Badges - Re: A Question For Everyone
- From: "HMellon" <hmellon@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: <badges@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Tue, 30 Aug 2011 21:44:42 -0400
The Ohio Supreme Court's court security guidelines have suggestions, but arent
rules for the local courts. They specifically say that each local court
should assess its needs and promulgate its own rules. Since Ohio has 88
counties and at least one Common Pleas Court and one Municipal/County court per
county, you start with 176 possible different sets of rules. The last time I
was at the Licking County Municipal Court, which was only two or three years
ago, they had not adopted any kind of perimeter security such as metal
detectors, etc. State law prohibits unauthorized person from carrying on
government property, but with no way to enforce it......
In Franklin County (Columbus) law enforcement on official business can carry in
the courthouse. At another county near me, the municipal court allows
uniformed officers to carry, but does not allow officers in civilian clothes,
i.e. detectives, to carry in the courthouse. The probem at that courthouse is
they have no secure weapon storage and tell you to go put your gun in your car.
I haven't been to the federal courthouse in Columbus this year, but from my
last visit.... no weapons other than USMS, FPS, etc., i.e. those officially
providing security in the courthouse. Like Bill's comment, the idea is that
anyone they dont know drawing a gun in the courthouse becomes the proverbial
bad guy. There is also a second security issue in that you really dont know
who is a cop and who isnt with all the small agencies nobody ever heard of and
the varying types and styles of ID cards. They obviously know the local cops
and uniforms, etc. pretty well, but the jurisdiction covers 56 counties into
the backwoods and there are places there that nobody ever knew had a cop.
Howard
----- Original Message -----
From: William Taylor
I have to surrender my weapon when I go into the local common pleas court.
I don’t mind. I do have issue with people we don’t know carrying firearms in
our building. I don’t want them in the court rooms and me not know who they
are. When I used to have to ride the pine I wanted me and my partners to have
the weapons and everyone else unarmed. I had enough to do keeping track of
the turds on trial and if something bad happened seeing someone in the
courtroom whip out a weapon who I didn’t know would cause me some problems.
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