CASH-STRAPPED CITIES TRY PRIVATE GUARDS OVER POLICE

CALIFORNIA

Facing pressure to crack down on crime amid a record budget deficit, Oakland is joining other U.S. cities that are turning over more law-enforcement duties to private armed guards.

The City Council recently voted to hire International Services Inc., a private security agency, to patrol crime-plagued districts. While a few Oakland retail districts have pooled cash to pay for unarmed security services, using public funds to pay for armed guards would mark a first for the city.

Yet, hiring private guards is less expensive than hiring new officers:

• Oakland -- facing an $80 million budget shortfall -- spends 65 percent of its budget for police and fire services.
• In contrast, for about $200,000 a year the city can contract to hire 4 private guards to patrol the troubled East Oakland district where 4 on-duty police officers were killed in March.

Oakland police say they consider unarmed guards acceptable, but don't support armed guards*. However, some local leaders say that they have few other options to reduce the city's violence. And they are not alone in seeking to improve public safety while reining in spending:

• Districts in downtown Los Angeles with guards register significantly less crime than areas without them.
• Some areas of New Orleans have used armed private patrols since 1997 and neighborhood committees are seeking to expand special tax incentives to pay for private security for neighborhood patrols.

[Why wouldn't the police want known, armed guards supplementing their efforts?
A: Union first {citizen safety second}.]

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