A leading Houston law enforcement officer called for greater partnership at the grass roots level between public safety agencies and the private security operations.
"We're all in the same business: Trying to make this country a better place," said Victor Trevino (pictured), constable of Harris County's Sixth Precinct, in a Jan. 20 address to members of the Houston Chapter of ASIS International. Even though the public and private sectors are threatened by large, international organized crime syndicates, Trevino noted that "all criminals start on the grassroots level. The grassroots level is important."
Trevino, who has held the elected post of constable since 1989, said partnership begins by moving past popular but erroneous perceptions of both police and private security officers and cultivating a relationship based on mutual respect. "It means ending the stereotype that a security officer is less than a police officer, or that a security officer is only doing it because it's an easy job. We've got to bridge that gap," Trevino said.
Trevino, whose precinct takes in key infrastructure points such as the Houston Ship Channel and Southern Pacific's area railyards, spoke to strategy and process more than technology. He said the details of any partnership exist in the experience and background of the ASIS audience and challenged listeners to create a public-private partnership model for the rest of the country.
"We can start it here at the grass roots level," he said.
Countering perceptions and resistance depends on education and awareness, Trevino said. Upon election as constable, Trevino began an anti-truancy program. At the time, the two high schools, which 1400 students each, were averaging 200 absentees a day and Houston school officials were at a loss at addressing the problem. Trevino devised a pilot program in which deputies stopped by the homes of students who were reported absent that day, mainly to see if parents were aware of it. The absentee average dropped from 200 to 50 within a week, he said.
But education and training was required, especially because officers were going into neighborhoods where police were largely regarded with suspicion. Deputies assigned to the program were trained to knock gently and avoid habits that appear threatening. They were instructed to keep their flashlights on their belts and to avoid standing in the doorway with a hand resting on their gun. "True partners don't intimidate. True partners assist," Trevino said.
Peppering his talk with anecdotes from his childhood in Mexico and later, Houston, Trevino injected self-deprecating humor into his remarks, including his account of his persistent applications to the Houston Police Department, which took several attempts and finally hinged on the height requirement being lowered from 5'8" to 5'6".
After noting that a number of his relatives also found careers in city and county law enforcement and the court system, he remarked that his children chose a different course. "They did the smart thing: They got into private security."
"We're all in the same business: Trying to make this country a better place," said Victor Trevino (pictured), constable of Harris County's Sixth Precinct, in a Jan. 20 address to members of the Houston Chapter of ASIS International. Even though the public and private sectors are threatened by large, international organized crime syndicates, Trevino noted that "all criminals start on the grassroots level. The grassroots level is important."Trevino, who has held the elected post of constable since 1989, said partnership begins by moving past popular but erroneous perceptions of both police and private security officers and cultivating a relationship based on mutual respect. "It means ending the stereotype that a security officer is less than a police officer, or that a security officer is only doing it because it's an easy job. We've got to bridge that gap," Trevino said.
Trevino, whose precinct takes in key infrastructure points such as the Houston Ship Channel and Southern Pacific's area railyards, spoke to strategy and process more than technology. He said the details of any partnership exist in the experience and background of the ASIS audience and challenged listeners to create a public-private partnership model for the rest of the country.
"We can start it here at the grass roots level," he said.
Countering perceptions and resistance depends on education and awareness, Trevino said. Upon election as constable, Trevino began an anti-truancy program. At the time, the two high schools, which 1400 students each, were averaging 200 absentees a day and Houston school officials were at a loss at addressing the problem. Trevino devised a pilot program in which deputies stopped by the homes of students who were reported absent that day, mainly to see if parents were aware of it. The absentee average dropped from 200 to 50 within a week, he said.
But education and training was required, especially because officers were going into neighborhoods where police were largely regarded with suspicion. Deputies assigned to the program were trained to knock gently and avoid habits that appear threatening. They were instructed to keep their flashlights on their belts and to avoid standing in the doorway with a hand resting on their gun. "True partners don't intimidate. True partners assist," Trevino said.
Peppering his talk with anecdotes from his childhood in Mexico and later, Houston, Trevino injected self-deprecating humor into his remarks, including his account of his persistent applications to the Houston Police Department, which took several attempts and finally hinged on the height requirement being lowered from 5'8" to 5'6".
After noting that a number of his relatives also found careers in city and county law enforcement and the court system, he remarked that his children chose a different course. "They did the smart thing: They got into private security."
