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Hernando Today

New Courthouse Security Post An Eye-Opener

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By KYLE MARTIN, Hernando Today

Published: February 2, 2008

BROOKSVILLE - Capt. Michael Maurer has spent 20-plus years pulling crooks off the street.

But until three weeks ago, he had little idea what transpired after dropping a suspect off at jail.

Now he knows.

On Jan. 7, Maurer officially took charge of security at the government center in downtown Brooksville after his predecessor, Capt. Marc Rivenbark, retired.

The new post has involved a crash course in juggling judicial schedules, mitigating the risks of transporting inmates and memorizing a whole new set of keys.

His eyes have been opened to all the jobs that keep the four-story building on Main Street humming.

"It's a whole micro-society," he said.

Maurer starts his job on the brink of a dramatic transformation in security.

There have been minimal interruptions to the public so far, but behind the scenes officials have already invested $250,000 to install new security cameras and door locks that only open to employees.

By early April, though, that will all change. Plans are in place to install metal detectors on either side of the atrium: Two on the east entrance that faces the parking lot and probably one on the opposite side that opens into a courtyard.

The three elevators that service the government center's four floors will be rigged so that all but one will travel to the basement. That's an allowance for handicap access.

Officials are taking it slow so they can account for every foreseeable scenario, but they acknowledge the learning curve will take a few months.

"A lot of dialogue needs to happen," Maurer said.

Unhappy Business

Aside from maybe marriage applications, most folks coming to the government center aren't there on "happy business."

When viewed from a "worst case scenario" perspective, Maurer finds plenty of reasons security is important.

Start with circuit criminal court. The gallery is packed with emotional victims and the families of suspects who are about to lose their liberty.

Just this past week, bailiffs escorted out a pair of parents upset about their son's sentence.

But aside from the obvious court-related issues, Maurer has to consider the offices of the tax collector, county commissioners and code enforcement. The third and fourth floors host the offices of the public defender and state attorney. Any one of these is a ripe target for someone with a grudge.

On the second floor, clerks process civil papers. These include lawsuits, restraining orders and evictions - another touchy issues.

There's also traffic court, child support hearings and domestic violence court.

Any question as to why there are more than 50 panic buttons scattered throughout the government center?

Solution Is Not Simple

The explosion of growth in past years has far-reaching effects on all aspects of life, including crime and its subsequent judicial process.

Burgeoning court dockets have put courtroom space at a premium, but Maurer didn't have a grasp on how tight it really was until he took over.

Now he crosses his fingers whenever trial week comes around that there will be a courtroom available.

Solving this problem has long been a source of debate, but it wasn't until recently that commissioners officially put their stamp on building a separate judicial center.

One of the other ideas bandied about was to renovate office space into courtrooms as a short-term solution. Maurer has since realized it is a security nightmare.

He points to the recent part-time conversion of the county commission chambers as a child dependency courtroom.

At the last hearing, four people were remanded, or placed into the custody of the sheriff's office. Those people were shackled and handcuffed, then escorted across the main atrium.

Aside from embarrassing the suspect, it opens the possibility of an indignant family launching an attack on the hobbled person. Or, a knife or gun could be stashed among the plants of the lobby to make an armed escape.

Pat Fagan, director of parks and facilities, points out that unlike most modern facilities, the government center is poorly designed when it comes to security.

That 29 special exterior door locks were purchased demonstrates as much.

The aim of the final phase of renovations, which are expected to cost $25,000, is to cut back on the number of points of entry.

"We know there will be issues," Fagan said, "but we're going to make this work."

Reporter Kyle Martin can be reached at 352-544-5271 or kmartin@hernandotoday.com.

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