Officials Sue Home-Security Firm: State and Los...

Officials Sue Home-Security Firm: State and Los Angeles County authorities said Wednesday that they have filed a lawsuit against a defunct Fullerton home-security company that allegedly engaged in deceptive advertising and unfair business practices.

The lawsuit asks for $250,000 in damages against Superior Protection Systems Inc. of Fullerton, which did business until late last year as Superior Security Systems.

In a lawsuit filed in Los Angeles Superior Court, the state attorney general and Los Angeles County district attorney ask that Superior be enjoined from engaging in false advertising, making false representations to consumers and accepting deposits for security system installations if it cannot furnish the product.

The district attorney’s office said the lawsuit stemmed from complaints by consumers who responded to Superior’s advertising for $99 basic security systems, then were told that they could buy the systems only if they also bought security monitoring contracts as well. The cost of a monitoring contract added up to $1,177 over three years.

The lawsuit names as defendants co-owners Ian and Eric Berch, neither of whom could be reached. The telephone number listed for the security firm has been disconnected.