FLDS TRIALS: Security plans in place for Jeffs trial
 County, city formulate solution for traffic concerns
 
By Jennifer Rios
San Angelo Standard-Times
 
SAN ANGELO, Texas — Law enforcement's lips are sealed concerning courthouse security for high-profile inmate Warren Jeffs.

Agencies organizing security measures won't say how many extra officers will be on hand for Jeffs' trial, but assure the public they're prepared.

"Business will be conducted as usual here," said David Jones, Tom Green County chief deputy.

Jeffs, leader of the polygamist Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, will be escorted from his jail cell this morning to begin what his attorneys are saying could be a monthlong trial.

After months of court hearings, motion filings and switching defense counsel, Jeffs will be tried on two counts of sexual assault of a child.

While 51st District Judge Barbara Walther's bailiff is charged with keeping peace in the courtroom, local law enforcement agencies will monitor the blocks surrounding the courthouse.

Jones and Sheriff Truman Richey said they will handle traffic concerns differently from when the Tom Green County District Courthouse hosted a child-custody hearing for more than 400 children following an April 2008 raid on the Yearning for Zion Ranch near Eldorado.

The sheriff's office opened its east parking lot Monday to media organizations — a solution to a problem they encountered in 2008 when satellite vans lined the street in front of the courthouse.

Assistant Chief Robert Martinez said the city's Police Department is ensuring traffic flows safely through downtown San Angelo during the trial. Traffic officers were reminded the area could become congested with vehicles belonging to judges, attorneys, sect members and media.

The block of Irving Street on the east side of the courthouse — from Beauregard Avenue to Harris Avenue — will be blocked for the duration of the trial, Jones said.

Jones, who will serve as head of courthouse security and liaison among agencies, said talks among multiple agencies providing security began weeks ago. Through those meetings — which gathered representatives from the sheriff's office, San Angelo Police Department, Texas Department of Public Safety and Attorney General's Office — a security plan was developed.

Jones said such a plan is established in "any instance where we expect additional people or additional concerns."

Richey said he couldn't give an estimated cost of security because it is unclear how the trial will transpire. If court runs past 5 p.m., it means overtime, which comes from an overtime line item in the department's budget.

"We try to watch their overtime, anyway," Richey said, "but in law enforcement, you can't plan for that sort of thing."

District Judge Barbara Walther's bailiff, Phil Race, declined to comment on his security role.

Mohave County Sheriff Tom Sheahan said when law enforcement in Arizona transported Jeffs to court appearances, they had additional officers but nothing extravagant.

He said anytime an inmate leaves the holding facility to appear in court, the risk of escape is at its highest.

"We had enough deputies there and maintained a perimeter so no one could give him any type of a weapon or break him out of custody," Sheahan said.

On Friday, Sheahan said officers were moving a gang member to the courthouse and exercised the same level of caution.

"We have high-risk inmates occasionally," Sheahan said. "It's the same type of security."
 
gosanangelo.com
Originally published July 24, 2011
 
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