I
suggested he use one of the free photo sites
available and he said he doesn’t have that much
time, so he just grabs a thumbnail image. I said,
“But, you aren’t using the thumbnails because
they’re not clear.” He said, “Yeah, but they’re
quick.”
One of the documents on church safety and security
that I distribute is about how to conduct a thorough
assessment of the status of every aspect of the
property, people, places, programs and processes of
a place of worship. It involves assessing in each
season and at different times of the day and night, in
a variety of ways. A security director wrote to me
and said, “We used your material and it was a great
help. But, we didn’t want to get involved with so
much assessing so we just did it on a Saturday and
called it good.” Some shortcuts aren’t worth it:
VOLUME 2, NO. 3 PAGE 3
SUMMER 2012
Questions? Ask!
Suggestions? Let us know!
A Few Interesting Quotes:
“The opportunity to secure ourselves against defeat lies in our own hands, but the opportunity of defeating the enemy is
provided by the enemy himself.” – Sun Tzu
“Strategy without tactics is the slowest route to victory. Tactics without strategy is the noise before defeat.” – Sun Tzu
Camera surveillance and alarm systems are the first things most people think about
when considering church security. Both are very useful and should be integrated
into a security plan. Though they may be expensive, they can pay for themselves
very quickly through simple deterrence.
However, there are a number of things you can do that are free or cost very little
that will improve security immediately while cameras and alarms are purchased
and installed.
1. Maintain access control. How many doors to your building(s) are
unlocked during the day? Unlocked doors that are not monitored are an
invitation for trouble. Anyone can come in without being seen. Unlock
only those doors that absolutely must be open.
2. All exterior doors should be locked when an employee is working alone.
No exceptions. Put in a doorbell and peephole so the person outside can
be observed before unlocking the door.
3. Clear out any underbrush that could provide a hiding place. This includes
shrubbery or trees that interfere with clear sightlines.
4. Install motion sensitive flood lights in exterior spaces. They are
inexpensive and can be purchased at any hardware store.
5. Check the lighting in the parking lot. Are there dark spots? What about
exterior lighting around the buildings?
6. Always have at least two trusted people on premises during off-hours
meetings. They should be equipped with 2-way radios.
7. Purchase high quality two way radios. You can get new professional
Motorola RDU2020 radios for about $200 each. If necessary you can get
shorter range radios for $70. We use our RDU2020’s all year long.
8. Install a color video camera surveillance system. They can be expensive,
but tight budgets should still be able to afford one of the cheaper systems
such as sold by Costco.
9. Install loud audible alarms at all doors.
10. Have the local police come through to assess your situation and advise
you. That’s free!
May21, 2012. Indianapolis, IN
Rev. Jaman Iseminger showed up at his
church in Southport early on Saturday to
open the doors to a group of volunteers
who were coming out to clean up the
historic cemetery adjacent to their 116-
year-old church building.
But before the work could get well
underway a homeless woman entered the
church and shot Iseminger, 29, and then
left out in the neighborhood. Iseminger
managed to get through the church’s side
door and outside before collapsing. He
died a short time later at a hospital.
The suspect in the shooting, 46-year-old
Lori Ann Barcroft, was found a few blocks
from the scene by a police officer using a
canine partner to track her. Southport
police Chief Randy Ellison said she
confessed the shooting to Indianapolis
Metropolitan Police investigators.
What the motive for the shooting was is
unknown.
“That’s kind of the million dollar question
– why?” Ellison said.
Source: Church Security Alliance
http://www.churchsecurityalliance.com/me
mbers/churchsecurity.
He who fails to plan, plans to fail. ~ Ancient Proverb
You do not have to hire off-duty police
officers for Sunday morning security. You
already have an asset for security that is
easily ignored.
The ushers and greeters are your first line of
Sunday morning security. They are the ones
who see everyone who comes in the door,
but hardly anyone really sees them – they are
part of the scenery. They are also in a
position to observe from the back of the
room during services. They can be used to
patrol the parking lots. Their simple presence
and visibility is a major deterrent to crime.
Thieves are not nearly as likely to break into
cars when the parking lots are actively
patrolled.
It is not difficult to turn your ushers into your
first line of defense. That does not mean that
their job suddenly becomes one of
confronting dangerous people; rather, it
becomes one of observing and
communicating.
What are they to observe? Anything out of
the ordinary. Someone who is visibly
nervous. Someone overdressed for the
weather. Someone trying to stay on the
periphery. Someone who appears upset or
angry.
Then they use their radios to call others to
the scene, or they call the police.
The best news? Your local police
department more than likely is willing to
train them for free!
Stayin’ Alive with Very Angry People
I was trained many years ago as a police hostage negotiator and was a
street cop for 13 years. While nothing is guaranteed to work with a person
angry to the point of threatening violence, the following tips have worked
for me.
1. Keep as much distance as possible between you and keep your eyes
focused on him. If possible keep a large object like a desk or table
between you, always moving so as to keep the greatest distance
between you. If the opportunity presents itself, get away from him as
fast as possible.
2. Slow everything down. No matter how scared you are, speak lower and
slower than he does. Ask questions and show sincere interest. It’s
amazing how speaking in this manner allows adrenalin to wear off,
causing him to come down from his rush into normalcy and,
eventually, fatigue.
3. Don’t touch! Your first impulse may be to move closer and reach out.
While it is meant as a gentling and calming gesture, it may have the
opposite effect of being understood as an attack necessitating a “self-
defense” attack on you.
4. Keep firm, not aggressive, eye contact but do NOT try to stare him
down. The first sign of an impending assault is often a widening of the
eyes, and watching his eyes may give you enough warning to get out of
the way of a roundhouse punch. Maintaining eye contact shows respect
for him, and steadfastness on your part, which demands respect in
return.
5. Buy time. Ask him to sit down and discuss this with you, again always
keeping a desk or some other major obstacle between you. If he sits,
you lean against something – DO NOT SIT DOWN! This gives you a
margin of safety while telling that him you are interested in his
situation.
6. Do not block escape routes. I know of a man who put himself between
his antagonist and the door, stating that no one was leaving until the
matter was settled. He woke up in an ambulance.
7. Never turn your back on your antagonist, not even for a second.
8. Choose your words carefully and say nothing that casts him in a
negative light. Ask questions, and then paraphrase his answers to show
you understand. Knowing he is being heard has a calming effect.
9. Do not defend whatever he sees as your offense against him. Instead,
ask for his help in finding a solution that works for both of you, thus
acknowledging his power and ability to settle this peacefully.
10. Ask what you can do to make things better. If asked for an apology,
don’t get caught up in the old “I don’t think I did anything wrong”
foolishness – apologize and ask for forgiveness. Whether or not you
did anything wrong is irrelevant.
11. Finally, ask if you can pray for him. This shows that you still care and
still see him as a child of God. Still, keep your eyes open.
12. Ask if there is anything else you can do for him, then get behind a
locked door and call the police.
Page 4
