Court Security

Feds amp up prosecution of those accused in third U.S. Supreme Court protest in little over a year

Those arrested in two previous 99Rise protests that interrupted U.S. Supreme Court proceedings didn’t spend more than a day in jail. But that may change concerning the five individuals taken into custody on April 1, following the third disruption for which 99Rise has claimed responsibility in little more than a…

Apr 7, 2015 9:35 AM CDT

Protesters disrupt US Supreme Court proceedings; 5 arrests made

For the third time in little more than a year, protesters associated with 99Rise have disrupted U.S. Supreme Court proceedings. On Wednesday, the first protester stood up at approximately 10 a.m., shortly after the court’s justices took their seats, and said, “I rise to claim our democracy, one person, one…

Apr 1, 2015 1:20 PM CDT

What is appropriate punishment for judge who punched assistant public defender?

Judge John Murphy apologized and took a month off from work to attend an anger-management class after punching an assistant public defender in the hallway outside his Florida courtroom last year. But was that enough punishment? The state Judicial Qualificiations Commission will soon start considering this question in the legal…

Mar 31, 2015 1:10 PM CDT

Turkish prosecutor taken hostage by terror group dies after courthouse shootout

Updated: A Turkish prosecutor died after two gunmen disguised as lawyers took him hostage in an Istanbul courthouse on Tuesday. The members of a terrorist group threatened to kill him if an investigation was not handled to their satisfaction, authorities said. Both gunmen were killed following a shootout with special…

Mar 31, 2015 12:20 PM CDT

DA’s investigator taken into custody, charged with pointing gun at woman in courthouse

An investigator for the Anderson County district attorney’s office was arrested Monday after allegedly pulling a gun on another employee at a Texas courthouse. The incident occurred at about 10 a.m., reports the Palestine Herald-Press. Thomas Alan Douglas, 47, was taken into custody at his office around 10:45 a.m. and…

Mar 30, 2015 4:15 PM CDT

Michigan woman is charged in alleged death threats against federal judge, prosecutor

A Michigan woman was indicted on Wednesday for alleged death threats last month against a federal judge and prosecutor. Lynnette Bennett, 36, is accused of making the threats in a call to an Isabella County dispatcher, the Detroit News reports. Bennett is accused of threatening to kill U.S. District Judge…

Mar 26, 2015 2:10 PM CDT

Man’s social media post about pending firearm case threatens judge, gets him jail and $500K bail

Headed to court for a hearing in an Illinois felony firearm case on Tuesday, Jerome McKinney decided to make a few social media posts. Now the 22-year-old Chicago man is being held in lieu of $500,000 bond on a new charge of threatening a public official in the Bridgeview Branch…

Mar 23, 2015 9:40 AM CDT

Lawyer is accused in additional courthouse bomb threats

A Cleveland lawyer accused of making bomb threats in July 2012 to employees at the Cuyahoga County courthouse has now been charged with making bomb threats at two other Ohio courthouses. A new indictment accuses lawyer Gregory Moore, 41, with making bomb threats for the Geauga County Courthouse in January…

Mar 17, 2015 8:51 AM CDT

Fatal courthouse shooting and violent spree still reverberate 10 years later

A fatal shooting and assault rampage that began at a Georgia courthouse 10 years ago, resulting in the deaths of a judge, a court reporter and two law enforcement officers, led to enhanced security measures at courthouses throughout the state. However, as the Fulton County Courthouse community on Wednesday remembered…

Mar 12, 2015 2:35 PM CDT

Longtime court officer charged with raping shackled prisoner at courthouse; security is under review

A longtime Massachusetts court officer appeared in Lawrence District Court in handcuffs and leg shackles on Wednesday after being charged with raping a prisoner at the courthouse on multiple occasions since 2009. Bond was set at $40,000 for Jose F. Martinez, 46. The 16-year court employee was ordered to stay…

Mar 5, 2015 2:35 PM CST

Marshals arrest open-carry advocate carrying rifle outside courthouse

U.S. Marshals arrested a man outside the federal courthouse in Spokane, Washington, who was carrying a rifle slung across his back. Anthony Bosworth told law enforcement agents he was exercising his Tenth Amendment rights, while a woman who was taping the incident said he was exercising his right to bear…

Feb 26, 2015 9:37 AM CST

Following courthouse prank, Delaware courts are reviewing which security officers should be armed

Court officials in Delaware are reviewing which security officers should carry guns following a reported courthouse prank earlier this month that allegedly involved a firearm. “The Judiciary has been actively working on its policies regarding courthouse security and who should have firearms and has sought advice from the best sources,”…

Feb 25, 2015 10:13 AM CST

Discovery in inmate’s cell leads to police protection for city attorney, federal and local judges

Two judges and a city attorney in Charlotte, North Carolina, were placed under police protection last month after their photos were found in an inmate’s prison cell. Chief U.S. District Judge Frank Whitney, recently retired Superior Court Judge Richard Boner and Charlotte City Attorney Bob Hagemann, the Charlotte Observer reports,…

Feb 23, 2015 7:23 AM CST

Angry at 10-year prison term, offender tries to arrange to kill judge and gets another 80 years

Angry at being sentenced to a 10-year prison term in 2013 for failing to register as a sex offender, William Ray Phillips tried to arrange to assassinate the Texas judge who put him behind bars, a state-court jury found Wednesday after less than two hours of deliberation. That solicitation of…

Feb 20, 2015 12:05 PM CST

Trial begins for man accused of seeking hit on judge who gave him 10 years in offender-registry case

A convicted sex offender is on trial in Waco, Texas, for allegedly trying to pay $30,000 to have the judge who presided over his last two trials assassinated. William Ray Phillips, 64, rejected a pretrial plea deal that would have come with a 30-year prison term, a prosecutor said. If…

Feb 17, 2015 11:05 AM CST