SACRAMENTO, CA - What's typically a place where families go to escape reality may be changed forever. The safety and security of movie theaters has come under question in light of the movie theater massacre in Aurora, Colorado.
In Sacramento, loyal Batman movie buffs lined up for early morning showing of "The Dark Knight Rises" at the Esquire theater in downtown Sacramento. Some movie-goers heard of the Colorado tragedy through social media.
"We were watching the Twitter feeds before the movie and it was so surreal,"said one woman.
At the Arden Fair Mall, outside it was business as usual , but inside the United Artists theater, parents picking up show tickets had questions about security.
"You never know. You wanna keep your eyes open and be aware of your surroundings," said Jerome Pate.
"You wanna see it, but I hope there's good security," said Jada Grove.
So how secure are public places like movie theaters, parking lots and the mall? Arden Fair Mall security chief Steve Reed showed footage from a Sacramento police SWAT team drill. It's one way to be ready for public safety emergencies.
"Right here, we are cutting-edge but that doesn't guarantee that an incident can't happen," said Reed.
There are more than 160 cameras watching the mall's common area, including hallways, the parking lots, even the security desk.
"We see certain types of behaviors, we can watch cars coming into the intersections. We have the high-def cameras," said Reed.
Arden Mall security has no plans to change the protocol right now but say new training is always part of future plans.
At the North Natomas Regal Cinemas, one Sacramento police officer will be working his usual Friday detail.
Police urge the public to have a greater sense of awareness.
"So I think the officers are just going to have the hyper-vigilance going in and out of the movie theater, making sure nothing happens," said Sacramento police spokesman Sgt. Andrew Pettit.
News10/KXTV