GREEN BAY, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) – The on-again, off-again discussions about increasing safety at the Brown County Courthouse are on again, as the county moves towards having one entrance with security screening.
In 2019, a $1.9 million addition to the northside of the courthouse was discussed but not acted upon. Again last spring, the idea was discussed but without action.
There are currently five entrances to the courthouse, although usually just the doors on the south side of the original courthouse are used. There is no security screening station there. The county does have portable metal detectors, which can be placed in front of specific courtrooms in elevated-risk situations but are rarely used.
During the county’s Circuit Court Security and Facility Committee meeting Tuesday, Sheriff Todd DeLain said his department and county administration are working on a variety of options. While there’s not yet a specific plan or cost, moving to one entrance is coming.
“I think, long-term, getting people familiar with the fact that there’s going to be a single-point entrance, people getting accustomed to that, I think, is prudent,” DeLain said.
DeLain and Brown County Sheriff’s Department Lt. Tim Bernklau say a single entrance with a screening area will improve the overall security of the courthouse.
“A single-point entrance focus is a good method of being able to screen people through one area instead of having to monitor people that might be coming in from a bunch of different areas,” DeLain said.
“Each entrance is video taped and does record, but as a method of controlling security to the best of our ability, a single point entry we felt was a way to just help our overall mission and keeping this building safer,” Bernklau said.
Bernklau says there are few security issues, which has led to questions on the necessity of the changes. Circuit Court Judge Kendall Kelly mentioned concerns made by his colleagues.
“We don’t really have a COVID protocol at this point, at least not among the judges so much, that the question that was posed is — is it really necessary to funnel people through a single entrance instead of going back to the old system?” Kelly said.
He says it’s more of a matter of convenience than security.
“Everyday they see people come in there and probably say something uncharitable seeing that door is secure and that they’re going to have to go around,” Kelly said.
Security guidelines written by the Wisconsin Supreme Court recommend, but do not mandate, that “[a] court facility should have a single entrance with appropriate screening mechanisms in place to screen persons, carry-in items and packages. Screening stations should be equipped with a magnetometer, x-ray for packages and carry-in items, duress alarms, and video surveillance.”
Wednesday’s County Board agenda includes an item asking the administration to develop plans for a secure entrance, which will likely be sent to the Public Safety Committee for discussion on Sept. 6. The fate of the downtown jail, which is still used for daily holding of inmates appearing in court, may also be discussed then.
A county official has said that out of the state’s 12 most populous counties, Brown is the only one that doesn’t have screening to enter its courthouse.
