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Security kept busy on “Black” Friday, no major incidents www.privateofficer.com
By: Rick McCann
Staff
Private Officer News Network
www.privateofficer.com
“Black Friday” shoppers were out in the hundreds of thousands nationwide with many lining up at area stores and malls before their turkey dinner was ever digested.
Many stores opened before the crack of dawn while regional shopping malls in Birmingham Alabama, Charlotte NC, Nashville TN, Atlanta Ga and in many other areas of the country swung their doors open at the midnight hour and shoppers were ready to fill those malls.
Tammy Howell of Hoover Al. said that eating Thanksgiving dinner and heading to the Galleria Mall for midnight shopping has been a family tradition for several years and she and her sisters really love it.
Security and police reports in most areas of the country today reported that the most serious incidents involved heavy traffic, vehicle accidents and congested highways and retail thefts. Loss prevention reports show arrests for thefts were up from 2008 but there was no official count on the number of shoplifting arrests made on Friday.
Police said that there were some incidents involving pushing and shoving, several assault arrests and one stabbing incident reported in an Indiana department store but at this time no major incidents or related deaths have been reported.
Many retailers, shopping malls and cities took extra percautions this Black Friday and doubled or even tripled their police and security presence after a Wal-Mart security officer was trampled to death last year in New York. So far, the extra security visability seems to have worked and shoppers reported being happy and thankful for the extra security protection.
Retailers are reporting that sales have been brisk and revenues are up from last year.
For the next week, PrivateOfficer.com news staff will be reviewing police and security reports, media accounts from across the country and other data to get a clearer security picture of the Black Friday week-end incidents and events and will do a follow-up story when all information and data has been compiled.
