Night Clubs and Bouncers

SMSI Staff Writer

02.01.02

A steady source of security litigation results from the use of untrained security personnel in nightclubs and bars. The litigation usually results from two distinct scenarios. Either the untrained security personnel fail to prevent a security problem from occurring, such as an assault, or they commit an intentional tort such as false arrest or use of excessive force.

There is a popular misconcep-tion in the nightclub industry that all they need is a 6'6" behemoth who weighs 300 pounds. This thinking is not completely flawed because oversized security persons often have a more even temperament and their size is often an effective deterrent.

This reasoning may seem to hold up based on the experience of many nightclub owners. However, once there is a problem lem, such as use of excessive force, hiring practices, training, and supervision will be closely examined. The adequacy of how much security is needed will also be scrutinized. Even when nightclubs contract for their security services, they are expected to do diligence in selecting a competent and qualified vendor. Once an incident has occurred, it is to late to go back and fix it. Expediency is often expensive.