As a young attorney, Thomas Edwards Jr. heard an older lawyer describe the courthouse as being “the razor’s edge of dispute in our society.”
The courthouse is a place where families can be separated, civil disputes resolved and emotions run high in decisions that impact lives.
It’s also a place where safety is paramount to all parties involved while those decisions are made.
To that end, the Florida Supreme Court last month created a workgroup to review courthouse security across the state and ensure resolutions remain peaceful.
Edwards, a partner with Edwards & Ragatz, and 4th Judicial Circuit Chief Judge Mark Mahon will help lead efforts of the 12-member Trial Courthouse Security Workgroup. They each have 30-plus years in the legal field.
“It’s a very large task,” said Mahon. “There are so many different courthouses across Florida and security primarily falls to the county … There’s not a single standard.”
Locally, they said, courthouse security in Duval County is in pretty good shape.
The courthouse, which opened in 2012, is one of just a few in Florida that have been built since 9/11. It features updated, distinct security features.
Mahon declined to discuss specifics, citing security concerns. However, he said the courthouse has been a standard bearer that has attracted attention from the judiciary and law enforcement officials across the state.
The workgroup first met Aug. 11-12 and spent the second day touring the facility. Other groups will tour soon, too, said Mahon.
It wasn’t always that way, though.
The difference in security is “light years away from where we were,” Mahon said in comparing the new courthouse with the old one on Bay Street.
He remembers a time as a new assistant state attorney in Jacksonville more than 30 years ago when a man jumped a railing to get in front of the judge, then later hopped another railing and fled.
Mahon said the bailiff had his gun drawn as he scrambled over the wall himself to give chase. Luckily, the man was apprehended in the stairwell.
Edwards recalls a Jacksonville incident about 30 years ago when someone discharged a firearm in court and the bullet passed through a wall. And there were plenty of times he rode up the elevator with prisoners.
The old courthouse was designed so prisoners heading to court would walk down the hall with judges, witnesses and lawyers, said Edwards. Yet, when it was designed 60-70 years ago, he said, that was OK.
The new courthouse doesn’t have those issues.
But as Mahon says, when one feels safest it’s probably time to have a fresh set of eyes on the subject.
There wasn’t a singular incident that led to the formation of the workgroup, but more of a collection in recent years, Edwards said. Two he mentioned took place in Georgia and Michigan courthouses where inmates took guns from officers and shot people.
In its first meeting last month, the workgroup came up with an idea of seeking funding for trial court security coordinators at each of Florida’s 20 circuits.
The initial thought was to ask for $2.1 million from the Florida Legislature in its 2016-17 session, but Mahon said that request might be tempered.
Instead of having one for each circuit, another idea is having a state coordinator who can assess the needs of each circuit.
Mahon said the group has two years to complete its work, but he believes it will be done sooner.
The Florida Supreme Court’s workgroup’s charges include evaluating courthouse security procedures and perceptions; developing standards and training; and identifying opportunities to work with local law enforcement, governments and the judiciary to benefit security measures.
The next meeting should be in December.
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