LOS ANGELES- Movie theater chain Regal Entertainment Group has begun to check bags in the wake of numerous shootings at theaters around the country, a procedure it acknowledged on its website was "not without flaws" and would inconvenience guests but provide better security.
    
It's unclear when the policy began, but several local TV stations reported online that customers noticed the change in Texas, Virginia, Florida and Ohio beginning earlier this month.
    
Regal spokesman Richard Grover did not respond to requests for comment Wednesday. The company operates some 570 theaters around the country.
    
On its website, the company says "security issues have become a daily part of our lives in America" and says that bags and backpacks are subject to inspection before entering.