Keene Activists’ Main Battleground “In Trouble”

As members, supporters, and followers of FreeKeene know, the Keene District Court has been the site of several high drama situations. From Ian’s arrest for contempt of court, Dave Ridley’s arrest, Sam Dodson’s arrest, and the detainment, arrest, and citations of 6 other activists. So at minimum, we are at the Keene District Court at least twice a month. That will be increasing in the next few months as more activists face ridiculous charges from local police and prosecutors. However, according to the Keene Sentinel, the court could lose it’s legal legitimacy in those same few months if serious issues are not taken care of.

Unfortunately, the issues they speak of are not judicial or ruling related, but rather security related. Anyone who’s been to the Keene District Court knows it has no metal detectors, x-rays, or real “security” outside of a few officers with wands. However, I would go out on a limb and say many activists believe that “security” is more often “security theater”, despite what sort of intricate setup any court appears to have. The best security would be to allow everyone and their handguns into the court. The police are allowed, why aren’t we?

Keene District court is in trouble
By Anika Clark
Sentinel Staff
Published:
Thursday, June 25, 2009 12:46 PM EDT

For years, Keene District Court has been the target of complaints about its lacking facilities — an overcrowded space with little security or privacy for those who use it.

Now, a state commission says the issues are so bad, it plans to yank the court’s accreditation, a move that a judicial branch spokeswoman believes hasn’t happened to a court in years.

And local officials say they don’t know what the commission’s plans mean for the court’s future.

N.H. Supreme Court Chief Justice John T. Broderick Jr. provided official notice of the commission’s intent in a June 16 letter to Judge Edward J. Burke, Mayor Philip Dale Pregent and Keene City Manager John A. MacLean.

But, he wrote, the downgraded status wouldn’t become official for at least 90 days.

According to state judicial branch spokeswoman Laura A. Kiernan, this determination follows a routine security assessment of Keene District Court, which was completed by the U.S. Marshals Service and court security officers from the state’s Administrative Office of the Courts.

Broderick — who serves as chairman of the accreditation commission — wrote that on June 12, the commission heard “extensive testimony about serious deficiencies in the Keene District Court facility” and lists security among several problems.

In his letter, Broderick also said the commission voted to have state staff prepare a request for proposals either for a new Keene District Court facility or for a building that would house superior, probate, district and family courts.

Pregent attended the June 12 meeting with City Attorney Thomas P. Mullins, District Court Clerk Larry Kane, Judge Burke and Executive Councilor John D. Shea, whose district includes several area towns.

Pregent said he expects the city will receive a copy of the security report soon but that “the ratings that they gave us verbally, right there, were very low.”

In the meantime, he said, Broderick’s letter “just kind of puts us on notice. … We know (District Court is) unsafe.”

One of the main problems with security is that Keene City Hall — where the court is located — is a public space.

And since the courtroom also doubles as chambers for public city government meetings at night — with no security officers — it diminishes security even further, Pregent said.

But while it’s well acknowledged that Keene District Court doesn’t cut it, numerous members of a local task force of lawyers, judges and city, state and county leaders — a group that formed to consider the future of Keene’s courts — had questions about Broderick’s letter.

Among them is, “What does losing one’s accreditation mean?”

State statute sheds little light on the matter but says “not accredited” is the lowest of three designations.

Judge Burke referred to the issue as “uncharted water.” And Kiernan said she didn’t recall a court losing its accreditation in New Hampshire.

This latest development follows months of uncertainty about Keene District Court’s future, which was sparked by Gov. John H. Lynch’s recommendation in February that several district courts in the state be joined with existing facilities to shave costs.

Keene District Court appeared on the list, and in March, Broderick outlined a plan to move Keene District Court into the Cheshire County Court House building on Court Street.

Although the latter facility is already cramped, Broderick said room could be created there by moving cases involving families and juveniles into a yet-to-be-created family division in the Jaffrey-Peterborough District Court building in Jaffrey.

Still, several local figures railed against the idea of moving any of Keene’s court proceedings out of the county seat.

Among problems, they said, was the added cost lawyers, litigants and police could face in being forced to travel to Jaffrey.

The matter was muddied even further when the N.H. House passed a budget that called for Keene District Court to be merged with Jaffrey-Peterborough.

However, in May, the Executive Council approved a lease extension to enable the District Court to stay in its current digs for nine months.

In June, the Senate amended the state budget to allow Keene District Court to stay in the city. This was upheld in the state budget that passed Wednesday, and Sen. Molly M. Kelly, D-Keene, said despite the lease’s term of nine months, the budget contains 12 months of funding for Keene District Court.

“That’s quite a bit of time to see where we’re going to go,” she said of the nine-month lease term. “I think the ultimate goal is that we have a safe, secure court system here in Keene.”

In the meantime, with the Court Accreditation Commission scheduled to review the District Court’s accreditation status in September, local leaders are left with a major question:

What now?

At Wednesday’s task force meeting, members directed County Administrator John G. Wozmak, City Manager MacLean and John G. Dugan, president of the private nonprofit Monadnock Economic Development Corp. to examine building options and funding strategies for Keene’s courts.

In an interview with The Sentinel, Wozmak described city and county input in the process as key to ensuring that whatever’s determined for the courts’ future, it is favorable to local interests.

Options include using space in the city-owned complex at 350 Marlboro St. and expanding the Cheshire County Court House, according to Wozmak.

In addition, he said, converting the soon-to-be-vacant Keene Middle School to house court proceedings is “not inconceivable.”

Regardless, County Commissioner Stillman D. Rogers urged haste in the matter:

“I think it’s critical that we move forward as fast as possible,” he said.