U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government, Department of Justice.

NCJRS Virtual Library

The Virtual Library houses over 235,000 criminal justice resources, including all known OJP works.
Click here to search the NCJRS Virtual Library

Status of Court Security in State Courts - A National Perspective

NCJ Number
244688
Date Published
June 2013
Length
180 pages
Annotation
This study assessed how State courts are providing security in the Nation's court buildings.
Abstract
The study found that there is a critical need to improve security in State and local court buildings nationwide. Four recommendations are offered in addressing this issue. First, acknowledge that doing nothing is not an option. Second, recognize that local, State, regional, and national communication and collaboration are needed if the effort to improve court security is to succeed. Third, provide additional funding for improving staffing and equipment. Fourth, Coordinate and support State court security programs. In developing this report, researchers reviewed and analyzed information obtained from approximately 226 security assessments conducted in recent years. The assessments focused on security policies, procedures, staffing, equipment, and training. The report also includes a comprehensive analysis of the information and data collected by the Center for Judicial and Executive Security, which examined court shootings, bombings, arson attacks, and other acts of violence that targeted courts from 1970 to 2012. In addition, national data were collected from the internet and phone surveys of court and law enforcement officials.