Major Bambino is a retired Washington State Patrolman who once served in the U.S. Marine Corps Reserves. Harry Sladich is a 30-year veteran of the hospitality industry and currently is executive vice president of sales, marketing, and distribution for Spokane-based Red Lion Hotels Corp.

Though their professional backgrounds are vastly different, the two boyhood friends have forged a successful security company here they ultimately hope to franchise nationally. It’s named State Protection Services, GoJoe Patrol, and they’ve been operating it for 20 years.

More recently, they’ve chosen to identify the company as just GoJoe Patrol in their continuous effort to differentiate themselves from other security outfits. The company draws from a pool of 300 off-duty commissioned police officers for security assignments.

“I wanted to help form a security company that had a retail component,” Sladich says. “From the way we interact with customers to the look of our attire and cars, that’s the differentiation I was after for this company.”

Sladich says he’s not involved with the daily operation of the company, located at 7011 E. Trent in Spokane Valley. Corinna Bambino, Major Bambino’s wife, also is a part owner in the business and serves as president of operations. The Bambinos work full time for the company. 

The owners decline to disclose specific company revenue figures, but Sladich says it has the ability to generate $3 million to $5 million “in a good year.” 

Of the initial steps under way this year to franchise the company, Sladich, who is 54, says he’s in negotiations to franchise GoJoe Patrol in two other cities in the U.S., but he wouldn’t disclose locations. The goal, says Sladich, is to try and have one GoJoe Patrol location outside of Spokane in 2016 and another in 2017.

“The regulatory issues of franchising a business are intense and expensive,” Sladich says. “Because of that we’re in no hurry. It’s truly a big leap, and we’re nowhere near the point of having this happen. However, it is a goal.”

Sladich says he had the idea of starting the security company because he hasn’t had good impressions of them in his past work. Sladich, who was CEO of the Spokane Regional Convention & Visitors Bureau from 2005 to 2010, wanted security personnel who were open to listening to the needs of its customers rather than telling the customers what to do.

“Quite frankly, my experience is that they’re these paramilitary outfits that have too many among their ranks who want to carry a sidearm,” Sladich says of security companies. “I wanted to create a security company that would quit aligning itself with military and police.”

It started with lighter-colored uniforms and a fleet of more than a half-dozen cars that were designed not to look like cop cars.

Sladich then conducts training for security personnel on how to de-escalate potentially hostile encounters. He uses the analogy of an intoxicated bar patron.

“What’s more effective, ‘Hey, you’re drunk, you’re cut off and you need to get out of here now!’ Or, ‘I know you’ve had a great time tonight, but I want you to be safe so I’m going to get you a glass of water and arrange a safe ride home for you.’ It’s the same approach with security. It’s not effective to storm into a situation if you don’t have to,” he says.

Bambino, who is 55, retired from the WSP last April. 

“We can provide our clients with either Washington state licensed security officers, or off-duty, fully commissioned police when the situation calls for it,” Bambino says. “We prefer to use the off-duty police in more delicate situations. This ability allows us to deploy the right resource to each unique situation.”

GoJoe Patrol’s frequent customers include the Community Colleges of Spokane campuses and the Institute for Extended Learning. The company also provides security personnel for a variety of events and venues across Spokane and throughout the state. 

Locally, GoJoe Patrol draws its officers mostly from the Washington State Patrol, state Department of Corrections, U.S. Marshals, and police departments at Eastern Washington University and Airway Heights, Bambino says.

Commissioned officers earn between $30 and $60 per hour for off-duty assignments, while noncommissioned security officers can make between $10 and $15 per hour, he says.

Bambino’s law enforcement career spans more than three decades as a fully commissioned officer. He now oversees and conducts most surveillance and security training for GoJoe Patrol and uses the techniques and procedures he’s learned throughout his career. Initially, Bambino says he was hesitant about joining Sladich in forming the company.

“GoJoe Patrol? The looks of the cars, marketing … logos?” Bambino says. “I’m a law officer. I’m a retired Marine. I’m black and white. I’m looking at Harry asking him, ‘What are you thinking?’’’

But now, Bambino says he believes Sladich’s idea was years ahead of its time.

“The public’s perception about police and law enforcement in general is changing, and this perception spills over into the security business. I think people still look favorably upon the profession; however, the public is growing concerned over the types of equipment, weapons, and gear many police departments are using,” he says.

“The law enforcement trend is simply matching what they encounter on the street, but it’s causing concern with the public and being amplified in the media,” Bambino says.

He adds, “So from our end, what we do is work for the client. We assess their environment and ask them, the business owner, the college, whomever it might be: ‘What is important to you? What do you want? Tell us, what kind of environment do you want to have for your customers or constituents? ’’’ 

Bambino says the company employs security personnel who have the ability to listen, write detailed reports, and who are effective observers of a variety of settings.

GoJoe Patrol’s philosophy is to observe and report. Security officers only have the same authority as a private citizen. Bambino says security officers should avoid physical confrontations.

“A situation may call for us to become physically involved, but that shouldn’t be the intent. We watch out for our customers, notify police and assist them in whatever way they may direct us.” 

However, Bambino says, security officers are permitted to carry firearms at high-profile events, primarily in the Seattle area.

“We are very selective as to who we allow to be armed within our company,” he says. “Most of our employees who carry a firearm are current or former law-enforcement officers. It is simply irresponsible for a company to arm an employee who has not been in a real-life situations and has not had extensive training. Unfortunately, we see the opposite far too often in our profession.”