Charlotte council authorizes expanded duties for private transit security amid surge in safety concerns

Charlotte City Council voted unanimously on Sept. 22 to adopt a municipal mutual-aid agreement authorizing Professional Police Services (PPS) to enforce laws and make arrests in areas immediately adjacent to city-owned transit facilities, and to allow the city manager to finalize the agreement and related terms.

The action followed weeks of public concern about safety on the Lynx Blue Line and other transit services after a fatal attack in August that prompted renewed scrutiny of Charlotte Area Transit System (CATS) security. City leaders and transit contractors said the change is intended to increase visible security quickly while the city pursues longer-term options.

City Manager Marcus Jones said the action is part of a broader push to shift some non-patrol duties to civilians and to add officers on the system. “We didn’t have to call back any police officers because our use of our civilian traffic control officers, as well as our civilian crash investigators,” Jones told council, “allowed more sworn officers to remain on patrol.” He and other officials said the municipality also negotiated an off‑duty CMPD assignment totaling 800 hours per week — roughly the equivalent of 20 full‑time officers — to supplement on‑system coverage.

Brent Cagle, who identified himself as interim CEO (transit oversight), described the expanded agreement as a short‑term operational tool that mirrors the contractor relationship: “That is a formal relationship with CMPD in that we work together with CMPD to create those assignments and those postings,” he told council, saying the 800‑hour assignment will continue “until further notice.” Cagle and other staff said the resolution itself imposes no new city cost; related contract and staffing costs are managed through existing procurement and off‑duty arrangements.

Celestine Ratliff, who described herself as co‑owner/operator of Professional Police Services, told council that PPS officers are certified law‑enforcement personnel. “Our officers are certified sworn police officers just like CMPD is. They go through the exact same training,” Ratliff said, adding that company officers complete at least the state minimum in‑service training and supplemental internal training.

Council debate focused on how to balance an immediate increase in presence with longer‑term plans. Councilmember Malcolm Graham said he supports increased security but urged a permanent CMPD role: “I would love to see a permanent task force of officers assigned to CATS, supplemented with private security,” Graham said. Others pushed staff for clearer public information about who is responsible in specific locations and what oversight applies.

Councilmember LaJuana Mayfield questioned civilian oversight and records access for private contractors. She noted that PPS is a private contractor and asked whether body‑worn camera footage would be subject to public‑records rules. Staff replied that PPS uses body‑worn cameras but, as a private vendor, PPS footage is not directly subject to the city’s public‑records law in the same way CMPD evidence is; however, city cameras on vehicles and platforms are CATS property and remain subject to open‑records requests. Mayfield also asked about state regulation of company police (the state company‑police administrator and related statute were discussed in the meeting).

Staff listed several near‑term changes to increase visibility and response: additional PPS hires, deployment of bike units and utility terrain vehicles (UTVs) for areas not easily reached by patrol cars, a CTC “fare zone” delineation at the Charlotte Transit Center, stepped up fare enforcement and targeted assignments of CMPD officers to transit. Cagle said those deployments were already in motion and would expand in the days after the meeting.

Mayor Vi Lyles and other council members said the action was a necessary near‑term step while the city and regional partners pursue broader policy and funding changes. Staff committed to continuing to collaborate with CMPD, providing council with crime‑data breakdowns for the transit system since 2022, and returning to council with recommended next steps including potential legislative requests and funding options for a longer‑term transit security model.

The resolution authorizing the manager to execute the municipal mutual‑aid agreement passed with no recorded opposition.