Jackson County shooting leads to courthouse safety discussion

By BRYCE KELLY

Mt. Pleasant News

In light of this week?s courthouse shooting in Jackson County that left one person dead and another injured, Henry County Sheriff Rich McNamee spoke at the most recent Henry County Board of Supervisors meeting about ways in which Henry County might be able to learn from the tragedy on Sept. 9.

?We just want there to be some discussion after what happened in Jackson County,? explained Marc Lindeen before McNamee began. ?We aren?t going to resolve anything today. We just want some discussion about this.?

Overall, McNamee?s thoughts were that Henry County needed to note what happened in Jackson County and know that there is always a chance for similar events to happen again in Henry County.

?In a nutshell, the chances of that happening in Henry County are always there. I don?t think recent events in Maquoketa make it anymore prone for Henry County to have a problem than we did yesterday,? said McNamee. ?But there?s always a chance.?

One topic of discussion was whether or not Henry County needed to change aspects of the day to day functioning of the courthouse. McNamee?s feelings were that such actions might not be necessary.

?I don?t think that we need to change business from what we have done in the past. That?s my personal opinion,? McNamee said.

Although the sheriff did not feel the need to make drastic changes to courthouse security, he did offer up a time of discussion regarding various options that courthouse officials can use if they feel they needed to.

One such option was beefing up court security during court hearings and county supervisors meetings. Another was looking into ways to interlink security cameras at the courthouse to the Henry County Sheriff?s office so that local law enforcement would have the ability to monitor any suspicious activity at the courthouse from their office.

?I think these are all fabulous ideas and I would be willing to explore them, but it is going to take some changing,? said McNamee. ?We are a deputy shy right now and we would have to change our staffing situation to do these things.?

Another option that was explored was the installation of a medal detector at the front door of the courthouse. Both Lindeen and McNamee were not in favor of this. Greg Moeller and Gary See also echoed their dislike of the idea. Shelly Barber, the county auditor and board secretary, voiced her opinion of a medal detector stating that it would likely do more harm than good.

?It would be going off constantly for other things that were not guns and we would have to have somebody there all the time to deal with that,? Barber said.

Supervisor Gary See also agreed saying, ?We would have everybody scared all the time if something like a medal detector was always going off for things that were not guns or weapons.?

Currently, the courthouse does have various security measures in place to respond and hopefully weaken chances of violence within the building. Panic buttons are installed in various offices and courtrooms in case of an emergency. Cameras are also installed in each of the courtrooms and the board of supervisors meeting room as well as the clerk?s office, main stairwells, elevators and main hallways.

In spite of the many cameras in the courthouse, McNamee admitted that the building could stand to have a more thorough examination of where cameras are placed. He also speculated on the possibility of adding more cameras to enhance coverage.

?I would be more than happy to look at where cameras are recording and see where there is vulnerability,? McNamee offered.

He also added some simple measures that could be taken which would not require a lot of work or added security on the sheriff?s department?s part.

One suggestion was having briefcases, bags, coats and purses be subject to inspection as well as making bulky coats and clothing prohibited while inside court rooms or meetings. McNamee also reminded the board that pat-downs could legally be done by local law enforcement on anyone visiting the courthouse.

?We [local law enforcement] can pat down and search any guy or gal that walks through these doors,? McNamee said. ?We have that right and we will do it on the courthouse employees? behalf anytime. I really don?t think that would be a bad idea.?

It was also pointed out that although everyone is subject to search, it would not mean that everyone is searched before each meeting or hearing. Under federal and state laws, law enforcement officials have the right to search a person if they have probable cause to do so.

Lindeen ended discussions by instructing McNamee to keep the board informed of any new ideas or developments he has regarding courthouse security.

McNamee finished by informing the board that he has personally reached out to the Jackson County Sheriff?s office to offer support and sympathy.

?This incident really hit home for me. I have known the sheriff [in Jackson County] for years, and I sent him a message yesterday to make sure everything was okay. If I get a chance I may give him a call.?

The next board of supervisors meeting will be Tuesday, Sept. 16, at 9 a.m. at the Henry County courthouse.