Indiana town looking at ordinance that would require 24-hour security guard presence at businesses

July 9, 2021

After a basketball hero was killed via gunshot at a gas station last month, the Mayor of Gary, Indiana, Jerome Prince, has introduced "The Wallace Broadnax ordinance,” which would require a 24-hour armed security guard if a business has had a violent crime on its property in the last two years.

The ordinance comes after 70-year-old basketball hall of famer, firefighter and paramedic Wallace Broadnax was shot and killed at a gas station his way to work at the family’s funeral home.

Last year, the Gary City Council voted against a similar ordinance — but the mayor said he fully expects the passage of the ordinance by July 21.

Gary is a city in Lake County, Indiana, United States, 25 miles (40 km) from downtown Chicago, Illinois. The city is the ninth largest in the state of Indiana. The city has seen a rise in crime over the past decade. The 2019 crime rate in Gary was higher than in 95.1% U.S. cities, according to City Data.

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