Hiring Security For The Protection of The Board?

Not sure how to edit, but the above message should have read:

Nonetheless, at the last annual meeting, a paid security guard was present, and a guard will evidently be present at Board of Director meetings in the future.

I would think that the decision to expend money to hire a guard would require the board to vote on a motion allowing such. It might depend too on your budget. Some boards vote to approve every expenditure, even monthly budgeted ones, others seem to feel that since they already decided to spend the money at budget time, they don't need to approve specifics.

If you don't see it in the minutes, you could ask how the expenditure was made without a board vote.

I would expect that the board would have to authority to hire a guard (with the proper vote) even if not specifically allowed by the bylaws. The governing docs don't generally define every expenditure the board can make, rather they give the board some leeway in running the association as long as expenditures are for the benefit of the association and it's members. It could be argued that preventing violence against the board or other people at meetings fits that guideline.

Thank you so much for your guidance.

1) Homeowner A allegedly brandished a weapon at Homeowner B, but not during or after a meeting. Rather, the event occurred within the neighborhood, in front of Homeowner A's house. Homeowner B called the police and Homeowner A was arrested. Still awaiting trial or other judgment. Homeowner B is on the Board.

2) I don't know if there was an executive meeting after the incident, but there has been no mention of the decision to hire a guard in any of the minutes made available to the homeowners since the alleged event occurred.

3) After the incident, the Board decided to pay for a guard for future meetings, claiming it was needed for safety reasons (for himself or for the Board or for the homeowners, I don't know) though I'm not sure how long that will continue.

And if there were unintended collateral damage, then what?

Could it be that the director who was threatened is paying for the security out of his own pocket?

No.

I really respect your knowledge of the aw, etc., Larry.

Are you saying the the phrase "collateral damage" is relevant in this case? If so, rowdies it affect the HOA?????

Look at this way: A homeowner has a dispute with his neighbor, who is on the BOD. The homeowner has already been arrested once, apparently for assault with a knife. Board meetings are open to homeowners and the time and place of the meeting is announced in advance. The homeowner knows precisely where and when to find the board member. Others may be present for the meeting. Even though the dispute is between two neighbors, there is a possibility that Round Two will occur at a board meeting.

If the board was unaware of the dispute and attendees are injured, the board might be liable for simple negligence for failing to maintain a safe meeting place. But the board is aware, and if they ignore the threat, and injury results, they face the possibility of being liable for gross negligence.

Courts in both Arizona and California have held that the association has a duty to ensure the safety of residents and visitors. I do not know where Colorado stands on this issue.

Posting a security guard at a meeting is reasonable and prudent to ensure the attendees' safety. It is a necessary and normal business expense, falling within the Business Judgment Rule.

Good idea.

Thanks for all of the advice. I doubt this board member would be willing to use the telephone for the meeting, as he feels he is the wronged party (and he may very well be - I'll wait for the court to make that decision).

From the CO nonprofit law (assuming you are incorporated, as most HOAs are)

7-128-201. Meetings.
...
(2) Unless otherwise provided in the bylaws, the board of directors may permit any director to
participate in a regular or special meeting by, or conduct the meeting through the use of, any means
of communication by which all directors participating may hear each other during the meeting. A
director participating in a meeting by this means is deemed to be present in person at the meeting.

And yes, the director did receive a restraining order against the homeowner.

Douglas' question is a good one.

Thanks for all of the perspectives. There is long standing "bad blood" between the two parties, which seems to stem from the Director's positions on HOA matters. But what actually went down on the day in question had nothing to do with HOA business as far as I know -- more to do with the relationship between these two individuals.

I don't believe the HOA has anything to do with this either.

I'm very interested to know what kind of provisions this order of protection has since this person, who has a bad history with his neighbor, is the one that went to his neighbors house, in effect causing whatever conflict they have to escalate.

If there is an order, as a board member you might want to know if there's a provision that keeps the neighbor a certain distance away. If so, then you don't need to a security guard anyway.

Help me out, Indie: Are you on the Board? If so, new, I guess?

Anyway, especially with the new info about the restraining order and as you know, I agree with Michelle and Sheila. In addition, I would not take A's word that he consulted with an HOA attorney without seeing said attorney's advice in writing. Also as someone else mentioned engaging a security person should have been a board decision does at a meeting.

