Security Premises Liability Expert Witness

Specialties & Experience of this Expert Witness

Additional Information

Michael J. Canaan, CPP, is a board-certified forensic security and premises liability expert with more than 45 years of experience in security management, law enforcement, military operations, investigations, and risk assessment. He is retained in civil litigation involving negligent security, premises liability, violent crime, security operations, and related claims to evaluate foreseeability, standard of care, security program effectiveness, operational reasonableness, and causation from a security operations perspective. Mr. Canaan is board-certified in Security Management as a Certified Protection Professional (CPP) through ASIS International, the security profession’s leading professional organization. He is a Quarter Century member and previously served on the ASIS Risk Assessment Standard Technical Committee, contributing to ANSI-accredited risk assessment standards, and on the ASIS Security Services Steering Committee, which addressed security guard services, investigations, alarm monitoring, and security program implementation. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Criminal Justice from Washington State University, with additional coursework in business administration and political science. Mr. Canaan began his career in the United States Marine Corps, serving with Helicopter Marine Squadron One (HMX-1), the Presidential Helicopter Squadron responsible for support operations for the White House and the U.S. State Department. He later served with the 3rd Marine Division in Okinawa, Japan, where his assignments included Military Police Watch Commander, Patrol Supervisor, Military Working Dog Handler and Kennel Master, and canine trainer. Following military service, Mr. Canaan served in law enforcement as a police officer, narcotics interdiction specialist, and K-9 handler while concurrently working in corporate security, retail loss prevention, investigations, executive protection, and security consulting. In the private sector, he provided personal protective and security consulting services to members of the rock band Heart, including Ann Wilson and Nancy Wilson, as well as affiliated touring groups including Journey and Cheap Trick. His responsibilities included threat assessment, protective operations, venue security coordination, logistics, and law enforcement liaison activities. Mr. Canaan has extensive instructional and operational training experience involving law enforcement and private security personnel. His instruction has included use of force, firearms, defensive tactics, TASER, defensive sprays, patrol rifle, shotgun, precision rifle, control tactics, security operations, and security policies and procedures. His consulting and investigative experience spans the United States, Alaska, Canada, and multiple countries in Central and South America. He has conducted security assessments, investigations, and operational reviews involving residential communities, multifamily housing, retail properties, hotels, hospitals, industrial facilities, transportation and maritime operations, casinos, entertainment venues, festivals, arenas, and other large public gathering environments. Mr. Canaan has been retained in more than 100 state and federal cases involving negligent security, premises liability, assaults, shootings, stabbings, robberies, homicides, sexual assaults, excessive force, unlawful detention, and security system failures. He has provided sworn testimony in depositions and trial proceedings. His expert evaluations address security staffing, deployment, hiring, training, supervision, policies and procedures, physical security measures, access control, risk assessment, and security operations management. His opinions are based upon accepted industry standards, recognized security practices, operational analysis, and evidence-based methodology.