Just after 9:00 am on March 13th, 2005, in the Superior Court of Fulton County, defense attorney Richard Robbins was amused by a joke told by his long time friend and mentor Roland Barnes. Robbins was startled by a loud noise which he thought to be an easel falling over. He then turned back to see his good friend and Fulton County Superior Court Judge Roland Barnes fall dead on his bench. As Robbins turned to flee the courtroom, he saw Brian Nichols turn his weapon upon 46 year old court reporter Julie Ann Brandau. She also took her last breath at her post within that Fulton County courtroom. Nichols went on to murder Fulton County Deputy Hoyt Teasley and Federal Agent David Wilhelm. Nichols was later apprehended after the largest statewide manhunt in Georgia history.
On the evening of February 28th, 2005, Federal Court Judge Joan Humphrey Lefkow returned home to find her husband and mother executed in their home on the North Side of Chicago. Lefkow had ruled several times in a civil case against a white supremacist group using the name “The World Church of the Creator”. The founder and self proclaimed reverend of the Church, Matthew Hale, is currently serving a forty year sentence in Federal prison for plotting the murder of Judge Lefkow. Her husband’s killer has never been brought to justice.
So what does this have to do with Lamar County? In response to these occurrences, Federal and State lawmakers have revamped the security plans of their courtrooms and courthouses. In 2006, the General Assembly enacted new legislation that added significant responsibility to the Office’s of the Sheriff throughout the State. House bill 51 and Senate bill 462 added an entire section to Georgia Law O.C.G.A 15-16-10 which now requires the Sheriff of each Georgia County to draft and implement a comprehensive courthouse security plan. This plan has to be reviewed by both the Chief Judge of the Superior Court and the local County Commission. These bills also changed O.C.G.A. 36-9-8 to state that the Sheriff is to prevent intrusion upon all County property, not just the courthouse.
In order to comply with these new laws, the Lamar County Sheriff's Office hired a team of professionals from Advanced Law Enforcement Readiness Training (A.L.E.R.T.) to conduct a full survey of the Lamar County Courthouse and submit a plan of defense back to us. The team, lead by 28 year veteran United States Marshall Mike Thompson, detailed many needs for improvement and pointed out key areas of short comings. This plan has been submitted for review by both Superior Court Judges and the Lamar County Board of Commissioners. While the plan does call for the addition of certain items of technology to the courthouse, the majority of the upgrades can be accomplished without significant cost to the County. The final word on the security plan falls to Chief Superior Court Judge Tommy Wilson. Judge Wilson informed Sheriff Buice that he expects the plan to be in effect by the April 30th, 2007 trial week.
The most significant change involved in the new plan involves the entrances into the courthouse. The team from ALERT pointed out that securing the courthouse is impossible if you cannot secure the people coming inside. The new security plan calls for all entrances into the courthouse to remain locked at all times except for the front set of double doors and that they be manned by deputies during business hours. In order to comply with Federal guidelines, alterations must be made to the existing entrances to allow for one way egress in the event of a fire or emergency evacuation and to allow for handicapped access. The County Commission is fully aware of all necessary improvements and is in full support of the program. Federal Homeland Security Grants have been applied for in order to place an x-ray machine at the front entrance along with the already in place magnetometer.
The obvious inconvenience to both citizens and employees alike will be the restricted access from the side and rear doors. However, funneling people to a single access point is the most critical aspect of the security plan. Lamar County will be joining Monroe and Butts counties within the Towaliga Judicial Circuit which already restrict access to a single entry point. At this time, the Lamar County courthouse remains one of the few in the entire State of Georgia which does not already screen every person granted entry.
Nobel prize winning scientist Albert Einstein stated “The world is a dangerous place to live, not because of the people who are evil, but because of the people who don't do anything about it.” For everyone that still considers Lamar County to be a community that does not warrant such extensive security, consider that the before-mentioned World Church of the Creator is located in Riverton Wyoming, a community with half the population of Barnesville. Lamar County cannot afford to ignore a growing concern in the hopes that we will never fall as victims.
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9 comments:
I see the sheriff is puffing himself up again. Someone must have asked him what happened to the Donna Johnson case.
I think it is great that they are being pro-active for once!
If you want to upgrade the security at the courthouse that's fine but doing it because of this Brian Nichols idiot infuriates me. All the metal detectors in the world would not have stopped what happened that day because he took the gun from a female deputy already in the courthouse. It just really pisses me off that goons like this Nichols idiot are robbing us of our civil liberties and the good honest people are being run through the ringer (or as I guess you could say in 2007, "being run through the detector."
What did happen to the Donna Johnson investigation?
11:12 I guess buice could'nt put who he wanted in prison for it so he just shut and left it alone but that's typical of him.
It's obvious the sheriff was seeking publicity. If Rudy Vaughan hadden't gotten him off the hook by taking the front page, the sheriff would be sucking air.
The security at the court house would work better, if the sheriff on duty was awake, and doing his job all day.
All right buice where you at somebodys sleeping do something or is it you?
I feel that the Donna Johnson should have been taken care of a long time ago What over twenty years and they still haven't solved the case. That was twenty years out of her life and the criminals have had twenty years to be proud of the heinous crime that they committed and got away with. Justice will be served one way or another but the criminals should be prosecuted and given the death penalty. Come on Joe you can make sure justice for Donna is served. Keep the investigation going I back you one hundred percent. I didn't know when we were in school that you would be a prominent figure in Barnesville society. Congratulations!!!!!! Crack down on all of these criminals. They deserve it.
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