Successful security design for Courts projects must efficiently satisfy the specific requirements of the three distinct groups that utilize those facilities:
- The Public
- The Judiciary
- The Offenders
The movement of these groups must be separated and monitored until they come together in the courtroom.
PUBLIC ISSUES
The primary issue for public security design is effective screening of contraband that would constitute a threat to the occupants of the Courts facility. The objective is to promote public safety while providing an efficiently accessible and “community friendly” building. Traditional metal detection and organic/inorganic scanning are the technologies that are conventionally deployed for this function. Ion sensor equipment utilized for the detection of minute explosive substance particles should also be considered to complete the screening process. The arrangement of the screening station must be configured to allow efficient movement of the public with the expected traffic flow including the required percentage of detailed inspections. The placement of the screening station should provide adequate space for staging as the public enters the facility and, optimally, the design is enhanced if the equipment can be integrated into the architectural design of the building.
Closed circuit television is deployed throughout the public spaces for general surveillance. It is recommended that digital video capture technology be utilized for recording purposes. This is the best solution available for archiving today for historical data archiving and is the most efficient method for retrieving information in the event an incident occurs and back up is required. Digital video is also the best method to provide information immediately to security staff to allow the best immediate response to a security breach.
Future applications of video technology will actually involve real-time facial recognition screening of the public when entering the facility. The CCTV surveillance system will be interfaced directly to active criminal suspect databases and potential threats will be monitored and alarmed before the individual enters the facility.
JUDICIARY ISSUES
In consideration of the best security design for the judiciary the primary concern will always address maintaining a well-defined security perimeter. Immediately upon entering the facility, access control technology should be deployed to create secured parking space. The preferred design will allow individuals to remain in their vehicles until inside the protected area. A direct, restricted access pathway should be created from the parking area to the judiciary workspace providing efficient protected movement.
The access door to the courtroom should be simple to enter and a means to quickly “manually” lock the door after exiting the courtroom should be provided in the event an incident occurs. The judges bench should be equipped with ballistic-rated material to provide an area of refuge.
The judge’s bench and chambers should be configured with signaling devices to activate a duress call. Annunciation of the duress call should be routed to a 24/7-security post. In the event that a designated post is not available, the design solution should utilize wireless technology to provide alpha-numeric messaging to security personnel for immediate response to the call.
Future monitoring technology will utilize wireless duress signaling to allow the judiciary to call for support anywhere inside the facility and the security personnel will automatically receive a pin-point location of the individual. This technology could also be extended beyond the boundaries of the facility.
OFFENDER ISSUES
The security design must provide for efficient offender transport and holding within the facility. The optimum design provides a well-defined security perimeter around the offender at all times beginning from the secured sallyport at the offender entrance to the secured court holding areas. Complete separation of the offender from the judiciary and the public is the ultimate goal of good design practice.
CCTV surveillance with digital recording should be provided to cover the entire movement pathway of the offender inside the facility. This system is utilized to track the position of the offender as well as document the occurrence and conditions present in case an incident occurs.
The trend in future courtroom technology is moving to provide for the interaction of the offender, as required by the court proceedings, without requiring the physical presence of the offender. By utilizing traditional video conferencing technology, the security issues created by the physical movement of offenders will be virtually eliminated.
Video Conferencing - Courthouses Are Making the Change
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it is unequivocally clear that there is now a widespread effort by numerous counties to significantly enhance courtroom security. Most counties are addressing the security issue through technology, and the type that appears to be implemented the most is video conferencing. Already in use by legal systems throughout the world, video conferencing is revolutionizing the way cases are tried in America today. By simply installing one video conferencing system at the courthouse and another at the jail, incarcerated defendants can participate in all legal procedures without the municipality enduring the costs and dangers associated with jail-to-courthouse prisoner transport.
The monetary savings to a county become clear when one considers that costly resources need to be allocated, such as: several policemen, a vehicle, courthouse security, gasoline and tolls, among others. Depending on several factors, among them the distance of the courthouse to the jail and geographic location, these costs can sometimes reach into the thousands, even for just one trip. Over the course of a year, the result is a hefty bill that video conferencing aims to eliminate. In October of 2003, the Wisconsin Office of Justice Assistance, at the request of the Badger State Sheriff's Association, which represents sheriff departments in various Wisconsin counties, initiated a study into the possible time and cost-saving benefits of video conferencing. The study revealed a savings of about $2.7 million if all counties used the technology. That data, along with the obvious security benefits, was enough for Wisconsin's Green County to move ‘full speed ahead' with video conferencing.
Like many courthouses, Green County's proposed video conferencing system had been in the planning stages for quite some time and the incident in Atlanta proved to be the spark needed to move the project forward. In an interview featured in an article by Brian Gray of the Monroe Times, Green County Circuit Court Judge James Beer said, "video conferencing is the wave of future. It shows the court is moving into the 21st century." The equipment will enable doctors to appear at mental health proceedings and people who are serving time in prison to appear remotely. "The benefits are limitless. It saves the county a great deal of money and also increases security here at the courthouse."
Video conferencing in the court room also has other uses. In Pennsylvania's Montgomery County, large police departments such as Abington (92 officers) use the technology not only to handle on-camera arraignments for smaller departments in the county but also to digitally process and transmit photographs and fingerprints into criminal databases. In minutes, police can have fingerprints and photographs matched with a defendant's criminal record. In an interview featured in an article by Harry Yanoshak of the Bucks County Courier Times, Montgomery Deputy Chief John Livingood said, "Because it has such technology, Abington and other large departments serve as a central booking center for defendants. Video arraignments are time savers because defendants never have to leave the police station to see the judge. If we had to take a person to see the judge in person, it would effectively take two officers out of service for at least a couple of hours," he said, noting the length of time could be longer if the on-call judge is located across the county.
In Montgomery County, police and deputy sheriffs, rarely constables, shuttle defendants to the county prison, said District Judge Paul Leo, whose court in Hatboro has used video conferencing for about two years. While the technology enables a judge to do work from home, that's not how it's being used in his courtroom, he said, noting how the courts should remain open to the public, regardless if the proceeding is captured on a computer screen.Visit Here http://videoconferencingbasics.blogspot.com/
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