Interview With Bob Chauncey, Founder of Church Security Institute Network
SemperVerus interviewed Bob Chauncey, CPP, CISM, LEO (Ret.), founder of Church Security Institute Network.
[ Read the SemperVerus article, New Website Address for Church Security Institute Network ]
What prompted you to enter a career in the fields of law enforcement, private security, and chaplaincy?
As the son of a Baptist pastor, I didn’t want to be a preacher, but rather a police officer, and God let me do that and more.
In college, I got a scholarship as the assistant to the security officer, a retired Navy Chief. I worked from 7 pm to 10 pm, patrolling the campus and responding to calls, and he called when he was ready to take the night shift. I guess this gave me interest in a later law enforcement role.
[ Read the SemperVerus article, A Prayer for Church Security Team Members ]
Please tell the needs you saw as the reasons for creating Church Security Institute and tell when you created it.
After about eight years as a police officer, I saw the need for more of a professional security officer role. I saw that a police officer had less authority than a Special Conservator of the Peace on private property. I knew of a car dealership and a real estate firm having a lot of theft problems who were interested in my private help.
I had started Safety Arms Police Equipment, selling to local and federal government and officers. I added Safety Arms Security Private Police Patrol Service to meet needs. I was able to add other businesses to our service, and then CBN’s The 700 Club executive producer asked me to consider serving the local CBN TV-27 station, for Christian Broadcasting Network, for Pat Robertson. And that gave us a real boost in our services.
We picked up local city accounts in Portsmouth, Norfolk, and Virginia Beach, where we did all of the Virginia Beach city departments, schools, Convention Center, and all city buildings. In Norfolk, we did all of the city parking garages and Scope—Chrysler Hall.
This grew to a staff of 159, with alarms, polygraph, investigative, and on-site officers in office buildings, a few hotels, shopping centers, and over 3,000 apartment units in five cities. Later, as interest rates got too high for a labor-intensive business, I sold the patrol uniformed security business.
After a few years of alarms and investigations, I decided to sell these and go with a national alarm service as a senior commercial consultant and did that for a few years. One of my clients wanted to sell her firm—a Christian singles introduction service—and I bought the firm, running it for eight years and expanding it online.
During that time, I became a police chaplain for ten years. A sheriff talked me into also being his street patrol chaplain and a sworn deputy patrol officer for 13 years. This is when I realized I could take all I’ve experienced, learned, and been trained, and use it to give back to God and his churches and flocks they serve. God is good. He keeps me in his plan and will continue to do so, according to his timing.
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What do you want Church Security Institute to accomplish?
I’d like this needed ministry to grow and expand services, and am looking for an individual or group to acquire, carry on, and expand the ministry.
[ Read the SemperVerus article, Church Security Book Review: Defending the Flock ]
How should church security leaders and team members best use the Church Security Institute website?
We are a source of information on activities, articles, events, and materials for safety and security training. We also do risk reviews—help with developing a plan, policies, training of teams, and carrying out their plans.
[ Read the SemperVerus article, 2025 Edition of Hostility Against Churches Report Shows 415 US Attacks in 2024 ]
How do you characterize the current threat level against houses of worship in America? How serious is it?
Sadly, the threats, attacks, arson, break-ins, crime, disruption of services, embezzlement, child and adult sexual abuse, and shootings, are all increasing. It calls for a greater need to be prepared. Ready to act or react to protect his flocks. Pastors are called to be their shepherds; to provide for and protect.
[ Read the SemperVerus article, The 5 Lines of Defense in Church Security, Beginning Outside ]
What are your recommendations in the ways church security teams should be prepared to prevent and protect against threats to their congregations?
There is a great need to have a risk review and to develop a plan, with policies, to carry out the plan with a team, trained to meet church needs. These can be safety needs—such as a fire, lost or missing child, domestic issues, medical emergencies—or security needs—like a disruption of services, a monitor in parking areas, entry points to Deter, Detect, or Delay danger as you call for assistance or back-up for a case of suspicious person or possible issue. Another big concern is child safety.
[ Read the SemperVerus article, Checklist: Church Security/Safety Equipment ]
What forms of local (even national and global) intelligence gathering should church security teams avail themselves of to be ready to counter criminal and terrorism threats?
Church leadership and security teams should be aware of any local, national, and international incidents or increases in attacks, damages, dangers, issues, or threats by groups acting in any other areas, and which may be nearby.
[ Read SemperVerus articles on the topic of SITUATIONAL AWARENESS ]
What areas of training should security team volunteers be seeking on a regular basis, and how regular?
There needs to be a coordinated plan for a basic overall coordinated class, followed by specific areas of need, based on local area and church concerns. De-escalation, self-defense, and legal liability for intentional acts, along with church and team personal insurance protection for arrests and civil liability lawsuits. All affecting the team. Another need is firearms standardization and training for those who carry, and less lethal items to use before any deadly force is needed.
[ Read the SemperVerus article, Church Security: Radio Communications Best Practices ]
Should church security leaders connect with their local government’s emergency services, and if so, how should they do that? And what are the best practices of a church security team working with those government departments?
When seconds count and help is minutes away, security teams are their only first responder; already onsite to act or react to a situation. By having a good relationship with deputies, EMS, Fire, and Police, they can provide tours of the facilities, maps of areas, and give an idea of how they can support each other in meeting their needs.
[ Read the SemperVerus article, Gentle Response De-Escalation Training for Church Security Teams ]
What is a Christian ministry mindset, and how should it be incorporated into a church security team’s practices?
The Bible says, “They posted a watch” to protect those working on the wall, who also had a weapon. It also shares that the shepherd, the pastor, is called to “provide for and protect” God’s flock he has guided the pastor to and provided him to serve. Yet we have a lot of problems getting pastors, leadership, deacons, elders, to have any real interest in the safety and security of their church and its members, staff, and visitors who come. This is a real frustration, since we don’t charge for our services, and often think maybe we should to cover the costs if we’re doing it for free.
[ Read the SemperVerus article, Organizing, Training & Running a House of Worship Armed Congregant Security Team ]
Is there anything else you’d like to say?
I’ve done Church Security Institute Network a long time now, and I feel it’s an important service, for a ministry or business, and hate to see it end, when I can no longer do it. I believe God called me for it, and the national presenters, trainers, we’ve brought here, have brought a lot of great training, plus the regular training that we do, tactical first aid, protecting his flock IF Children and Youth, Active Shooter Prevention, How To Be Prepared, Ready, have been a lot of help in improving safety.
To contact Bob Chauncey, email ChurchSecurityInstitute@gmail.com or phone or text 757-580-5966 to discuss needs for your particular site and your situation, regardless of the size or problems you see.
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