Former Police Detective Michael Short Named Director Of Security For Catholic Diocese Of Fort Worth
FORT WORTH (CBSDFW.COM) - Former Lewisville Police Detective Michael Short has been named Director of Security for the Catholic Diocese of Fort Worth within the Department of Property Management and Construction.
The director of security is responsible for the safety and security of the Diocese's 91 parishes and 19 schools.
Short will ensure Bishop Michael Olson's 2018 directive to strengthen security and safety at the Diocese's parishes and schools continues to move forward in the wake of recent attacks against religious communities, Diocesan Director of Real Estate and Construction Stephen Becht said in a news release.
Short will now be devoted full-time to the work he began as security consultant through his company, Guardian Response.
"In my new full time position with the Diocese of Fort Worth, I will continue implementing the security program that was started by Guardian Response, but will now be more available to connect with the various parishes and schools in order to serve their community's specific security needs," said Short in a statement.
During his 15-year career with the Lewisville Police Department, Short served in various roles within the department.
He served as a patrol officer for 10 years where he spent six years training new officers as a field training officer. Short was also a member of the SWAT team for 10 years where he served as a team leader and explosive breacher. Short had also been assigned as a detective to the Burglary and Property Crimes Unit and most recently served as a detective in the Crimes Against Children Unit.
Short also served the police department as an instructor for firearms, hostage rescue, active shooter response, and breaching. He graduated from the University of North Texas with a Bachelor's in Criminal Justice and holds a Master's degree in Business Administration from Texas A&M University-Commerce.
Short's full-time presence will allow the Diocese's Guardian Ministry to be established in each parish at a more rapid pace.
Guardian Response will continue to work with the Diocese in providing firearms training to parishioners who are members of the armed Guardian Ministry teams.
"The Fort Worth Diocese, by establishing a Guardian Ministry at the diocesan level, is at the forefront of current church security standards of practice. The initiative enables all of the parishes and schools to speak a common language, support one another and have a unified incident command structure," Short said.