Rhea County Sheriff Mike NealDAYTON, Tenn. — Rhea County commissioners have asked the sheriff to bring estimated costs for improved courthouse security to their regular meeting next week.
Rhea County Sheriff Mike Neal addressed the security issue this week in the wake of an incident a week ago when a man allegedly attempted to attack employees in the clerk of court’s office and was subdued by a sheriff’s deputy.
“The problem is not security, the problem is the building was built in the 1800s,” Neal said. “It was not built for the number of people coming in today. If you want 100 percent security, we’ll have to hire four or five officers and buy new metal detectors.”
But even that’s a stopgap measure, he said.
“We’ve got to get away from a historic courthouse to have court in,” Neal said. “You can’t carry 25 inmates across the street [from the jail] to court” and not have them segregated from the public.