Courtroom violence: what we can do about it.

• Author: Wax, Jack
• Position: The United States of Violence: A Special Section - Cover Story

The SOUND of gunshots has shattered decorum and lives in courtrooms across the country. It may be days or months before the next courtroom shooting. The only certainty is that courtroom violence is increasing. During 1992, for example, newspapers reported the following incidents:

* In the St. Louis County Courthouse, an estranged husband in a divorce proceeding reached into his briefcase and pulled out two pistols. He shot and killed his wife, then wounded two attorneys, a bailiff, and a security guard.

* At the Tarrant County (Tex.) Courthouse, a spectator at an appellate hearing opened fire in a courtroom, slaying two lawyers and wounding another along with two judges. When he turned himself in, the gunman said he was angry about a divorce and child molestation charge against him.

* In Grand Forks, N.D., a man brought before the court because of failure to pay child support shot and wounded the judge.

The areas near courtrooms also are the sites of increased violence. People have been killed in courthouse halls and while approaching the main doors. At the Colbert County (Ala.) Courthouse, a woman shot a relative during a visit to a probation officer. A woman on the way to file a harassment complaint was murdered by her former husband as she was about to enter a courthouse in Beaumont, Tex. In the basement parking garage of the Dirksen Federal Building in Chicago, a prisoner returning from a courtroom appearance killed two marshals.

Media attention sometimes distorts the true dimensions of a problem. Yet, instead of exaggerating courtroom dangers, the media unintentionally may be minimizing them. Because only the most serious incidents make the headlines, courtrooms appear safer than they are. "Someone gets shot in a courthouse, and you get a lot of attention," points out Don Hardenbergh, a senior staff associate for the National Center for State Courts, Williamsburg, Va. "In terms of shoving, pushing, verbal abuse, and intimidation, a lot goes on in courtrooms that should worry people."

When violence erupts in a courtroom, there always are at least two victims - the injured or threatened person(s) and the justice system. The extent of the damage can be difficult to gauge, and the exact number of violent incidents and their nature are unknown. Even the possibility of danger takes its toll. "The threat of violence may be enough to keep someone from testifying," Hardenbergh indicates.

Court administrators are asking basic questions, such as what priority does security deserve in court budgets and what equipment or training is needed to keep courts safe? Courts that take too few precautions risk the lives of lawyers, judges, and trial participants. Yet, excessive security measures can help create an oppressive atmoshpere where a defendant's guilt is presumed too easily.

How dangerous are the courts? All indications point to a potential for violence that should be taken seriously. During 1989-90, the National Sheriffs' Association asked courts, sheriffs, and law enforcement agencies to report recent violent incidents in state and local courts. By December, 1990, 243 violent acts had been recorded, the majority of which were attacks. However, many other incidents never were reported. Only 29 states participated in the survey, and even they didn't send reports on every occurrence.

The U.S. Marshals Service tracks all threats against Federal judges and, in 199 1, recorded 362 validated threats against them. The seriousness of these is underscored by the number of weapons the marshals confiscated at courthouse security checkpoints - more than 8,000 in 1991. That doesn't include the 220,000 concealed weapons law enforcement officials forgot to check in at the front door.

Organized crime and neighborhood gangs add to the threat involved in some criminal trials. In civil cases - especially in domestic relations courts - frustration with the justice system may trigger courtroom violence. For generations, courthouses have been that neutral ground between husband and wife, between the estate...