Key Points

• Evidenced by communication failures that nearly ended in Trump’s assassination, joint security arrangements can result in security gaps unless coordination and alignment are frequently reviewed.

• A case study from a large university that is serviced by several security entities reveals the potential for mistrust, inefficiency, cultural challenges, inconsistencies, and confusion among the population served.

• Alignment in complex security arrangements can be improved through developing a common vision, practice standardization, joint training initiatives, and communication with community stakeholders.

Disconnect Between Secret Service and Police at Fault in Trump Assassination Attempt

The timeline in the recent Trump assassination attempt reveals critical communication failures that allowed a shooter to nearly kill the former US President.

A 6:02 p.m., Trump took the stage to begin his regular rally speech—more than 40 minutes after local law enforcement had taken notice of a suspect individual with a backpack and a range finder and radioed their concerns.

At 6:09 p.m., spectators began yelling to police officers, alerting them that an armed man was on the roof of a nearby building. A local police officer climbed to the roof but fell to the ground when the shooter turned toward him, and an officer radioed that he spotted a man with a gun. Nearly a minute later, the gunman fired the eight shots that killed one individual, wounded several others, and nearly killed the Republican nominee for President.

The security failure sparked multiple questions, including why Trump was allowed to take the stage to deliver his regular rally speech when a suspicious person had been identified and was unaccounted for. Also, why was Trump not hurried off the stage, even after an officer had confronted the shooter and a warning about him went out on the radio?

Information conveyed on the police radio call never made it to Secret Service agents because they were operating from a different command post than local police and were not on the same radio channel, it was revealed in a joint hearing of the Senate Judiciary and Homeland Security committees investigating the security missteps.

“It appears that that information was stuck or siloed in that local channel.” — Ronald Rowe, Acting Director, U.S. Secret Service

Acting Secret Service Ronald Rowe Jr. acknowledged the communication failure and said the event would cause the agency to "re-evaluate where we put our security rooms. If a state or local [authority] sets up a unified command post, maybe we need to be in that room as well."

Several security experts have publicly criticized the lack of coordination, including Steve Georgas, former deputy chief of the Chicago Police Department who worked on hundreds of joint assignments with the Secret Service. According to Georgas, putting local officers and Secret Service agents together in one location is “extremely vital” to close communication gaps and ensure every radio frequency would be monitored in a joint command center.

Case Study: Good Standalone Security Organizations Are Not Sufficient

In many campus environments, sworn officers and non-sworn officers, or contract security personnel, proprietary security employees, and police work in the same environment.

It is possible to enhance protection when distinct security organizations work separately but in close alignment, but coordination is not always easy. Problems may arise—even among independently effective security organizations. Problems can include:

• lack of coordination,
• misunderstanding of roles and responsibilities,
• confusion over the population being served,
• mistrust, and
• absence of a shared vision.

To sidestep these potential problems, read Case Study: Improving Coordination in a Complex, Multi-Authority Security Arrangement