Efforts will soon be taken to make witnesses feel less intimidated during hearings or trials at the Bartholomew County Courthouse.
No areas in the courthouse are currently designated to keep witnesses and defendants separated during court proceedings, but the Bartholomew County commissioners intend to create two second-floor safety holding areas.
One will be established to protect children during hearings held before Juvenile Magistrate Heather Mollo, county maintenance director Rick Trimpe said. The second area will be used for proceedings in both Circuit and Superior Court 1, he said.
Although the commissioners did not take a formal vote on the matter Monday, they did say quotes for materials to build the holding areas will be sought by the end of this year.
Rather than pay the expense of hiring an outside firm, the labor will be done by Trimpe and his staff as a winter project, commissioner Carl Lienhoop said.
That will occur after a design is finalized so commissioners know the overall cost, commissioners chairman Larry Kleinhenz said.
For more on this story, see Friday’s Republic.
