Courthouse Security
From California to Georgia, Texas to Minnesota courthouse security and the security of personnel has unfortunately been in the news.
"One thing Johnson and the judges are sure to discuss is how to improve on prisoner/inmate movement"
"Ledger-Enquirer" GA.
"it's really a wake-up call," said Contra Costa County sheriff's spokesman.
"San Francisco Chronicle " CA
My point is that when we read or hear of a tragedy in an environment such as our courthouses, we find ourselves asking the obvious questions. Why? How? Who? What?
Years ago our concerns for security were not as magnified as they are today; therefore, a majority of our modern security elements were not even considered in previous courthouse designs. Going forward, we need to be cognizant of these design elements, as well, with existing courthouses we now need to perform evaluations for appropriate security measures. The most critical elements for courthouse security are policies and procedures, technology systems, and architectural design.
What constitutes inadequate courthouse security? Primarily it begins with the interaction between the buildings public and private zones, technology systems not working properly, and architectural designs that date back to 1930's or earlier?
Initially two distinct approaches are used for courthouse evaluation, one for new and one for existing courthouses. The goal for these approaches is identical, public accessibility, functionally secure and procedurally sound. The following methodology could be used to perform for this evaluation.
You must first establish a team of experts. They should include a security committee from within the courthouse administration, a technology expert, and an architectural firm which specializes in courthouse planning and Technology systems are addressed with input from the report generated on policies and procedures as well design. This team would be involved from inception to completion. They would be used to communicate and interact with the courthouse personnel, government officials and public. The security committee would evaluate and document the new or existing courthouse security concerns. These concerns typically include courthouse, policies and procedures, circulation, interior and exterior zones, technology systems and architectural design. The following example would be used to begin the process.
Policies and Procedures
Policies and procedures are elements that would be resolved by experienced courthouse staff, Clerks, Judges, local sheriff or police departments. You would start by verifying as the design of the courthouse. There are really two different types of security, passive and active. French Associates understands how to incorporate "passive" and "active" security measures into existing facilities. Passive measures include facility design, building and site configuration and community involvement. An example would be to rework the entrance or adding bollards to keep vehicles a safe distance away from the courthouse. Active measures include security cameras, motion sensors and hardware systems.
Architectural Design
The architectural design aspect with in this process is one of constant involvement. They would act as coordinator or conductor of the process. Since most elements discussed in this article would evolve around the existing or new design of a courthouse for all pieces to become a complete picture you need someone to place those pieces on the table and assemble that into the integral areas they belong. As the listed elements would indicate, effective courthouse planning would include some serious evaluation
- Interior elements
- Sightlines
- Jury Box
- Public zones and corridors
- Zones: Public and Private Zones
- These are the areas you would address during your courthouse security evaluation. When security is mentioned, generally thoughts go towards, security guards, security cameras, metal detectors, etc... While these are the fundamental elements of security, that is all they are "elements". In order to have the proper level of security all of these elements, policies and procedures, technology security and architectural design need to function in harmony.
For further assistance please contact French Associates, Inc. You'll find that our recent experience in courthouse design at the 47th district court in Farmington Hills and the 52-3rd in Rochester incorporate these elements.