In moments of crisis or concern, whether it’s at a store or a concert, security guards may be the ones people turn to for help.
"The majority of it is classroom, then you have a hands-on course that covers combative, handcuffing, pepper spray, baton and firearms. And you'll do those things hands-on as part of your training," Marcus says. Ranger Guard's founder, David Catran, says the days of people perceiving security guards as just"mall cops," in his words, are changing.
Robert McCrie teaches at the John Jay School of Criminal Justice in New York and has studied private security since the 1970s. He says 28 states require specific hours of training for a security guard to carry a gun. Maryland's governor signed a bill that will make his state the 29th in 2024.