Larry Talley Associates — Larry Talley, Premises Security Expert

Larry’s law enforcement career began in the United States Army in 1964. He trained as a military police officer and military police criminal investigator. Larry graduated with honors from the Military Police Criminal Investigators and Drug Investigation Courses at Fort Gordon, GA.

During his military police career, Larry served in Korea and volunteered for two tours of duty in Vietnam, in 1965–1966 and 1968–1969.

Between and after his overseas tours, Larry was stationed at Fort Benning, Georgia, where he worked for the Provost Marshal. At Fort Benning, Larry served as a uniformed military police officer, desk sergeant, patrol supervisor, criminal investigator, and chief investigator, supervising 30 military police investigators.

In 1972, the Provost Marshal handpicked him to form an undercover narcotics unit, one of the first of its kind in the United States Army. As chief investigator of the Narcotics Unit, Larry worked closely with the FBI and the Columbus and Phenix City Police Narcotics Units.

The unit was responsible for numerous arrests involving drug-related cases, including military personnel and civilians on the Fort Benning reservation. The intelligence the unit gathered helped the Columbus and Phenix City Police narcotics units combat drug trafficking.

During his second tour in Vietnam, Larry worked as a criminal investigator with Company C (CID), 18th Military Police Brigade. He investigated murders, fragging’s of officers and noncommissioned officers, rapes, robberies, assaults, racially motivated assaults, and drug investigations, including the smuggling of drugs into the United States.

It was during this time that Larry was one of the investigators assigned to investigate American military personnel who had deserted their units and migrated to Saigon (now Ho Chi Minh City), which had a population of approximately 3 million during the Vietnam War. These deserters were involved in the theft of military equipment, weapons, liquor, and cigarettes, which were sold on the black market, as well as dealings with corrupt South Vietnamese government officials. They were also involved in committing assaults, rapes, and murders.

Estimates suggest as many as 2,000 military personnel deserted in-country. They occupied sections of Saigon that South Vietnamese and U.S. Military Police seldom entered at night because of safety concerns. Larry’s second book, “The Saigon Mafia,” drew on this investigation and is scheduled for publication in late 2027.

At Fort Benning, Larry served on numerous VIP security details, including President Lyndon Johnson. During the filming of the movie “The Green Berets,” at Fort Benning, he was on the security detail for John Wayne and other cast members.

In 1969, Larry also served on numerous VIP security details in Vietnam, including President Richard Nixon and country music stars Johnny and June Carter Cash, while they performed for military personnel.

In 1970, Larry left the military and joined the Atlanta Police Department; however, in early 1971, the military recalled him to active duty and reassigned him to the Provost Marshal’s Office at Fort Benning as a criminal investigator.

In 1971, at Fort Benning, Larry was assigned to the security detail for Lt. William Calley Jr. during his general court-martial, who was accused of participating in the killing of an estimated 300 to 400 men, women, and children in the Vietnamese village of My Lai in March 1968.

During his nine years in the military, Larry was awarded the Bronze Star Medal, Army Commendation Medal, Vietnam Service Medal with two oak leaf clusters, Vietnam Campaign Medal with two oak leaf clusters, Army Good Conduct Medal, and Korean Defense Medal.

After leaving the military in 1973, Larry worked as a criminal investigator and undercover narcotics agent for the Chester County District Attorney’s Office in Chester County, PA. Larry’s assignment was to infiltrate two outlaw motorcycle gangs responsible for the sale of illegal drugs and other criminal activities. These activities occurred in Chester County and other counties in the Philadelphia metropolitan area. Several prior attempts to infiltrate these gangs, known as the Warlocks and Pagans, had proved unsuccessful before Larry’s efforts.

Upon completion of Larry’s undercover assignment, more than 100 gang members, including the gang leaders, were arrested for the illegal sale of heroin, cocaine, crystal meth, LSD, and marijuana. In addition, charges were brought against gang members for possession of stolen property and the possession and sale of illegal weapons.

