Point / Counterpoint : The Issue: Screening the Crowds at Magic Mountain : FOR

Magic Mountain’s screening of what it calls potential troublemakers and gangs from its crowds is being challenged by the American Civil Liberties Union. In April the ACLU filed a lawsuit alleging that four Latins were unjustly barred from the Valencia amusement park. The suit came after a Christian youth group charged that guards searched them because they are black. At The Times’s request, Magic Mountain and the ACLU have written about the issue. Defending the policy is Joseph R. Schillaci, president to the park. Against it is Carol Sobel, staff attorney for the ACLU Foundation of Southern California.

Six Flags Magic Mountain provides quality family entertainment and recreation for everyone in Southern California. As a major regional entertainment attraction, we feel we have a commitment and responsibility to provide safety and security at all times. It would be impossible for guests to enjoy the park if they questioned their own safety while visiting us.

The fact that Southern California is in the midst of a gang crisis is indisputable. It is impossible to pick up a newspaper, watch or listen to a news report or even visit a movie theater without confronting the reality of street gang violence and unlawful activity. The rapidly escalating growth and violence of gangs has become a plague affecting every community and neighborhood.

Just a few months ago in the Westwood entertainment area, a gang shooting resulted in the tragic death of an innocent bystander. Like recreational centers everywhere, most theme parks have had security incidents involving gangs. A fatal gang shooting last year at an Orange County theme park also resulted in the wounding of an innocent victim.

The public should be able to pursue entertainment and recreation without encountering threats to personal safety. Unfortunately, before any of us can enjoy these deserved pleasures, precautions must be taken on our behalf to ensure our safety from both targeted and random acts of violence. There is no place in Southern California immune from this threat.

According to the latest count, the gangs of Los Angeles County alone have grown to 600 with more that 70,000 members. Communities in Orange county, San Diego County and Riverside and San Bernardino counties are not exempt from the increase in gang activity.

The causes and solutions to the gang problem are obviously complex and beyond the scope of this forum. But what we must address here is the imperative need to control violence and, as Mayor Tom Bradley put it, make sure the rightful turf of all the people is not captured by gangs. It is the responsibility of all citizens in Southern California to protect our community against the threat gang violence poses to our society.

After a gang incident at Magic Mountain in 1985, we immediately took positive action to make sure our guests and employees would never again encounter that kind of dangerous element.

Our security efforts have worked. Magic Mountain has not had a single incident of gang violence since 1985. Our excellent record speaks for itself. We are proud of the diligent effort put forth by our employees and the many outside agencies and individuals who helped us formulate our security policies.

In the current context of escalating gang violence in the Southland, recent publicity has focused on Magic Mountain’s security procedures to prevent such activity in the park. Specifically, there have been allegations that the park’s security policies are discriminatory.

Magic Mountain has never discriminated against any racial or minority group for any reason. We have never denied park admission to anyone on the basis of their race or ethnic background. We have never used our security procedures to harass or humiliate any individual or group. We welcome all Southern Californians and other visitors to our park.

Our park attendance and work force proudly reflect Southern California’s multifaceted cultural and ethnic composition. In fact, Magic Mountain has spent hundreds of thousands of dollars over the past several years on marketing programs, including Spanish-language advertising and special events, to specifically meet the entertainment needs of the Southland’s ethnic population . As a corporate citizen of Southern California, our community involvement with the United Way, Toys for Tots, the Adopt-a-School program and other charitable organizations is a testament to our commitment to our Southern California neighbors.

We are as adamant about the protection of civil liberties as anyone. We are aware that an obsessive concern for security can step on civil liberties and so we are on constant guard to protect our guests without depriving any guest of his or her individual rights.

In establishing and maintaining our policies, we work with experts in the field of law enforcement security and gang prevention. We also enlist the aid of community leaders and the district attorney’s office in addition to our own legal counsel to review our procedures and make certain the rights of all individuals are protected at all times.

The primary objective of Magic Mountain security is to keep weapons and those who pose a threat to our guest and employees out of the park. Admission screening is an integral part of that effort and enables us to identify those people, including gang members, with a propensity for violence or disruption of normal park operations. We use a screening profile developed in conjunction with the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department and their Operation Safe Streetsgang unit. Nothing in the screening profile or security procedure is discriminatory or based on ethnic or racial background.

Occasionally we also use Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputies to identify gang members who intend to use the park for other than recreation. Admittedly, screening is not an exact science, but it is the best means currently available to ensure that violence plaguing the streets of Los Angeles stays out of our park. Simply put, it works.

Our security procedures also include searching over-sized bags to deter those who attempt to bring illegal or prohibited substances into the park. Drugs and alcohol are not allowed the park. We do not feel these elements are appropriate in a family theme park atmosphere.

We regret if anyone feels they have been inconvenienced or offended by our security efforts. Sometimes, people who are not gang members, but unknowingly meet criteria in the screening profile, are asked by our security officers to consent to a search. We would rather be in a position to apologize for the inconvenience of a security check than explain to a family of a victim why security was lax in our park.

Magic Mountain is a family entertainment center. We wish security procedures weren’t necessary, but these policies have become common in many entertainment and leisure businesses. Magic Mountain must provide guests with an environment free from street violence. In addition to the moral responsibility we feel for ensuring safety and security, we must be aware of the judicial trend to find property owners responsible for crimes committed on their property.

In the litigious environment we live in, lawsuits are, unfortunately, commonplace. It should be apparent, however, that lawsuits against theme parks won’t solve the gang problem in Southern California.

We will continue to employ comprehensive policies and procedures to ensure the security of all or our guests and employees. Our park is safe as a direct result of these efforts. While we remain sensitive and responsive to criticism, we are confident there is nothing discriminatory in Magic Mountain’s policies.

Magic Mountain will continue to protect the civil liberties and rights while providing a high-quality, wholesome and safe entertainment experience for all members of our community.