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Posted on 12/14/2004 12:22:00 AM PST by weegee
Onstage Murder Could've Been Prevented, Security Experts Say
Concert venues need trained staff and metal detectors, they insist.
The onstage murder of "Dimebag" Darrell Abbott leaves not just Damageplan fans, but concertgoers everywhere, with many troubling concerns. Chief among them was that the tragedy might have been prevented for less than $50, the price of a handheld metal detector.
"It should have been a common practice. It should have been something they had," said Paul Wertheimer of Crowd Management Strategies, a consulting firm specializing in concert safety. "If it was used right, it would have caught the gun and you would have never heard about it. It would have been an item in the police blotter of the Columbus Dispatch."
Wertheimer, who's made a career out of studying concert safety, has been called on to supply his expertise in the wakes of such disasters as Denmark's 2000 Roskilde festival, where nine fans were crushed to death, and last year's nightclub fires in Rhode Island and Chicago, which killed more than 120 people combined.
Though Wertheimer's seen his share of security failures, Wednesday's incident in Columbus, Ohio, adds a horrifying new twist to the dangers of going to a show: guns (see "Dimebag Darrell, Four Others Killed In Ohio Concert Shooting"). That the shootings come less than two months after R. Kelly claimed people flashed guns at him while he was onstage (see "Jay-Z, R. Kelly Part Ways as Best Of Both Worlds Tour Collapses") may mark the beginning of a frightening trend. The days when security guards' biggest concerns were drunken fistfights and smuggled-in recording devices are over.
"In any crowd, there's going to be a certain percentage who are going to be troublemakers and ne'er-do-wells," Wertheimer explained. "You have to plan for those, and now they may have weapons. That doesn't mean you don't have the concerts. It just means you have to take the necessary precautions to protect the public."
The first step in doing that is insisting that everyone submit to a search with a metal detector, either the large walk-through kind or the simple handheld device such as the one Wertheimer found online and posted on his Web site, www.crowdsafe.com. And no genre should be considered immune to violence, either.
"I recently saw [pop-punkers] Mest at the House of Blues, and everybody went through metal detectors," Wertheimer said. "Not because Mest fans are known to be violent, but just because it was a prudent thing to do. You just do it, and you do it as routine."
According to witnesses, the Alrosa Villa club didn't use metal detectors, though all House of Blues venues (18 in North America) use handheld detectors, according to HOB's Jack Gannon, senior vice president of marketing. Clear Channel Concerts, the country's largest promoter in North America, wouldn't comment on whether it uses metal detectors at its venues.
But having metal detectors won't do much if they're not used properly.
"I've been to shows where the security was waving the wand around like a maestro conducting an orchestra," Wertheimer said. "They're going everywhere but where they should go."
"Security management is not rocket science," admits Filippo Marino, managing director of Entertainment Security Professional Network, an offshoot of the larger corporate security firm Security Director LLC. "It does require a degree of common sense and commitment, which unfortunately some club owners are not willing to pursue."
Marino said cost may not be the only determining factor when it comes to clubs using metal detectors. Instead, some club owners are more worried about their image than the safety of their patrons.
"Most club owners will tell you that the moment you start having personnel at the door [with metal detectors], you're sending a message that you're dealing with a crowd that may be bringing in weapons, and therefore you're lowering the quality of your image."
The Entertainment Security Professional Network was founded last year when executives at the parent company noticed "a particular lack of training and professional education" in concert venues and nightclubs, Marino said. So they started holding training seminars to ensure that security personnel are properly trained. In London, nightclub security guards are required to be certified, but there's no such mandate in the U.S., where all too often a pair of menacing biceps are the only qualifications needed.
"The biggest concern is a lack of standards in the concert industry," Wertheimer said. "There is no national standard that addresses the safety of concertgoers. That's why there seems to be so many safety lapses where common-sense solutions are obvious."
"The average bouncer or person working security, in terms of training, can probably claim to have a good workout schedule," Marino said half-jokingly. "It's a sad state of affairs."
