Pulaski County officials continue voicing their concerns with courthouse security. They shared some of the most pressing needs during Tuesday’s presentation on potential renovation options.
Sheriff Jeff Richwine said the current system of transporting inmates across the street for Circuit Court hearings puts a serious burden on his jailers. “The way we do it now is just horrible,” he said. “They walk through the public and everything else when we bring them over here.”
Circuit Court Judge Mary Welker said she’s been looking at installing a video system, to allow hearings to take place without requiring inmates to leave the jail. “That would cut that down some, but they’re still going to have to be here for trials and still have to come across the street,” she pointed out.
If Circuit Court were to stay in the courthouse, Rowland Design’s proposed renovation plan would help reduce inmates’ interaction with the public, according to architect Eric Rowland. “They would come in the lower level, [then] come in off the elevator into a holding cell directly off of that, so there’s minimal interaction with the public in the facility, and a secure corridor that would take them to a secure meeting room, and then into the courtroom,” Rowland explained.
Still, Sheriff Richwine felt the best option would be to move Circuit Court to the Justice Center. “I want Circuit Court over there,” he said. “The building was designed for it, I think. The elevator comes up, you go into Superior Court. You never have the inmates around the public. They’re never an escape risk because they never get out of the building.”
But even if Circuit Court were to move, Judge Welker stressed that the courthouse would still need security for the remaining offices. It was noted that the Clerk’s Office, in particular, often has to deal with emotionally unstable people. Rowland said the renovation plans not only call for a security checkpoint, but also a rearrangement of the various offices to help protect the employees.
In the meantime, Clerk JoLynn Behny is asking the sheriff for additional training for her staff. She said there are currently fire drills and tornado drills, but no active shooter drills.
