Justice proposes legislative changes in court, judge security

SHERIDAN — During the second and final day of the Wyoming Legislative Joint Judiciary Committee meeting, former 4th Judicial District Court Judge and current Wyoming Supreme Court Justice John Fenn spoke before the committee about court and judge security, recommending legislative changes in court security training for law enforcement.
 
Serving on the Wyoming Court Security Commission, Fenn said the state has been very generous with funding in the past 15 years to equip courtrooms across Wyoming with safety measures such as electric door locks, hardened benches, cameras and metal detector equipment, but the missing link to court and judge security is the human aspect; training and manpower.
 
“We have seen a lot of turnover within the judiciary and also within law enforcement… that provide security for the courtrooms and the courthouses,” Fenn said. “We’ve learned the manpower of manning these stations. Some counties are very good. In Natrona County and Laramie County, you go through a metal detector and there’s two or three deputies there making sure that things are safe. In other counties, there’s nothing, so you have this hardware and equipment and nobody there to man it.”
 
Fenn said the Court Security Commission has worked directly with law enforcement to bolster training for court security officers with many agencies across the state providing a weeklong training session for those officers. Those training efforts were affected by the thin spread of resources during the COVID-19 pandemic, Fenn said, reviving the need for them now.
 
“The presence of law enforcement in the courthouse and in the courtroom is paramount to protection and order. My experience here in Sheridan is we have one deputy who covers the entire courthouse and at times that we have three courts going at one time… he’s going through all three areas as well as the rest of the courthouse he’s responsible for,” Fenn said. “He does a wonderful job and he’s very good at it, he’s the right kind of person for it, but it’s just an example of the expectations that we’re calling upon our sheriff’s offices to protect the courthouse.”
 
Sheridan County Sheriff’s Office Court Security Officer Steve Matheson serves as the primary, and sometimes only, officer overseeing the courthouse. Matheson rotates around the building from circuit court to the two district courtrooms, toting a computer that allows him to monitor the security cameras around the rest of the building.
 
In March 2022, Matheson had to pursue and detain a defendant who attempted to flee SCSO custody in circuit court. Matheson chased after the man, Michael Tabor, striking him three times with a baton and eventually deploying his Taser to regain control of Tabor.
 
Fenn added the work of a judge is not always popular among those who cycle in and out of the court system, potentially putting judges in a uniquely vulnerable position to threats and violence. Fenn said Wyoming’s rural, everybody-knows-everybody setting can exacerbate that vulnerability for judges outside of the courtroom.
 
“I live in Wyoming for a reason. I live in Wyoming because people do know me, they know where I drive, they know when I’m in the grocery store and they know where I live,” Fenn said. “That’s a benefit of Wyoming but it’s also a detriment of Wyoming with respect to court security.”
 
As a solution to the lack of courthouse security in Wyoming, Fenn proposed legislative changes promoting training and resources to sheriff’s departments throughout the state.
 
Rep. Mark Jennings, R-Sheridan, posed concern toward one aspect of Fenn’s proposal — special protections for judges could imply a hierarchy of people who deserve protection, which could muddy the waters of law enforcement responsibility to the public.
 
“Probably most of us up here have run into disgruntled constituents. In the courthouse I get that, I understand and am very supportive of that notion, but pretty soon we make classes of people, and you as a judge, of all people, see this,” Jennings said. “Off-site, where do we stop? Do we protect judges but we don’t protect legislators? Do we protect all of the teachers? What life is more important than the other?”
 
Fenn reiterated the appeal of living in Wyoming for many people is the community aspect of knowing their neighbors, but that aspect can present unique quandaries in legislating issues such as judge security. 
 
To alleviate the concern, Fenn suggested considering judge security on a case-by-case basis, such as promoting added court and judge security during particularly controversial cases.
 
This story was published on April 26, 2023.