Atlanta CNN Center Security Reviewed

Apr 6, 2007 2:49 PM

           

Security at the Atlanta CNN Center tourist attraction is being reviewed after a man accused of killing his ex-girlfriend there April 3 was apparently able to bring a gun inside undetected, the Associated Press reports.

The complex houses the network news channel's headquarters.

Metal detectors were installed at entrances to CNN Center after the Sept. 11th terrorist attacks, but they were later removed after the threat level diminished.

"Whenever an incident does happen, we develop lessons learned and we will be doing that over the next few weeks, both short-term and long-term," says Alec Fraser, whose duties as president of Turner Properties include overseeing CNN Center security.

"Metal detectors are one part of our security procedures, which we implement if we think proper," he said.

The man Atlanta police say killed his ex-girlfriend in the April 3rd shooting, Arthur Mann, is said to be in his late 30s. He is expected to be charged with murder.

The woman he is accused of killing, Clara Riddles, 22, checked and restocked honor bars in rooms at the Omni Hotel attached to CNN Center.

According to the Associated Press report, the open atmosphere of the CNN Center and the fact that many tourists visit the facility, eat lunch there and pass through to go to various sports venues near the complex makes security a different kind of challenge than at the headquarters of other major news networks.

"I think we are unique, so comparisons are hard to make," Fraser says.

At the center, security guards are visible throughout the facility. Guards with proper qualifications are able to carry guns. Pass cards are required for access to the escalators, stairways and elevators leading to CNN offices.

But access to the atrium in the center of the building, restaurants, retail shops and a walkway to the attached Omni Hotel are open to all. Tens of thousands of visitors pass through CNN Center each year.

Fraser told the Associated Press he has confidence in the security procedures currently in place at the CNN Center. He notes that the center has never had an incident like the shooting in previous years.

"This is a public space, connected to Philips Arena," he says. "We have retail in our area. Our security procedures, we are very confident in. We think they work well. We apply our procedures based on the perceived level of threat."

Fraser says CNN's relationship with Atlanta police, who have a precinct inside the CNN Center, helps it in maintaining proper security.

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