Courthouses upgrade security

On any given Monday or Tuesday, hundreds of people pass through the doors of the Cape Girardeau County Courthouse.

Some are answering charges. Some are protecting public safety. Some are protecting people's constitutional rights. Some are supporting friends or family members who have made mistakes or been hurt by others' mistakes.

Most are there for good reasons. But what happens if someone isn't?

"In recent years, we've been fortunate enough not to experience any major incidents," but the possibility always exists, said Chris Limbaugh, Cape Girardeau County prosecuting attorney, citing a case earlier this year in which an assistant prosecutor in Kaufman County, Texas, was gunned down in a parking lot outside the courthouse annex.

Two months later, the Kaufman County district attorney and his wife were found shot to death in their home.

"Although we're in a great county, we're certainly not immune to this kind of thing," Limbaugh said. "We'd rather be safe than sorry."

To that end, county leaders have spent the last few months upgrading security at both the Cape Girardeau County Courthouse in Jackson and the Common Pleas Courthouse in Cape Girardeau.

Among the upgrades are new doors that can lock down remotely in the event of emergency and armed deputies patrolling the buildings during business hours, Limbaugh said.

"With the large influx of people coming and leaving the courthouse, these are very welcome security measures," he said, both for visitors and people who work in the courthouse every day.

In March, the county commission unanimously approved a proposal by Sheriff John Jordan to hire two officers at a total cost of $84,665 annually, including salary and benefits, to ensure the department's patrol division had enough manpower to keep an eye on the courthouses in Jackson and Cape Girardeau.

Jordan's proposal came after judges requested security guards.

"It's always been something that's been on the table," Limbaugh said. "We were finally able to get the ball rolling five or six months ago."

The county also spent $149,393 to have Davis Glass install new doors at both courthouses, the administrative and archive buildings in Jackson and the annex building in Cape Girardeau, said Charlie Herbst, District 2 associate commissioner.

The county used excess funds from bond refinancing to pay for the improvements, which included panic bars; improved wheelchair accessibility; electronic proximity keys for employees; and locks that can be operated remotely via computer, Herbst said.

The upgrades will make it easier to take additional security measures, such as requiring visitors to pass through metal detectors, if those steps are deemed necessary in the future, he said.

Security procedures vary across the state, but most courthouses in Southeast Missouri take a relatively low-key approach, with armed bailiffs monitoring courtrooms as visitors come and go at will.

Some, including Cape Girardeau County, also have deputies patrolling hallways and common areas.

Federal courts are more restrictive: At the Rush Hudson Limbaugh Sr. Courthouse in Cape Girardeau, visitors must present a state-issued photo ID, empty their pockets, pass through a metal detector and have bags x-rayed as a condition of entering the building.

Visitors to the new Union County Courthouse in Illinois also must walk through a metal detector and hand over purses and bags for guards to search before they are allowed past the lobby.

Cape Girardeau County judges occasionally tighten security for specific cases.

"We have metal detection equipment, and we use it as needed," said Clint Tracy, presiding county commissioner.

For instance, when Clay Waller pleaded guilty in June to the murder of his wife, Jacque, Judge Benjamin Lewis banned cellphones from the courtroom, required everyone entering the courtroom to pass through a metal detector and forbade people from re-entering the courtroom once they left.

"For specific cases, we can certainly ratchet that up," Limbaugh said.

The county commission is looking at the possibility of building a new courthouse. Last month, commissioners heard a presentation on three options, all of which include another security change: an expanded jail with an underground corridor for moving inmates to and from court.

Tracy said security issues are "something that we're always looking at, that we're always conscious of."

He declined to discuss details of any additional measures under consideration.

"If the bad guys are going to do something, you don't want to tip them off," Tracy said.

Limbaugh and Tracy said response to the changes has been positive.

"The feedback I've heard, especially from the employees in my office who are here just about every day, they do think it helps, and it creates a safer work environment," Limbaugh said. " ... I think everybody understands that there will always be some sort of risk, but we certainly feel safer with these added measures."

epriddy@semissourian.com

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