If at Ex Sess., and you're now on the Board, read those recent minutes. And also read your open mtg. minutes.

Given your new info, I now think that maybe A isn't exactly a victim and if you're on the Board now, watch him, he seems like trouble (perhaps inappropriate speculation on my part?).

I certainly did not mean to mislead anyone, and thought I was providing all of the information needed. Sorry about that. (Some of this information, such as the RO, I just discovered yesterday.)

I am led to believe that the Director involved in this issue went to the other Board Members, explained what had transpired between him and the homeowner, but still wanted a guard in addition to the RO. Given the alleged nature of the weapon (brandished gun - also just found out), Director felt the RO would not provide sufficient safety.

So I'm still conflicted. A Director who consulted with an "expert attorney" gets the board to agree to pay for a security guard for a meeting, using HOA funds, which he may not have needed because he had a restraining order.

I assume there must have been an executive meeting to approve this expense? But nothing in any minutes that I have seen.

And yes, I was very recently elected to the HOA and I want this expense addressed for all homeowners. I've been asking questions of the other board members and have been told that I need to wait until we have out meeting before this can be discussed.

IMO, A should pay for his own security or attend by phone. He has options that don't cost his neighbors $$!

The reason you have to wait for a meeting to get more clarity, Indie, might involve CO laws about open meetings or something similar.

How do the other directors explain how this expenses could be approved outside of a meeting?

But there are bigger issues at play here....maybe. If A gets his way a lot, I don't think you as a new director want to upset his apple cart. You easily may come off as a "trouble maker," not a good way to start your service. Look to the long game.

Thanks for the opinions. The Director in question has received blow back from other board members, so I think the idea of having the HOA pay for the guard for future meetings is dead in the water. Still wondering how this will be handled with regard to the use of a paid guard at ta previous meeting.

I'm thinking you might want to back off from this topic now, especially since you're new. I should think you have access to older minutes that were written before this security offer was hired. They should give you an answer about the motion, who made it, etc. But even if you can't find out how this officer was hired, by reviewing your financials, you can find how much he was paid and out of what line item.

If not much, say $50-$100, I'd leave it alone, but be alert for future questionable expenses. Decisions to hire must be made at a meeting by the Board & therefore in the minutes, even if in ex sess. If NOT in any minutes then I'd wonder what else has been done in secret.

How do you know the cost? Report from another director? And how does s/he know? Signed the check??

YES- the decision to hire the guard was presumably made by the board as a whole. Such a decision must be voted on and approved at a meeting. Board decisions are recorded in the meeting minutes.

If a regular meeting, all Owners can have access to them (I assume in CO) once they're approved by the Board. That's how Owners learn about these odd expenses that aren't in the annual budget. A guard for the meeting isn't in your 2017 budget, or is it? Like I said above, I'd worry if you cannot find any written record of this expense, there might be other hidden expenses too.

But don't be the pushy new kid on the block. It will not be good for you. You always can wait till you're established and then dig into the matter. There is no hurry. If you have a prop. mgr, you could go to her/him and ask about where you can see this expenditure. What size is your HOA anyway?

I agree with you, Janet, and have tried to say so all along. But your reasoning seems very sound to me. Though we must fix known common area hazards, etc. that might harm residents, slip hazards and trip hazards, etc., the HOA, via its board, has no obligation to provide a guard in this case.

And I should mention that the decision to hire a guard because of the alleged threat did not make it to the annual meeting minutes.

Yes I did understand, though my reply (replies) are definitely unclear. I'm sorry for that. No mention anywhere in any minutes of the decision to hire a guard. A board member (or board members) must have approved this expenditure before the annual meeting. The previous Board meeting was held well before the incident, so I assume an executive meeting was called between the Board and annual meetings. I was noting that, even though the Director mentioned the reason for, and cost of, the guard, at the annual meeting, even that didn't make it to the minutes.

Ugh...I was hoping to gradually immerse myself into this stuff, but it already looks like the first Board meeting that I will attend as a Director is going to be rancorous, based on the information flying around by phone and email.

Yeah -- I know there are two sides to every story, and that even eye-witnesses can have different views of what happened.

My main concern is how to address the expenditure with the Board and to obtain an explanation as to how this all (the decision to pay for a guard) went down to start with -- and how/when it will be explained to the homeowners..