A leading Houston law enforcement officer called for greater partnership at the grass roots level between public safety agencies and the private security operations.
"We're all in the same business: Trying to make this country a better place," said Victor Trevino (pictured), constable of Harris County's Sixth Precinct, in a Jan. 20 address to members of the Houston Chapter of ASIS International. Even though the public and private sectors are threatened by large, international organized crime syndicates, Trevino noted that "all criminals start on the grassroots level. The grassroots level is important."
Trevino, who has held the elected post of constable since 1989, said partnership begins by moving past popular but erroneous perceptions of both police and private security officers and cultivating a relationship based on mutual respect. "It means ending the stereotype that a security officer is less than a police officer, or that a security officer is only doing it because it's an easy job. We've got to bridge that gap," Trevino said.
Trevino, whose precinct takes in key infrastructure points such as the Houston Ship Channel and Southern Pacific's area railyards, spoke to strategy and process more than technology. He said the details of any partnership exist in the experience and background of the ASIS audience and challenged listeners to create a public-private partnership model for the rest of the country.
"We can start it here at the grass roots level," he said.
Countering perceptions and resistance depends on education and awareness, Trevino said. Upon election as constable, Trevino began an anti-truancy program. At the time, the two high schools, which 1400 students each, were averaging 200 absentees a day and Houston school officials were at a loss at addressing the problem. Trevino devised a pilot program in which deputies stopped by the homes of students who were reported absent that day, mainly to see if parents were aware of it. The absentee average dropped from 200 to 50 within a week, he said.
But education and training was required, especially because officers were going into neighborhoods where police were largely regarded with suspicion. Deputies assigned to the program were trained to knock gently and avoid habits that appear threatening. They were instructed to keep their flashlights on their belts and to avoid standing in the doorway with a hand resting on their gun. "True partners don't intimidate. True partners assist," Trevino said.
Peppering his talk with anecdotes from his childhood in Mexico and later, Houston, Trevino injected self-deprecating humor into his remarks, including his account of his persistent applications to the Houston Police Department, which took several attempts and finally hinged on the height requirement being lowered from 5'8" to 5'6".
After noting that a number of his relatives also found careers in city and county law enforcement and the court system, he remarked that his children chose a different course. "They did the smart thing: They got into private security."
"We're all in the same business: Trying to make this country a better place," said Victor Trevino (pictured), constable of Harris County's Sixth Precinct, in a Jan. 20 address to members of the Houston Chapter of ASIS International. Even though the public and private sectors are threatened by large, international organized crime syndicates, Trevino noted that "all criminals start on the grassroots level. The grassroots level is important."Trevino, who has held the elected post of constable since 1989, said partnership begins by moving past popular but erroneous perceptions of both police and private security officers and cultivating a relationship based on mutual respect. "It means ending the stereotype that a security officer is less than a police officer, or that a security officer is only doing it because it's an easy job. We've got to bridge that gap," Trevino said.
Trevino, whose precinct takes in key infrastructure points such as the Houston Ship Channel and Southern Pacific's area railyards, spoke to strategy and process more than technology. He said the details of any partnership exist in the experience and background of the ASIS audience and challenged listeners to create a public-private partnership model for the rest of the country.
"We can start it here at the grass roots level," he said.
Countering perceptions and resistance depends on education and awareness, Trevino said. Upon election as constable, Trevino began an anti-truancy program. At the time, the two high schools, which 1400 students each, were averaging 200 absentees a day and Houston school officials were at a loss at addressing the problem. Trevino devised a pilot program in which deputies stopped by the homes of students who were reported absent that day, mainly to see if parents were aware of it. The absentee average dropped from 200 to 50 within a week, he said.
But education and training was required, especially because officers were going into neighborhoods where police were largely regarded with suspicion. Deputies assigned to the program were trained to knock gently and avoid habits that appear threatening. They were instructed to keep their flashlights on their belts and to avoid standing in the doorway with a hand resting on their gun. "True partners don't intimidate. True partners assist," Trevino said.
Peppering his talk with anecdotes from his childhood in Mexico and later, Houston, Trevino injected self-deprecating humor into his remarks, including his account of his persistent applications to the Houston Police Department, which took several attempts and finally hinged on the height requirement being lowered from 5'8" to 5'6".
After noting that a number of his relatives also found careers in city and county law enforcement and the court system, he remarked that his children chose a different course. "They did the smart thing: They got into private security."
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