Audio clip
Jack Benson
The Chattanooga City Council’s Legal and Legislative Committee is reviewing the city’s policy on authorizing Erlanger hospital security officers to carry weapons.
District 8 Councilman Leamon Pierce broached the issue during the committee’s meeting Tuesday, asking who could be held responsible if the City Council authorizes an officer to carry a weapon that later is used inappropriately.
“If (an officer) used that gun, and it wasn’t used properly and we get a lawsuit, I’d say the city would be liable for giving him permission,” Mr. Pierce said.
The city does background checks on officers it authorizes, but Mr. Pierce said outdated certification from out-of-state agencies may not show up during those.
The city also approves University of Tennessee at Chattanooga police officers, according to city code. And the council gives police power to some neighborhood services and public works employees so they can write citations, but it does not authorize them to carry weapons.
Mr. Pierce said he wondered why the city must approve Erlanger security when the hospital is not run by the city.
“I’m really not satisfied with the answers I got to the extent of whether we would really be liable if that person killed someone, and the family said it was a wrongful death,” he said.
Committee Chairman Jack Benson said the city also certifies park officers and security officers at events. The committee wants to ensure all officers have received proper training in the safety and use of weapons and are competent to carry them.
“We just want to make sure there’s some type of quality assurance requirements put into place,” he said.
Erlanger hospital employs 26 armed officers who provide security at the Erlanger’s Baroness and Erlanger North campuses, in addition to its two community centers, Erlanger Security Director Howard Brown said in a statement. Those officers have all had required police academy training and must undergo firearms qualification testing every year at the firing range.
Erlanger also has 10 security guards not armed with weapons, but who have Mace and expandable batons and have been trained in the use of both, he said.
The committee asked the city attorney and Chattanooga Police Chief Freeman Cooper to review the procedures and report to the committee within a month, Mr. Benson said.
