Court Security

Bats invaded courthouse as Halloween loomed

When Zac Weiland walked into court on Friday, the assistant Utah prosecutor heard scratching sounds: Bats were in the ceiling, walls and stairwells of the Washington County Justice Center, and Weiland even saw one struggling to get out of a light fixture. “I don’t like bats,” he told KSL. “I…

Nov 3, 2014 6:55 AM CST

Judge attacked in courtroom by defendant in aggravated battery case, sheriff’s officials say

A suburban Chicago judge was taken to a hospital for treatment Thursday after being attacked by a defendant in an aggravated battery case, immediately after a court hearing, sheriff’s officials said. The Cook County Circuit Court judge, who has not been officially identified, is expected to be OK. He may…

Oct 30, 2014 4:10 PM CDT

Man convicted of ID theft gets less prison time due to reform, facial tattoo removal

A former employee of a Florida court clerk’s office is serving three years for selling information from a driver’s license database to Derek Denesevich. But Denesevich, who admittedly used the information to file about 80 fraudulent tax returns, was sentenced to only 15 months, the Sun Sentinel reports. Besides cooperating…

Oct 27, 2014 10:56 AM CDT

Murderer slashes lawyer with smuggled blade, gets life, will now face new case in attorney attack

After his handcuffs were removed in anticipation of sentencing, a convicted murderer reportedly stood behind one of his lawyers in a an Oklahoma courthouse conference room on Friday and slashed the attorney’s neck with a smuggled razor blade. The unidentified lawyer was not seriously hurt but “did have quite a…

Oct 24, 2014 2:50 PM CDT

Federal judge in $1.2B Silk Road drug case is threatened online

Threats have been made against a federal judge overseeing the New York prosecution of a man accused of masterminding the underground ‘Silk Road” website on which bitcoins were used to purchase drugs. Private information including the home address of U.S. District Judge Katherine Bolan Forrest has been posted online on…

Oct 22, 2014 4:50 PM CDT

Judge clears courtroom after noticing police report said arrestee claimed to have Ebola

It isn’t just hospitals that are revamping procedures to deal with individuals who might have been exposed to the deadly Ebola virus. A Florida judge on Friday cleared a courtroom after noticing that an arrest report said a defendant facing charges of battery, resisting without violence and disorderly conduct had…

Oct 17, 2014 12:10 PM CDT

Missing woman found forgotten in holding area of closed courthouse

A missing persons report Wednesday was soon resolved by a search of a Michigan courthouse. Tara Mathis had been in the Barry County building hours earlier for a hearing in a child-support case and sentenced to 24 days when she told a probate judge she had no money to pay…

Oct 16, 2014 1:10 PM CDT

Court announces total photo ban after earlier rule is flouted by multiple media outlets

Five months ago, after a violation of the rule banning photography in hallways and other public areas of the Mecklenburg County Courthouse, the North Carolina court’s senior resident judge met with Charlotte media representatives. Superior Court Judge Richard Boner reiterated the blanket ban, which has applied for over 20 years,…

Oct 15, 2014 5:20 PM CDT

Man gets 90 days for taking cellphone photos in court

Roy Davis caught the attention of a Florida judge on Thursday when the 22-year-old Ohio man reportedly began taking courtroom photos on his cellphone. Ordered by Duval County Judge James Daniel to approach the bench, Davis initially refused but stopped resisting when a court officer aimed a stun gun at…

Sep 25, 2014 5:30 PM CDT

Murder defendant refuses judge’s order to wear Stun-Cuff at trial, misses opening statements

A Maryland judge decided to require a murder defendant to wear an ankle bracelet that can transmit an electric shock at trial after he threatened her, the judge said, by screaming her first name and trying to enter her chambers Tuesday before bailiffs restrained him. But later in the day,…

Sep 17, 2014 10:50 AM CDT

Gunman kills lawyer, wounds client in shooting at Denmark courthouse

A gunman killed a lawyer and critically wounded his client Tuesday in a courthouse shooting in Denmark. It may have been the first shooting in the history of the Copenhagen City Court, which was founded in 1771, the Associated Press reports. The names of the 57-year-old attorney who was killed…

Sep 16, 2014 4:10 PM CDT

Judge who ordered deputy to shock ‘rude’ pro se defendant has been taken off bench

Updated: It appears that a call by the public defender for the state of Maryland to ban a senior circuit court judge from hearing cases may have been heeded by the state’s top court. On Friday, the Maryland Court of Appeals said there was “good cause” to remove retired Judge…

Sep 10, 2014 11:45 AM CDT

Courthouse shooter is tackled by county official, dies at scene

An Iowa man who had been embroiled for years in a property tax dispute with Jackson County officials died Tuesday of a gunshot wound at the conclusion of a government meeting. Officials said shooting suspect Francis “Gus” Glaser, 71, pulled a gun from a briefcase. He fired once at the…

Sep 9, 2014 2:40 PM CDT

Federal judge on courthouse shooter’s ‘hit list’ asked to step aside in cases against family members

A federal judge who was No. 5 on an alleged 16-name “hit list” found among the belongings of a Delaware courthouse shooter (one of the two women killed was No. 1) has been asked to step aside from hearing criminal cases against the shooter’s family members. Prosecutors joined with defense…

Sep 5, 2014 4:25 PM CDT

Prosecutor slayings suspect wanted to target former judges, too, those in charge of murder case say

A disbarred justice of the peace accused of shooting to death two Texas prosecutors in 2013 also wanted to assassinate two former judges, prosecutors say. Eric Williams planned to kill District Judge Glen Ashworth as far back as 2005, according to special prosecutors in charge of Williams’ capital murder case.…

Sep 3, 2014 5:30 PM CDT