murdered.comflint michigan; genesse county court room brawl raw video july 14 2009
FLINT -- After a distraught father jumped a courtroom railing and punched the man accused of killing his son last week, local authorities were quick to point out the short-staffed security in the county's courthouses.
Genesee County Sheriff Robert Pickell and local judges called for more deputies to staff the courtrooms.
"I don't have enough people," Pickell said.
Metal detectors installed at Genesee Circuit and District courts in 1990 helped allay fears about weapons, such as guns and knives, making their way inside.
But, as Pickell points out, emotions can't be checked at the front door.
While there have been some security threats from high profile cases like gang trials, Pickell said most of the disturbances are smaller. Fights break out frequently in hallways, with family members pushing or shoving each other or threatening others.
"This is life; this is what's going on in our courtrooms," he said.
With the June 26 courtroom brawl, a video shows Alex W. Pace, whose son was shot to death in December, punching defendant Juanell Darrough. Police said Pace lost control when he saw Darrough smiling as he was brought into Flint District Judge Tracy Collier-Nix's courtroom.
Only one deputy was in the courtroom, although the Flint police detective assigned to the case also was there. That type of staffing is fairly typical during court hearings.
As a result of those issues, Pickell plans on putting more deputies in the courts, especially when there are high profile cases or lots of people in the audience.
He declined to say how many deputies currently work security at the courts, but said eight more will be added on an as-needed basis. Those deputies will be pulled from work at the county jail.
The City of Flint also pays for four deputies salaries and a fraction of sergeant and lieutenant pay for staff at the Flint District Court. Pickell said he plans on reviewing that contract when it expires next year to see if more is needed.
Chief judges of each court have been meeting with Pickell to discuss the changes.
Judge Archie Hayman, chief of the circuit and district courts, said judges should request more deputies if they anticipate problems or if there are a large number of people in the audience.
Hayman said with the types of cases that come through the courts -- rapes, murders, assaults -- it doesn't surprise him that people would be angry. What does surprise him, though, is that people would act on that in front of a judge.
"I think there is, in my opinion, less respect for the courts," he said. "This would have been unheard of 30 years ago."
Court security issues are nothing new. Over the years, officials have reviewed policies and set new ones, especially after incidents at local courts and ones throughout the country.
In 1993, the county made it a requirement that everyone entering the courts, including employees and attorneys, pass through the metal detector. That move came after New York parole officer shot and killed his estranged wife, a federal parole and probation officer, at a Brooklyn Family Court.
But not everyone has fears that security is too lax.
"I wouldn't feel unsafe in the courts," said Flint resident Carol Donofrio, 46. "Usually when someone is angry in there they are going to go after the perpetrator, not me."
And others, including Pickell, agree that even more deputies isn't going to stop someone from lashing out.
"If I'd had 15 people in there last week it probably still would have happened," he said, adding more security helps to make sure weapons don't get in and to have people available if things get out of control.
Beverly Leavy of Flint has been spending a lot of time in court lately to hear the case of the two people accused of killing her nephew.
She knows how emotions can run high -- several of her family members have been asked to leave the courtroom because officials thought they were being disruptive.
But, she never anticipates something similar happening in her family.
"We, as people, need to be Godly," she said. "You're angry, but you have to deal with that."
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