Court security on agenda for Judicial Conference
Bill Mears
CNN Washington Bureau
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Security at the nation's federal courthouses is expected to be on the top of the agenda Tuesday at the semiannual meeting of the body that oversees the federal judiciary.
And in a surprise move, Chief Justice William Rehnquist is expected to lead Tuesday's closed-door meetings of the Judicial Conference in Washington, D.C., said Supreme Court spokeswoman Kathy Arberg. Rehnquist has been nearly absent from public view since being diagnosed with cancer in October.
Federal are expected to hear from U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales and U.S. Marshals Service Director Benigno Reynes.
Security in the nation's courtrooms has become a top issue after a series of deadly incidents this year:
Last Friday's deadly shootings inside the Fulton County Courthouse in Atlanta, Georgia, that claimed the lives of a judge, court reporter and sheriff's deputy (Latest on that case);The February 28 slayings of a federal judge's husband and mother at the judge's Chicago, Illinois, home (Latest on that case);The February 24 shootings outside a Tyler, Texas courthouse at at the court square that left two people dead and four others wounded. (More on that shooting)Tuesday's Judicial Conference will address security in U.S. federal courts, not at local courts, where the Atlanta and Texas shootings occurred.
Local courts rely on sheriff's departments for security. Federal courts are protected by the U.S. Marshals Service.
"Clearly security is on the mind of judges throughout the country," said Judge Carolyn Dineen King, who heads the conference's executive committee. "I am certain that the safety of judges and their families will be a part of formal and informal discussions at next week's meeting of the Judicial Conference."
King is chief judge with the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, based in New Orleans.
No formal action on the security issue is expected to come from this week's conference.
"Protecting federal jurists, prosecutors, and trial witnesses is the highest priority and oldest mission of the United States Marshals." according to an agency statement released Friday. "The Judicial Security Division of the United States Marshals reviews inappropriate communications or threats made against members of the federal judiciary. Because protecting the judicial process is our most important task, each determination about providing increased levels of security to a judge is assessed on a case-by-case basis and in full consultation with the jurist or jurists potentially at risk."
Court sources said they were "very encouraged" the ailing Rehnquist would be able to preside at the meeting, which should last about three hours Tuesday. He has been absent from oral arguments before the Supreme Court since undergoing chemotherapy and radiation treatment. His only public appearance was January 20, when he swore in President Bush at the inauguration.
Sources close to the chief justice say his health has shown some improvement in recent weeks, although they refused to offer specifics on the seriousness of his illness or his chances for recovery.
As chief justice of the United States, Rehnquist has administrative oversight of the Judicial Conference, which makes policy for the entire federal judiciary, which includes district, appeals, bankruptcy, immigration, and tax courts nationwide.
