Subscribe
Physical security is imperative for the military. Oregon National Guard’s Joint Force Headquarters Provost Marshall Deputy, Staff Sgt. Micah Boyll, travels to different military sites in Oregon to conduct physical security inspections ensuring the units are protected. He coordinates a time with battalion areas of operations for the inspections, advises The Adjutant General and Joint Chief of Staff on the state of Oregon National Guard’s overall physical security.
Each unit’s supply sergeant compiles and keeps the information and documentation in a physical security handbook. These documents are memos, forms, and standard operating procedures appointing access, procedures, and that those procedures are followed.
“I check to see if the unit is following guidelines in Army and Department of Defense documents,” Boyll said. “It proves monthly, quarterly, and yearly inspections are done and done appropriately and helps to ensure the materials and permissions are accurate.”
Scheduled inspections are done on arms, ammunition and explosives, vehicles and motor pool items, and other government resources such as computers every 18 months, 24 months, and 36 months, respectively.
Each piece of equipment is “owned” or signed for, by the unit commanders, but it’s the supply sergeants who are responsible for the whereabouts and maintenance of equipment.
“The supply sergeant does not own the items, but signs for everything he oversees. This makes it his responsibility if something happens,” Boyll said. “Legal proceedings could happen if it wasn’t up to date. This way he won’t have to pay back thousands of dollars of Army equipment if something does go missing.”
It’s in the benefit of the supply sergeant to keep the handbook current and up to date. The inspector looks for areas that are out of date, that items are being inspected regularly, and changes in personnel, templates and standard operating procedures.
“This is not to catch people not doing things the Army says,” Boyll said. It’s a quality check for the benefit of the supply sergeant and the unit.
The attention to physical security does not prevent incidents from happening. The best security plan of action can be thwarted.
“Break-ins can still happen; stuff can still get stolen,” Boyll said.
Keeping the handbook up to date allows Boyll to see if there is an area that become breach point. The physical security inspection is the first line of defense the military has for mitigating crime. If a breach does happen, hey depend on local law enforcement to take control and do the challenging work of finding the criminal.
“If there is an incident it is a local law enforcement matter. They will do the criminal investigation, interview, and collect evidence,” Boyll said. “We will take statements.”
Boyll has inspected 60 units in the past six weeks prior to coming to the 82nd Troop Command Battalion, March 16, 2022. Documentation and the knowledge of who does what and what needs to be done are the basics of physical security.
“If everything is in order,” Boyll said, “the supply sergeant can say, ‘I did my part.’”
Boyll is the primary noncommissioned officer for physical security and the alternate for operational security, information security and anti-terrorism and emergency management situations.
| Date Taken: | 03.16.2022 |
| Date Posted: | 06.18.2022 20:41 |
| Story ID: | 423341 |
| Location: | SALEM, OREGON, US |
| Web Views: | 28 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Physical Security is Crime Prevention, by SFC Anita Stratton, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
