Cheboygan County Building: Never Argue With Stupid

Quoting Mark Twain, “Never argue with stupid people, they will drag you down to their level and then beat you with experience.”

Don’t confuse the need for a security system at the Cheboygan County Building with the ineffective system that has needlessly inconvenienced hundreds of visitors while providing no real security to employees or visitors. We in Cheboygan County are not immune from the threat of violent acts that we see all too often in the news. It is serious business and we need to do more than pay lip service to the need for security in our municipal buildings and Courts. Experts recognize that our Courts, Judiciary, employees, and law enforcement are always at increased risk because they enforce our laws. Put simply, that means controls that might not be needed in a municipal office building are needed in older municipal buildings that mix Courts with other public offices.

The newly installed security doors and monitoring system ignore a basic premise needed to make everyone as safe as possible. Everyone but you and me has a swipe-card to enter through any door in the County Building without passing through a metal detector. Everyone? Cheboygan County Administrator Jeff Lawson provided these current numbers for people, who using a card, enter through any unguarded door, without being scanned, and bring anything including a weapon into the building. There are 141 employees or persons that work in building or for other organizations, 9 elected officials, 17 attorneys approved by Court, 15 appointed Board members, 27 State or local DHS and assessors, 23 Police Officers, and, almost forgot, 2 delivery people. That adds up to 234 cards issued in the first few weeks. Cheboygan County averages 2.41 people per household and that means there are already over 560 people with easy access to a card. In reality, anyone who borrows, finds, steals, or grabs a card from an unsuspecting employee can breach the present “security” system and enter the building with a weapon. 

"Secured"? Even the TSA Allows Keychains

Here is more “stupid” stuff. Everyone stands outside in the weather, rain or snow, waiting, while someone by trial and error discovers how much metal can get in. If the metal detector continues to deny you access, simply say you have a) steel toed boots, b) metal prosthetic, c) artificial knee, hip, rods, plates, titanium screws, d) a big cowboy belt buckle, e) any combination of these “free cards” or make up something original that will get you past the remotely controlled access with a metallic object that could be a weapon. Anyone who enters the building, either by the main door or with a swipe card, can easily let anyone else in through any of the unguarded doors. Likewise, anyone can stash any weapon or contraband outside an unguarded door and retrieve it at will by just holding the door open as they reach out and grab it. Lockers being installed just outside the main door to save multiple trips to your vehicle to stash key rings or charm bracelets will also be a convenient place to leave your weapons or drugs while appearing in Court. This stupidity has already cost taxpayers over $100,000 and the cost will grow as fixes and band-aids try to make it work.

Is there a smarter way? Yes, there is no need to reinvent the wheel with numerous references available that explain how the Court and by necessity the County Building security system should work. This link: http://courts.mi.gov/Administration/SCAO/Resources/Documents/standards/cs_stds.pdf has 14 pages of Michigan Court Security Guidelines from 2002. There are recommendations that the Cheboygan County Building should implement as internal security controls on a “need to know” basis. On the public side, “it is recommended that the court limit access to one main entrance and exit; however, all entrances should have weapon screening. “Entrances without screening should be locked and equipped with an alarm and a sign reading, “Emergency exit only; alarm will sound. “All persons entering the court facility should be subject to security screening.” A proper weapon screening station has: “Adequate room for people to congregate inside, out of the weather, without being so crowded as to present additional security problems.” Call your County Commissioners and ask them to stop the stupidity by implementing a security system that meets the Michigan Court Security Guidelines.