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Studio Security Newsletter

Dan Daley, editor

Issue #3 — September, 2000

Securing against Robbery -- The One-On-One Crime

A lot of people confuse the terms "burglary" and "robbery," but the difference is night and day and potentially very lethal.

A burglary refers to a property theft in which there is no confrontation between perpetrator and victim; a robbery, on the other hand, is a one-on-one crime, in which perp and victim are face to face. The studio industry experienced a rash of robberies about two years ago, particularly in New York City and Los Angeles, though the most egregious one took place in Atlanta in 1998 when a rather blatant crew of robbers held the night manager at Purple Dragon Recording at gunpoint, while accomplices backed up a truck to the studio's loading dock in preparation for stealing everything, including the SSL console. The employee managed to get away, alert police, and the Atlanta PD SWAT Team was called in to settle the matter.

Due to the business nature of studios, robbers get into them a lot more easily than they can into homes, though often the m.o. is similar -- posing as delivery persons or sales people. Studios have food deliveries going on 24 hours a day, giving robbers an easy and plausible sheepskin with which to gain entry. What some studios have done, and which is very effective and simple to implement, is keeping menus on hand only for restaurants and take-out places that have been approved as vendors by the studio and which agree to use a password, which all delivery persons must use to gain entry. Changing the password at least monthly is also a good idea, since delivery employees tend to be highly job-transient.

If confronted by an armed robber -- or even one that suggests he might be armed -- the first and only thing to remember is that business insurance can replace equipment and cash, but life insurance does not replace life. Police and security experts will tell you that victims of armed robberies should always comply with robbersâ demands for valuables and with other instructions. Robbery is a high-stress endeavor for both perp and victim, so do nothing that could upset an armed robber, like resisting or dissing him. Make it clear to the robber that you intend to comply with instructions, that heâs the boss at the moment. And keep your wits about you to the extent possible, noting any points you can about their appearances, voices, vehicles, weapons, etc.

The bottom line: Don't resist -- comply. Your opportunity for rebuilding starts the moment the robbery is over. These are just a few suggestions.

Next month: Employee Theft -- How to Spot It, How To Prevent It

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