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Monday, March 14, 2005

What in God's name were they thinking?

I hate to kick people when they are down, but when you think how lax the security was at the Atlanta courthouse, you just have to criticize them.

What were they thinking? The only person escorting this 6’ 1”, 210 pound man, an accused rapist who had been caught with crudely fashioned weapons in his shoes only a day or two before, was a 5’ 2”, 52 year-old female deputy. With a gun, no less.

This defies understanding.

2 comments:

JL Pagano said...

I would have no doubts about a security officer's abilities with a gun regardless of gender or size, but my question would be, what on earth was the gun doing in a court room in the first place?

Whatever about the pros and cons of them being legal on the streets, in a court of law since we have the technology to ensure that all who enter are not armed, there is no need to arm the guards on the inside.

By all means have the 23rd Batallion outside the door to the court if you have to, but no guns inside. This seems like a no-brainer to me. The court is a place for justice of the verbal variety, nothing more.

James Shott said...

Having a gun where a criminal can get to it is crazy, as both of us said.

In addition, though, you have to wonder why a small female deputy was asigned all by herself to this guy, given that he was caught just a couple of days before with "homemade" weapons in his shoes.

I would expect that a prisoner accused of a violent crime would always be accompanied by at least two deputies.