Court Being Armed With Weapon Detectors

Anyone visiting the county courthouse in Ventura will soon be scanned for weapons.

By August, officials expect to have three airport-style metal detectors and X-ray machines up and running at two first-floor entrances, said Sheriff’s Cmdr. Marty Rouse.

The machines will be operated by unarmed private security officers, who will be looking for concealed weapons, Rouse said.

Two armed sheriff’s deputies will supervise the security stations and patrol outside each entrance.

Because some people who take a gun or a knife to a courthouse that uses metal detectors dump their weapons in bushes near an entrance to avoid getting caught, Rouse will require his crew to regularly scour the shrubs.

Four years ago, a metal detector was installed outside courtrooms on the fourth floor where family law cases are heard, but the new detectors will screen everyone who enters the building, including 700 courthouse employees. So far, only a few employees have griped about the inconvenience and invasion of privacy.

The commander said the hassle is worth it.

“We are taking a stance that we would rather be proactive then reactive,” Rouse said. “A courthouse can be a violent place.”

In 1995, a woman in a divorce case was shot to death in a courthouse in Los Angeles. Nothing so violent has occurred at the Ventura courthouse, but in 1991 four people were arrested after a fistfight between rival gang members outside a courtroom.

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In another security issue, a convicted burglar from the California Youth Authority prison in Camarillo escaped a week ago and still has not been found.

Maurico Gonzales, 18, jumped off a prison work truck in Santa Paula that had stopped at a railroad crossing, said parole agent Elverta Mock.

Gonzales had been assigned to a fire crew after several months of good behavior in custody. At the time of his escape, he was not restrained with hand or leg cuffs.

“What happens from here is the case is turned over to the apprehension unit of CYA, and they will do a statewide search,” Mock said.

A flier describing Gonzales has been sent to police stations statewide, and cops will search around Gonzales’ former residence in Norwalk.

Mock said it’s not likely the escapee is still in Ventura County.

Gonzales’ escape came only a few weeks after authorities captured the last of three inmates who stole a truck and escaped from the Camarillo youth prison last July.

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To whom it may concern: Stop picking on innocent critters.

After hearing about a woman who was recently convicted in criminal court of starving her horses at a Ventura stable, I decided to look into a couple of other animal-cruelty cases.

Authorities are still searching for whoever brutalized an English sparrow in Westlake Village, but they’ve nabbed a man believed to be responsible for harming a puppy in Oxnard.

The bird was found early this month in a stairwell at an office complex. Its legs had been bound with tape and white correction fluid put in its eyes.

A Thousand Oaks vet treated the sparrow, which recovered and was returned to its owner, said Rebecca Dmytryk, a spokeswoman for the California Wildlife Center, a nonprofit animal-rights group. A police report was filed, but no one has been apprehended.

In the other case, a 31-year-old Ventura man was arrested on suspicion of animal cruelty after officers found his 6-week-old pit bull locked in the trunk of his car.

Several weeks ago, a woman heard barking coming from inside the trunk of the man’s car, which was parked near a junior high school, Oxnard police officers said.

The dog was taken to an animal shelter after being freed by a tow truck driver who used a crowbar.

“He was in a 2-foot-by-2-foot space, and there was no food and water,” said Oxnard Police Sgt. Tim Combs.

Prosecutors haven’t decided whether to file charges against the man.

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Sheriff Bob Brooks is one of several members of law enforcement who will do more serving than protecting Tuesday night. He will wait tables to raise money for the Special Olympics at the annual “Tip-A-Cop” benefit at Wood Ranch BBQ & Grill in Camarillo.

The proceeds go to local athletes and coaches who participate in the 1999 Summer Games at Cal State Long Beach, June 11-13.

“These public servants will be offering the best table service they can,” said sheriff’s spokesman Eric Nishimoto.

Last year, deputies raised $8,000 through tips and T-shirt sales for Special Olympics.

The public is encouraged to come out and order up a rack of ribs from the server whose badge, for a couple of hours, will just say “Bob.”

Holly J. Wolcott can be reached at holly.wolcott@latimes.com.