Larry was credited with making the largest number of arrests for narcotics trafficking in the history of the county.

Regional Director of Security for Munford, Inc., the nation’s second largest convenience store chain. Employed 1974–1975.

Larry was headquartered in St. Louis, MO, and oversaw security for 250 stores across three major cities: St. Louis, Indianapolis, IN, and Louisville, KY. His duties included conducting crime prevention surveys, investigating employee theft, administering polygraph examinations, implementing security measures, maintaining liaison with local law enforcement, and studying crime trends in the neighborhoods where the stores were located.

Vice President of Security and Safety, for Days Inn of America, the nation’s fifth largest hotel chain. Employed 1976–1986.

Larry was hired as the corporation’s first Director of Security and a year later promoted to Vice President of Security and Safety. Under his leadership, industry peers recognized Days Inn as a leader in security, safety, and loss prevention.

At the time, Days Inn and the lodging industry were faced with security-related issues stemming from internal losses and guest security incidents involving major crimes committed against guests by third parties. Crimes against guests often led to civil litigation alleging negligent security by the innkeeper, exposing the industry to multi-million-dollar settlements or jury awards. Both major security concerns affected the corporation’s profitability and led to negative publicity.

Under Larry’s leadership, Days Inn implemented sweeping reforms designed to reduce employee theft and crimes committed against guests. These included educational programs, strict policies, and physical security measures that addressed both concerns. These measures prevented both, saving Days Inn millions of dollars a year and providing guidelines for other lodging chains to adapt.

Management from other major lodging chains, including Holiday Inn, Marriott, Marriott Court Yards, Red Roof Inn, and La Quinta, attended our training school, which offered courses on the security and safety programs Days Inn followed.

Larry was a member and later an associate consultant of the American Hotel & Motel Association’s Security Committee.

Larry served on the Ad Hoc Committee of the American Hotel & Motel Association that wrote the first-ever publication entitled “Security Informational Materials for The Smaller Hotel and Motel.” It incorporated programs that were implemented by Days Inn.

Larry was a member of the Editorial Advisory Board of “Hotel/Motel Security and Safety Management Magazine,” a monthly national publication addressing security issues facing the lodging industry.

Larry also served on the Executive Committee of Days Inn and was part owner of a “Theme Hotel” built by Days Inn located in Orlando, FL.

Larry left Days Inn in 1986 to pursue other business interests.

Executive Vice President and Part Owner of North American Security, from 1986–1987.
A full-service security company operating in the greater metropolitan Atlanta area.

President, Chief Executive Officer, and Chairman of the Board of Akins Security – 1988-1990.
A full-service security company operating in Atlanta and the Southeastern United States.

In 1988, Larry started his own security company, Akins Security, offering uniformed security officers, security patrols, investigations, polygraph examinations, investigative services, and alarm and CCTV systems to businesses and homeowners. Larry’s company also operated a state-of-the-art central monitoring station that oversaw alarms in more than five states, with more than 10,000 monitored accounts.

Akins Security grew in less than two years to Georgia’s second-largest security company.

In 1990, Larry sold Akins Security to one of the nation’s largest security corporations.

Premise Security and Litigation Consulting, 1984-2001

Larry using his 50 years of experience in the military, law enforcement, business, and research in criminal behavior offered expert witness and litigation support.

Retained in over 1,200 civil lawsuits, Larry has testified in depositions and trials involving crimes and injuries at hotels, apartment complexes, shopping centers, bars, convenience stores, hospitals, parking lots, casinos, and sports venues — many resulting in multi-million-dollar verdicts or settlements.

High-profile cases include the Tailhook Case at the Las Vegas Hilton (which led to the resignation of the Secretary of the Navy), the Mark Barton Atlanta Office Massacre, the Yosemite Murder Cases, and the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Park Bombing. Two cases he testified in were adapted into television movies on ABC and CBS.

Larry has also consulted directly with corporations and business owners to review and strengthen their existing security and safety programs.