COLUMBIANA COUNTY Courthouse security plans

One proposal would abolish the courthouse's traditional entrance.
By NORMAN LEIGH
VINDICATOR SALEM BUREAU
LISBON -- The Columbiana County courthouse has experienced no serious cases of violence, and county officials want to keep it that way.
County commissioners and judges are planning to revise security measures at the historic 1872 building sometime in the next year or so, Commissioner President Jim Hoppel said recently.
"It's a big issue," said Hoppel, who's in charge of county buildings and grounds. "It only takes one incident. People say this is 'little Columbiana County.' But no one is totally isolated any more."
Courthouse security now consists largely of a security station on the second floor, which is where several courtrooms are located.
Visitors are supervised by a deputy sheriff as they pass through a metal detector.
The security station also includes a bank of television monitors that allow the deputy to watch what's going on in the courtrooms, the elevator and the staircase.
But Hoppel notes that the rest of the courthouse is virtually without any security.
Single entrance
Hoppel said one solution may be to set up a single security station that everyone entering the courthouse must pass through.
There are three courthouse entrances: the main entrance and an adjoining entrance for the disabled, located off Market Street; and another off an alley on the building's west side.
Consideration is being given to making the entrance for the disabled the courthouse's main entrance and shutting off the others.
Reached by a ramp, the entrance leads into a section of the courthouse basement now occupied by the county law library, which would have to be moved, Hoppel said.
Moving the library -- it's unclear to where -- would make room for a security station and a holding area for prisoners awaiting court hearings.
Prisoners are now placed on the second floor among other courtroom visitors or kept in the sheriff's courtroom office.
The arrangement is problematic, officials say. It mixes prisoners with the public or requires a deputy to stay in the sheriff's office to guard the prisoner.
Ending a tradition
One problem with making the entrance for the disabled the main entrance is that it would mean shutting down the courthouse's traditional main entry, Hoppel noted. The arched entrance, with its stone steps and high ceiling, has been used by courthouse visitors for decades.
Closing it also could detract from the building's historic character, Hoppel said.
A security station could be erected inside the traditional main entrance, but there would not be room there for a prisoner holding area.
"We're in favor of having one entrance," said Judge David Tobin of common pleas court.
Judge Tobin noted, however, that even if a primary security checkpoint was established, he would still want a deputy on the second floor to be immediately available should a problem arise in or near the courtrooms.
Hoppel said he's hopeful that federal and state grants will pay for security improvements. No cost estimates for the project have been developed yet.