Santa Ana : Guards Hired to Patrol Civic Center Parking Lot
The Police Department this week has hired two uniformed private security guards to patrol a parking lot used by jurors and civic center employees, authorities said.
The 1,150-car lot on Flower Street, west of the Civic Center, has had a substantial increase in auto thefts in the past six months, police officials said.
It is only the second time that Santa Ana police have hired private guards to continuously patrol an area in an effort to stem an increase in crime. Universal Security Co. is now providing guards who patrol the lot of the Orange County Transit District terminal on 5th Street.
“This is a special response to a special problem,” police spokeswoman Maureen A. Thomas said.
The thousands of cars parked every weekday on the public lot has become a magnet for car thieves, said Loren Duchesne, chief investigator for the district attorney’s office.
Thomas said the department opted for private guards over uniformed officers because the costs are substantially less.
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