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L/RAIN Temp: 46 °F Wind: W at 8 mph Monday, April 21, 2003 SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion - Politics AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map EXTRA HomeLife Magazine W3 Magazine Jobs @ Mail Tribune Tempo A & E Oregon CarZone Wellness Connection Real Estate Newspaper in Education Prime Times Outdoor Journal Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People CLASSIFIEDS Find a Car Find a Home Find a Job Find Everything E SOUTHERN OREGON Automotive Communities Entertainment Publications Recreation Calendar ABOUT US FAQ What's New Advertise Home Delivery Classified Ad Contact Us Media Kit Email Story to a Friend April 8, 2003 Security tightens at justice building By SARAH LEMON Mail Tribune Jackson County’s Justice Building is a safer place thanks to tighter court security measures, officials said. Court security staff now are scanning visitors’ purses, briefcases and coats with an X-ray machine at the building’s entrance. A metal detector has been in place since February, and a massive remodeling project created a single point of entry and exit a month earlier. The courthouse previously had seven exits and entrances. "The potential for harm has been drastically reduced," said Bob Kleker, Circuit Court operations supervisor. The new equipment has already prevented courthouse visitors from bringing pocket knives and pepper spray into the building, which was a problem in the past, Kleker said. Approximately 1,000 people pass in and out of the Justice Building every day, Kleker added. In addition to screening visitors and inspecting their belongings, security guards monitor the building’s 40 surveillance cameras by computer in a new control room. The cameras record digital images in courtrooms, lobbies, hallways, emergency exits, and the building’s exterior. Security staff also can send images via computer to dispatchers for the Jackson County Sheriff’s Department, Kleker said. The new security equipment, which came with a $175,000 price tag, was purchased with money from the state’s court security fund. The fund comes from assessment fees tacked onto fines for citations and criminal convictions in state courts. Jackson County’s share is about $120,000 each year, which also pays salaries for the Justice building’s four security guards, Kleker said. A new meeting room on the building’s remodeled second floor also tightens security, separating jury members from witnesses and defendants. Previously, everyone waited together in lobbies outside of courtrooms, Kleker said. The 120-seat jury assembly room boasts monitors that display courtrooms via closed-circuit television. Court spectators who can’t crowd onto the six benches available in each courtroom can view court proceedings in the assembly room, Kleker said. The room will come in handy for particularly high-profile cases — such as next month’s murder trial for accused wife-killer Gary Repp — which will demand a large jury pool and most likely will draw a large crowd, Kleker added. Reach reporter Sarah Lemon at 776-4487, or e-mail [email protected] . Printer Friendly Version Email Story to a Friend Subscribe Archive: Click to Search Mail Tribune Home Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life Opinion - Politics | AP News | Archives | Site Map E Southern Oregon | Classified Copyright © 1997-2003 Mail Tribune. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions Website Feedback A D V E R T I S E R S