Annotated Bibliography
Kathy Smith
Faust, T. & Raffo, M. (2001). Local trial court response to courthouse safety. Annals of the
American Academy of Political and Social Science, 576, 91-101.
Public employees often engage in duties that make them more susceptible to workplace
violence and court personnel are at high risk. Faust and Raffo discuss the importance of
awareness, prevention, and control in maintaining courthouse safety and security
regardless of the size of the courthouse or resources available. The article examines the
need for incident reporting, communication of information between law enforcement
units, and conducting investigations to determine whether or not an individual has the
motive and means to commit an attack. Additional security risks, such as bomb threats,
are also discussed. Although my proposal is directed to the Administrative Judge, who
is ultimately responsible for courthouse safety, the training would likely be delivered by
either the Administrative Office of the Courts Security Director or our Sheriff’s
Department. This article is important because it identifies a need for training and inhouse safety procedures from a law enforcement perspective and includes some
additional recommendations that should be incorporated into the proposal.
Greacen, J. M. & Klein, R. J. (2001). Statewide planning for court security. Annals of the
American Academy of Political and Social Science. 576, 109-117.
This article details the implementation of a statewide court security plan in New Mexico,
from the initial site review of fifteen courts to the final recommendations.
Recommendations include making improvements to: perimeter security, public and
employee screening, movement and handling of prisoners, incident reporting, public
access, and security training. The recommendations are prioritized into stages of
implementation based upon the court’s more immediate needs. Short and long term
strategic goals are included. This article is particularly helpful, because it specifically
addresses the challenges unique to courthouse security, such as historic buildings,
moving prisoners, and state budget processes. It also includes important
recommendations for training courthouse personnel that should be included in the
proposal.
Ingraham, C. (2014, September 25). FBI: U.S. now has one active shooter incident every three
weeks. Washington Post. Retrieved from
http://bi.galegroup.com.ezproxy.umuc.edu/essentials/article/GALE|A383620744/d06ed32
20f4d05b683efa21ae3f41e3a?u=umd_umuc
This article provides statistical information regarding active shooter situations in the
workplace and suggests the need for civilian training. It also discusses the duration of
active shooter attacks (a majority are over in five minutes or less, many less than three
minutes) and the location where most incidents occur (businesses, malls, schools, and
government properties), which brings validation to fact that court employees need to be
prepared to act in a split second. Finally, the article reports the nature of the incidents
and suggests a connection between active shooters and domestic violence. Every day
people come into courthouses that are involved in disagreements, seeking retribution or
resolution, including both the perpetrators and victims of domestic violence. Even though
this article is not specifically addressing courthouse incidents, it is relevant for providing
statistical background and evidence that active shooter incidents are on the rise and in
many instances, are related to domestic violence.
Morris, L. W. (2014). Three steps to safety: Developing procedures for active shooters. Journal
of Business Continuity & Emergency Planning, 7(3), 238-244.
Immediate response is critical when there is an active shooter in the workplace. The
author discusses a mock exercise on a college campus and the types of defensive
reactions observed. The article stresses the need to develop an emergency response plan
for an active shooter, to train personnel in lockdown procedures, and to hold simulation
exercises periodically. Even though the venue is a college campus, this article is relevant
because it provides active shooter strategies that are applicable to other types of work
environments. Training employees on what to do in an emergency is the primary goal of
the proposal.
Smith, S. J. (2002). Workplace violence. Professional Safety, 47(11), 34.
Workplace violence is often planned by a perpetrator who believes that he or she was
wronged by the organization or by employees within an organization. In this article,
Sarah Smith provides examples of workplace violence, identifies a number of risk factors
for employees, and offers ten tips for “a proactive approach to preventing workplace
violence” (p.36). This article addresses the need for physical protective measures, better
screening of applicants for employment, development and implementation of workplace
violence policies, and communication of emergency action plans. It also addresses other
proactive measures, such as having blueprints of the work facility available for first
responders, training employees in CPR and first aid, and conducting mock active shooter
drills. This source is relevant because it highlights the importance of having a
comprehensive workplace violence prevention plan, which includes emergency response
training, in addition to constructing physical security barriers.
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