Wertheimer said safety-conscious concertgoers should take note of not just the emergency exit locations, but also the preparedness of a venue's security personnel.
"Look for metal detectors," he advised. "Look over the security. Ask yourself, 'Are they professional? Do they treat you professionally and with respect? Are they watching the crowd or are they watching the band and looking at the pretty girls?' ... A black T-shirt and a flashlight does not a security guard make. Just because they're there doesn't mean you're safe."
I do not find the comments in this article to be very sound or practical.
This murder was a stalking. If he could not bring the gun into the club, he could have shot the band members outside of the venue as they waited by their van/bus.
I've been screened by metal detectors at shows largely attended by adults and been told to remove the chain on my wallet at times (as it was considered a "weapon", what about my belt, can I keep that on?)
I WILL say that there are reasons for putting a walk through metal detector in every restaurant, bank, bar, and recommended for convenience stores.
Banks get robbed. Here in Houston, one branch of Washington Mutual got so fed up with it that there is a two-door "quarantine" foyer that locks each customer inside until a teller passes them into to the bank.
Luby's had a hostage situation in a restaurant in the 1990s in Texas (and it was a bloody massacre). Look back to the 1980s and people did this at McDonald's.
Bars have brawls and shootings every night. Some of the shootings occur inside, sometimes in the parking lot. Can't prevent them but if concerts have to have them, so do all bars, not just those with live music.
Convenience stores get robbed regularly. Some now lock out ALL customers after 10pm (and only handle transactions through a small drawer and bulletproof glass).
The last reason for implemented metal detectors everywhere is national security. We have not had cafe and nightclub bombings as there have been around the world from Bali to Jerusalem but we "could". A bomb is even more deadly than a knife or gun; gun grabbers don't even want to consider the possibility.
This was a stalking killing. If we are going to turn the world upside down and treat a night's entertainment going out like a trip on an airplane, then let us be complete.
Heck, it is matter of course for movie theaters to screen all customers these days (to make sure that they don't have camcorders or digital cameras).
If all of these businesses are unsafe, then maybe I should reconsider going to such businesses ALTOGETHER.
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Lawyer alert: This is planted "news" from the trial lawyer industry.
How could anyone be proud of the nickname "Dimebag"???
All the hash pipes would be siezed, then the "music" wouldn't sound good.
Nope, metal detectors aren't the answer... Better music is.
It would attract a better class of people.
The guy jumped the back fence to come in. How would the metal detectors have stopped him?
Exactly. The guy was trying to get close to the band, security wouldn't let him. He kept trying to sneak in without a ticket, security kept stopping him. He jumped a fence and was chased by security. The only thing that would have stopped him would have been if security had guns themselves.
Why not?????
hmmm....
What kind of bag is that?
What do you think a "dimebag" is?
I didn't see any mention of that in the article - it had to do with security at concerts.
Besides, it would be kinda fun throwing stuff at the band.
Musical genres are a matter of taste, nothing more.
OF COURSE I know what "dimebag" is...it's a part of our culture (those of us who enjoy marijuana), & we are proud if it.
You're a narrow-minded generalizer. I like rock, heavy metal, country...I like it all, except rap of course. And I can tell you, I've seen good and bad across the board. So don't think country is crap-free. "Why don't we get drunk and screw?"...Rodney Carrington's "Dear Penis"...there's many more if you'd like me to continue. Regardless, country promotes sex, alcohol, cheating, stealing, etc. So don't act all high and mighty, and tear down a good man who was MURDERED. Remember, John Lennon was murdered by a fanatic too. And he didn't play heavy metal.
The liability is not just for the band but for all patrons.
Does the crowd get protected by a cage too? Have to screen the crowd before they enter the cage...
It is twenty times better than 50 Cent!
Incidentally, he started out in the 80s as "Diamond" but "Diamond" David Lee Roth sort of became more popular with that moniker.
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