After the teenagers are released, the photos and trespass forms are maintained in a mall filing system for future reference. The intent of these records is to be used as evidence of trespassing should the offender return. This process sounds okay to many mall security officers but is patently illegal in most states. You can t take someone into custody for violating a mall rule like walking in groups, using foul language or being too noisy. Also be problematic is posting a trespassed person s picture on the bulletin board, in a sort of rogue s gallery when they haven t committed any crime.
Security has no more authority than an ordinary citizen, in most states.
At best, security officers can ask rule violators to leave the premises and not return. Unless a state statute specially allows for it, security officers cannot detain someone or take him or her into custody unless they have committed a crime . If a crime is committed then the officer must make a citizen's arrest before detaining a person. Security officers cannot rely on another person s word that a misdemeanor crime occurred. So this whole business of stopping a person for rule violation, transporting them to the mall security office for processing, and formally trespassing them is improper.