Sample Course Outline

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Sample Surveillance Training Program

Materials:

I. Class Presentations: PowerPoint Presentations including photographic and video materials as appropriate, audio narrative and text.

Introduction to the Courses

  • Covers: What the student will be studying; background of the author, how the course will be run; short presentation to acquaint the students with the author and the course.
  • Written Materials: none
  • Other Supplementary Materials: none

1) Surveillance Basic Principles I

  • Covers: Gaming and Cheating Definitions; Types of Gamblers; Advantage Play;  Purpose and Function of Surveillance; Training and Barriers to Training;  JDLR Principle; Most Basic Indicators; Camouflaged Holes; Chain of Command
  • Written Materials: Surveillance Basic Policies;  Murphy’s Law; Confidentiality; The Observer’s Instinct, or, “JDLR”; Indicators of Cheating, Theft and Crooked Play;  Camouflaged Holes; Chain of Command;
  • Other Supplementary Materials: Nevada Revised Statutes 465

2) Surveillance Basics II

  • Covers: Teamwork (Security, Surveillance, Operations, Management);  Internal Theft and Fraud Basic Principles; Politics in the Casino Organization
  • Written Materials: Teamwork Part I and II, III; Politics; Direction of Attention; False Reports; Ethics Immunity;
  • Other Supplementary Materials: none

3) Protecting Casino Patrons

  • Covers: Protecting the guests of the casino-hotel enterprise, its most vital asset
  • Written Materials: Protecting Casino Patrons; Protecting Guests outside the Hotel; Dealing with Slip and Fall Incidents
  • Other Supplementary Materials: none

4) Observation and Memory Skills

  • Covers: Drills for improving observation, memory and communication skills
  • Written Materials: None
  • Other Supplementary Materials: Drill Sheets

5) Consistent Surveillance Results: Focusing Observations

  • Covers: Surveillance methods of observation, scale of observation focus
  • Written Materials: Consistent Surveillance Results;  Procedures; Effective Procedures; Handling Procedure Violations; Fixing It; Put It in Writing
  • Other Supplementary Materials: none

6) Evidence 101: Criminal Evidence

  • Covers: Definitions, gathering, reviewing, preservation and presentation of evidence in criminal matters such as cheating, fraud, theft, assault and other matters common in casinos
  • Written Materials: Recording Observations; Probable Cause; Evidence 101; Evidence Control
  • Other Supplementary Materials: Case studies and news articles regarding cases which resulted in no prosecution or civil suits because of mishandled evidence

7) Surveillance Coverage for Incidents

  • Covers: Minimum Surveillance Coverage for any incident occurring and being observed in present time
  • Written Materials: None
  • Other Supplementary Materials: Outline of the class presentation showing the photo samples of the various types of coverage required for real-time observation of incidents

8) Evidence 201: Civil Evidence–accidents and injuries

  • Covers: Difference between criminal and civil evidence rules, special take on potential impact of civil cases, necessary evidence to be saved and documentation.
  • Written Materials: Evidence 201
  • Other Supplementary Materials: Some case law and news stories regarding potential impact of civil litigation on the casino

9) Evidence 202: Civil Evidence– misconduct

  • Covers: Evidence required when covering internal fraud, theft and cheating, as well as other employee misconduct. Guest misconduct and potential impact on casino; required evidence handling, including documentation of warnings to guests, training of staff and staff progressive discipline
  • Written Materials: Evidence 202; Evidence 203
  • Other Supplementary Materials: none

10) Effective Surveillance Reporting

  • Covers: Reporting as presentation of evidence for consideration by executives, counsel; any report may end up in civil or criminal court as evidence in future. Using reports to present evidence.  Three types of reports.
  • Written Materials: On Writing Reports; Types of Reports; Put It in Writing; False Reports
  • Other Supplementary Materials: Should be supplied by the casino or Surveillance or Security Management, including samples of reports (with names changed to fictitious names), daily surveillance or security logs, etc.

11) How to Write a Report

  • Covers: How reports are written, avoiding common reporting errors, what is needed in a report and what should never be included.  Presenting evidence.  Management use of reports. Making reports usable by management and legal counsel.
  • Written Materials: How to Write a Report
  • Other Supplementary Materials: Can be supplied by surveillance management if desired, samples of acceptable and unacceptable reports.

12) Contingency Plans

  • Covers: What is a contingency plan, important points which such plans should cover, how to work out ahead of time what is to occur in a range of situations. Necessity of cooperation between Surveillance, Security, Management in both creating and execution of such plans
  • Written Materials: Contingency Plans; Crime Scene Procedure
  • Other Supplementary Materials: Should be supplied by Surveillance and Security Management: contingency plans for various situations commonly and rarely occurring in casinos, such as slots cheats, distract and grab, table games cheats, procedural errors, robbery, assault, domestic violence;  fire, HAZMAT or other evacuation plans; bombs and bomb threats;  natural disasters which occur in the area of the casino such as violent storms, earthquake, etc.

13) Complacency

  • Covers: How  complacency within Surveillance, Security and operations departments can be the biggest threat to the entire casino operation
  • Written Materials: Complacency; Complacency Part II, or, “Buttered All Over the Universe”
  • Other Supplementary Materials: none

III. Tests and Answer Sheets

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