Security guard alleges assault by manager

Former Spectaguard supervisor Bernard Horton also claims he was harassed by superiors after filing the complaint. and Maureen Tkacik An alleged physical altercation between a University Spectaguard shift supervisor and a management official wound up in criminal court earlier this month and may spawn a civil suit. Bernard Horton, 46, of Yates, Pa., quit Spectaguard last week, accusing his superiors of harassing him after he brought simple assault charges against Spectaguard account manager Bill Brennan. Brennan, who is still employed by the company -- Penn's security-guard contractor -- allegedly shoved Horton after a disagreement at about 11:30 p.m. on December 2. When someone -- presumably a security guard -- was playing rap music over a radio, thereby disabling communications among all guards, and between them and University Police officers, Horton called all guards under his supervision to Spectaguard's office, located then in Weightman Hall at 235 S. 33rd Street. Brennan, an ex-Philadelphia Police officer who was Horton's direct superior that night, disagreed with Horton's decision to call the guards off the streets and approached him to tell him so. Accounts of what happened next differ widely. According to Horton, Brennan then shoved him "10 feet back" and "forcibly moved" him down 33rd Street. But Spectaguard spokesperson Larry Rubin said Brennan simply "put his hand on Horton's shoulder" to motion for him to move away from the guards and discuss the situation in private. Brennan did not return several phone calls to his office yesterday. According to a former Spectaguard security guard who arrived at the scene immediately following the alleged incident, Brennan proceeded to yell at Horton and order his security guards back on the streets. Horton filed a private criminal complaint against Brennan on January 21. At the February 13 trial, the judge told Brennan to "stay away from" Horton, according to Rubin. It was unclear last night whether he was found guilty of any criminal charges. Private complaints are different from other criminal complaints in that they are filed directly by the alleged victim of a crime. According to the Spectaguard manual of rules and regulations, "engaging in fighting or disorderly conduct? at any time" will result in immediate dismissal. But an investigation Spectaguard officials conducted into the incident concluded only that Brennan exercised "poor judgment" and did not push Horton with "malicious intent," according to a letter the company sent Horton. And because Spectaguard deemed the physical contact to be minor, there was no need to discipline Brennan, Rubin said, adding that Spectaguard officials extensively "counseled" both men following the incident. But Horton said Brennan continued to harass him after the incident and he remained afraid that Brennan would physically harm him -- an allegation he said he may use to prove he faced "hostile working conditions" in a civil suit against the King of Prussia, Pa.-based company. "Everybody was scared for my safety," he said, adding that he had fellow employees escort him to his car following work every evening after the incident. Horton also accused Brennan of discarding incident reports written by the 13 guards on the scene about the argument that night. In addition, Horton claimed the investigation was incomplete because none of the guards was "even asked a question" by investigators. But Rubin insisted that "Spectaguard did a complete and thorough investigation." "Numerous incident reports were reviewed, and [the reports] corroborated Mr. Brennan's side of the situation," he said. But Rubin did concede that some of the reports contradicted Brennan's story. Also, the 13 witnesses signed a petition for Horton saying that his account of the incident was correct, according to Horton and a former Spectaguard employee who asked to remain anonymous. Horton said he left Spectaguard on February 15 because the consolidation of Penn Division of Public Safety offices into the new building on 4040 Chestnut Street meant he would have to work closely with Brennan. Associate Director of Security Services Chris Algard, the University's security director at the time of the incident, stressed that Spectaguard handled the situation internally and "took action which was satisfactory to" Penn officials.

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