County removing plaster to preclude collapses

~ A slab in the Jackson courthouse fell through a drop ceiling Tuesday.

All of the plaster ceiling on the second floor of the Cape Girardeau County Courthouse in Jackson will be removed in light of a partial collapse earlier this week.

A slab of plaster above the offices of the associate circuit court clerks fell through a drop ceiling and crashed onto files, computers and desks on election night Tuesday.

"If it fell in this area, it could happen in other areas," county Commissioner Jay Purcell said.

So the plaster above the drop ceiling on the second floor will be removed to eliminate the possibility of future collapses, he said. A fire barrier will then be added and the drop ceiling replaced. The process could take between two and four weeks.

Most of the work will be done in-house by the public works crew, Purcell said. He could not provide estimated costs for the project. Purcell stressed that the damage was only from plaster and the courthouse's ceiling was structurally sound.

The clerk's office was left in disarray because of damage to its computer system.

"We're in all kinds of trouble," Circuit Clerk Charles Hutson said.

Staff members are not able to access their computer system from Jackson, hindering them from updating dockets or refunding bond money.

For those who have to pay fines or fees with the court, clerks can still take their money but have to hand out temporary receipts until the information can be entered on the computer, Hutson said.

On Friday and Monday, a computer will be free at the Common Pleas Courthouse in Cape Girardeau, and Hutson said a staff member will work from there on those days.

Circuit Court Judge Benjamin Lewis' docket for Monday was also prepared out of the Cape Girardeau courthouse, the judge said.

Hutson hoped that the computer system in the Jackson courthouse would be back online by Monday.

The clerks' computers would likely be moved into a basement courtroom for a temporary office, if the Missouri Office of State Courts Administrator agrees to it, according to Purcell.

OSCA provides technical support for the state court system and will be in Jackson today to access the situation and provide recommendations, according to spokeswoman Beth Riggert.

Currently the basement courtroom is only holding court on Mondays for the next month, Purcell said. Any hearings originally set for that room will likely be rescheduled.

On Wednesday, the courtroom of Associate Circuit Judge Gary A. Kamp resembled more of a storage room. A copy machine, papers and office supplies filled the courtroom, all of which was formerly held in the area of the collapse.

Kamp's court hearings will be held across the hall today and Friday in the Division I courtroom, which did not have any cases scheduled through the end of the week, Kamp said.

A temporary space for court hearings outside the building will be looked into for the coming weeks, according to Purcell, but nothing definite had been set.

kmorrison@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 127