Throwing knives. Marijuana. Pocket knives. The list of objects people have attempted to bring into the Town of Colonie courtroom when they are summoned with an appearance ticket is endless.
However the list of items they will actually get away with bringing into Justice Court will soon get much shorter when new grant-funded security equipment replaces the 15-year-old walk-through devices that are currently in place.
A $6,870 grant was awarded to the Town of Colonie Justice Court last week by the Justice Court Assistance Program, a state program that provides security upgrades for court systems that operate at high volumes.
According to Colonie Town Justice Peter Crummey, the grant will primarily be used to purchase a new state-of-the-art, stand-up metal detector, along with handheld detector wands.
While Crummey said he did not know the exact value of the new equipment, he did say that an upgrade was needed because the older equipment currently in use could potentially be missing items that courtroom visitors are bringing in.
When people come up to their court date, and they are confronted with the detector, not only do they have weapons that can be harmful, but some have brought marijuana up to the metal detector, he said, `Oftentimes, if it’s a potential weapon they’re carrying, they’re told to go back to their car with the item.`
While no metal detector would be able to detect marijuana, Colonie Police Chief Steve Heider said that newer models are able to detect new forms of metals and other materials.
`A new metal detector may be more sensitive to different metals,` he said, `It involves new technology.`
Heider did warn that with new equipment, there could be new manipulations of the system.
`Every machine is meant to be violated in one aspect or another. People do it not even thinking about it,` he said, `I don’t believe we’ve had any guns come through, but we have seen pocket knives. A lot of objects are legal to have, but we wouldn’t allow them in the courtroom.`
Crummey said over the years, courtroom security has been very efficient between the use of security equipment and officers standing outside, and inside, the courtroom.
`We’ve always tried to be proactive as far as making sure we were on the cutting edge of security, just with the aging and technology. The fact that there haven’t been weapons involved inside the courtroom, we’re very fortunate to have,` he said.
Julie Gansle, who has been the court clerk since 2000, said she has always has felt safe inside the Town of Colonie courtroom thanks to the metal-detecting equipment and the officers who man the machines and watch over the sessions.
`There is an added reassurance of having officers both at the door and in courtroom,` she said.
Gansle said that the courtroom will welcome the new equipment because it is important to stay up-to-date with security.
Crummey said the new equipment will not only help discover more objects being carried on the persons who enter the courtroom, but it will also speed up the process of getting people through security.
`The $600 and change will be used to upgrade the capacities of the metal detectors with not only a brand-new walk-through, but also handheld wands, to keep the line moving, and if there’s an issue with somebody, [officers] can do a handheld wand check. This will certainly provide security for everyone in the building.`
Crummey said the Justice Court expects to have the new equipment in upcoming months.
Also coming to the court within this month is the addition of 15 new computers with flat-screen monitors, four printers and two multi-functioning printers and scanners that were paid for by the Third New York State Judicial Court System, which provides resources to the courts in the district.
Judge Crummey pointed out that the Town of Colonie Justice Court is the 29th busiest out of over 1,500 justice courts in the state of New York.“