Champaign seeking private security to help patrol downtown – News-Gazette

Loitering, drinking on public property, fights, shootings — they’re all issues police would typically handle, except for one problem. Champaign police don’t have enough officers to provide extra patrols in the downtown area, where incidents such as these have been occurring. The city’s proposed solution for now: hiring private security officers to address safety and nuisance concerns on the busiest nights for downtown bars and restaurants.