LOCAL : Vigilance Word for Day at Court
Security was the talk of federal courthouse personnel today, two days after federal Appeals Court Judge Robert S. Vance was killed by a mail bomb sent to his home in a suburb of Birmingham, Ala.
Arthur J. Banks, the deputy U.S. marshal who supervises security at the federal courthouse in Santa Ana, said no change is being made in the building’s current security system. A metal detector screens everyone who enters the building’s main door. All other doors, used by judges and others who work in the building, are guarded and locked, Banks said.
Banks refused to comment on whether the judges themselves will be receiving stepped-up protection. But he said he is trying to spread the word that everyone who works in the courthouse should be careful.
Banks said the plan to raise everyone’s awareness of security predated the Alabama killing, but the incident illustrates the need for such vigilance.
Banks said he will be briefing courthouse employees on “what to watch for” to better guard their security.
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