Court Violence Leads to Heightened Security

BARRE, Vt. – The deadly courthouse shooting in Atlanta has courts across Vermont re-examining their security measures.

Although metal detectors are in place at every public entrance to every district and family court in Vermont, they are not foolproof. According to at least one security professional, the metal detectors at the Vermont District Courthouse in Barre have overlooked large, folding pocketknives.

After the Atlanta shooting, Vermont courts have started to take some extra precautions. After a recent disruption at a state Supreme Court hearing, security staff began using hand-held metal detectors to examine everyone entering the building. In addition, some court entrances were locked to restrict public entry points. The sheriff’s department was also planning to take additional security measures while transporting prisoners to and from the Vermont District Courthouse.

The Vermont District Courthouse is most in need of a security redesign because it was originally designed with energy efficiency, not security, as a priority. For example, a waist-high partition is all that prevents disruptive or noncompliant court visitors from rushing the courtrooms.

A $500,000 redesign of the court is in the works, but funding would have to be explicitly approved by the state Legislature in the annual appropriations act, according to Bob Greenmore, director of administrative services at the Court Administrator's Office.

Care must also be taken to ensure that new security measures do not intimidate people and keep them from seeking out redress of their grievances. Courts are meant to be open, says Greenmore.

Most incidences of violence in Vermont courts have involved parties in criminal or civil cases turning on each other, not attacks on judges or court personnel.