Both Northeast District Court Judges located on third floor have personal distress alarms linked to 911 they can utilize should they feel threatened. Thick, bullet-proof glass now protects the Clerk of Courts office and State's Attorney’s office.
Kristen Nelsen, the county’s emergency manager, brought to the Ramsey County Commission’s attention that there are a number of other employees who would benefit from strengthened security measures; in fact, all courthouse employees might.
She proposed the county look into providing distress alarms linked to 911 for all courthouse employees.
She also suggested limiting the number of doors that the public could use to enter the courthouse to one or two, locking all other entrances that would be accessible by key fob or code for employees only.
At the public entrance would be placed a metal detector that each visitor would have to pass through. Having one of the county’s deputies on duty periodically through the day to monitor that detector, especially when a high-profile trial is going on, might be another solution.
The commissioners had a number of questions about how the alarms would work and how it would work with the doors when there were large events like Ag Roundup and 4-H Project Days where hundreds of people need to be in and out of the facility.
Nelsen suggested bringing in to the next county meeting a representative who could answer their questions and address their concerns.
She emphasized that the money was available in Roger Gunderson’s Courthouse Maintenance budget for this fiscal year, estimating that the personal distress buttons would cost an estimated $13,000 and the new security doors an estimated $5,000.
Following the discussion a motion was made to go with the personal distress buttons at this time and to continue to discuss the doors and access to the courthouse. That motion passed unanimously.
Safety on Highway 2 East
The other issue of major concern to the commission was safety along Highway 2 East.
Commission President Myrna Heisler brought up the issue that since they had discussed it two more serious accidents had happened on the stretch of highway near Vining Oil, one had significant damage to the vehicles involved and the other there was serious injury. No lives have been lost, yet.
Heisler had contacted Grant Levy who heads the state DOT and he had informed her that a complete study was being done of the traffic along Highway 2, including that dangerous stretch east of the city of Devils Lake. He assured her that the NDDOT was currently evaluating the situation.
Heisler also contacted the local DOT representative and asked that the reeds and cattails grown up in the ditch be cut down because they were impairing site lines for motorists turning off the highway to residences and businesses.
She reported that as of 8 a.m. Tuesday morning that had still not been taken care of.
She had also discussed with Levy the suggestion of placing temporary left turn lanes in this section of the highway, but was told that would not be able to happen without a complete environmental impact study, which could take years.
Heisler expressed her frustration with the current situation asking, “Why can they put temporary turn lanes in to haul dirt when they are building roads elsewhere and can’t do it now to maybe help save lives?”
Commissioner Adam Leiphon suggested they, as a commission, continue to express their concerns for the safety along Highway 2 East and not give up on trying to make it better.
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©2016 Devils Lake Journal, N.D.
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