Detecting a problem in courthouse safety

Greg Risling

Try to walk through the main courthouse in Santa Ana and you will be

stopped at each of three entrances. Over at the juvenile court in Orange,

visitors are screened as well.

Yet for four Orange County courthouses, including Harbor Justice Center

in Newport Beach, metal detectors are a priority, but not a reality.

Every year, county court administrators have asked the governor for

funding, but every year it has been denied. It wasn’t until this year

that money was allocated for the main courthouse in Santa Ana, where

metal detectors were installed in May.

Since then, the county Marshal’s department that administers security at

the courthouse has recovered 1,700 knives, 38 rounds of ammunition and

various martial arts weapons.

Are judges, court personnel and people safe at the courthouses not

equipped with metal detectors?

“I think the safety of people is being compromised,” said Alan Slater,

chief executive officer for the county’s superior courts. “We have

advocated for metal detectors in our courthouses for more than a decade.

It’s just not a priority for the state this year.”

Slater and his staff have put together a plan outlining the amount needed

for metal detectors at the remaining four courthouses. However, even with

the foresight in planning -- the county courts submit budgets two years

in advance -- the county has been unable to purchase the metal detectors.

Slater estimates it will cost about $1.8 million to purchase the

equipment and cover staffing costs for the remaining courthouses. The

long-range planning has produced several ideas if funding is approved,

including the closure of one of the entrances at Harbor Justice Center to

reduce risk and costs.

If there is any cause for concern about safety, supporters for the

detectors point to the number of weapons seized at the Santa Ana

courthouse.

The Marshal’s department puts out a monthly report about items recovered

at the detector locations. Because the equipment wasn’t installed until

May, officials are unsure how many weapons were brought into the

courthouse before then.

Many of the items found are knives with blades measuring more than two

inches. From May until August, 1,700 of those knives were recovered. One

marshal found a double-sided knife hidden in a belt buckle. Another knife

seized was inside a lipstick container.

Marshals have also taken martial arts weapons, such as throwing stars,

and seen metal knuckles, Mace and pepper spray. Many of the items were

returned to their owners, but 16 people have been arrested over the

five-month period.

“The detectors have been nothing but a positive things for the

courthouse,” said Lt. Ann Ortiz, commander of the Marshal’s Central

Justice Center division. “It’s given the people who work here a better

sense of security.”

There are some people who believe the state should find the funding

sooner than later. Jackie Bernard, a jury prospect last week at Harbor,

said she hopes the state doesn’t act too late.

“What happens if someone comes in here with a gun and starts shooting up

the place?” she asked. “With all of the craziness that has happened the

last couple of years, it’s better to prepare than react for that type of

thing.”