We got lucky

County leaders must improve courthouse security now

Close may only count in horseshoes and hand grenades, but a Monday close call at the Putnam County Courthouse had better count for something.

That was when a Greencastle man burst into Putnam Circuit Court, threatening Judge Matt Headley and eventually making an aggressive move toward the judge before he was felled by a Cloverdale police officer (see story, page 1A).

This on the heels of menacing calls to Judge Headley and his staff last week that led to charges against an Indianapolis man (see other story, page 1A).

What becomes of the two men who made these threats are questions for another day -- questions that will be answered by our other county judge, Denny Bridges of Putnam Superior Court.

The question for today, though, is what can the county do to keep this from happening again?

Questions of courthouse security are nothing new to county leaders. Discussions of the issue go back to at least 2007, at which time a courthouse deputy was added.

However, a number of incidents have brought the issue back to the forefront at various times.

Most recently, an unauthorized person in the courthouse after hours got the Putnam County Commissioners, Putnam County Council and our judges talking again.

Security will be one of the items on the agenda when the commissioners and council meet for a joint executive session on Tuesday.

There are likely to be plenty of furrowed brows in that closed-door session, as the custodians of an already cash-strapped county look for solutions.

A secure courthouse will mean reducing access points from four or five to one, with a metal detector at that entrance. It will mean at least two additional courthouse deputies.

All of that means more money to a county with no new sources of revenue.

And none of that matters. What matters is the value of the lives of county employees and residents who are in the courthouse daily.

Without at least the additional staffing, an incident like Monday's could turn ugly.

If not for Sgt. Charlie Hallam, who just happened to be there, it's hard saying how things might have ended.

We got lucky this time. Let's not rely on our luck anymore.