WCSO Bailiffs provide security
and get ready for courthouse move
Wakulla County Sheriff’s Office bailiffs will be getting a new home and becoming mobile along with the rest of the courthouse staff when the security team moves to the new county community center in August. Renovations are underway at the courthouse and the entire operation will move to their new location at Trice Lane and Shadeville Highway on Aug. 12.
The move will begin on Aug. 12 and the bailiffs and new courthouse setup is expected to be up and running on Monday, Aug. 16.
For Head Bailiff and Sgt. Steve Smith and his security team there will be new challenges as the staff must protect a different group of buildings and courtrooms. But the crew is looking forward to the challenge and prefers the changes the community center will bring to staying in the courthouse while construction is underway.
Sgt. Smith is a familiar face at Florida State University football games, but his dad Billy has an even more familiar face as FSU Football Coach Bobby Bowden’s security man for his entire run as Seminoles head coach.
Steve and his family have seen hundreds of home and away football games since former Florida Highway Patrol Trooper and dad Billy Smith has traveled with the team since 1964. Billy Smith started with FHP in 1953 and has seen national championships, good times and not so good times over the years.
Billy Smith passed his love of FSU football on to Steve and Steve has passed it on to his son. “We’ve known the Bowden’s forever,” Steve said, who can usually be found on the sidelines.
New FSU Coach Jimbo Fisher has asked Billy Smith to stay on as his security man and the Smiths will enjoy the start of a new FSU era this fall along with the rest of the Seminole Nation.
On this particular day, Smith and Bruce Rutledge were on duty working at a relatively quiet courthouse. A busy week was expected but since pleas were entered by those scheduled in court, only juvenile hearings were held which pushed Smith to the courtroom as Rutledge manned the courthouse door and metal detector.
“We were expecting a busy week, but our court hearings were cancelled because everyone entered a plea,” said Smith. “It is usually incredibly busy or pretty quiet. We don’t seem to have anything in between.” Smith, Rutledge and the rest of the bailiff staff of Allen Dees, Gary Lewis and Paul Hoover have been keeping track of activity at the courthouse and count the number of people coming into the facility. October was the busiest month of the first quarter with 7,635 people entering the facility. The number jumped to 8,816 in March during the second quarter and 9,564 in June during the third quarter.
June was the busiest month for trials and hearings as 660 were held in county court and 361 were held in circuit court. Bailiffs also transported 57 inmates to the courthouse. December provides the slowest month of the year. Since inmates come from confined facilities, the bailiffs must determine who they need and when they need the inmates to appear at the courthouse and coordinate the transportation with Lt. Bobby Tully at the sheriff’s office.
Proper behavior and security in the courtrooms keep the judges and others participating in the court process safe. “We’ve had a few unruly inmates from time to time, but for the most part they behave themselves,” said Smith. “For many of them, they have been down this road before and they know what to expect.” Smith added that injunction and dependency hearings can get spirited depending on the outcome.
On busy days, Dees and Lewis may be in circuit court while Hoover is in county court and Rutledge works the door. Rutledge pops up and down from his seat if he doesn’t recognize the individuals entering the courthouse as regular employees.
The courthouse is not just about County Judge Jill Walker and Circuit Judge N. Sanders Sauls. The Public Defender, State Attorney, Probation office and Clerk of the Court work out of the facility.
Sgt. Smith and the court administration have been spending time walking inside the community center to determine the best way to hold court and provide security at the new facility since they may all be together at the new location for six months. There will also be several buildings to protect.
All of the bailiffs are certified law enforcement officers except Rutledge who is a former firefighter from Coral Gables whole spent 30 years putting out fires. Smith and his staff hope that as they create their new security plan at the community center that it doesn’t require them to put out many fires of their own.
The last day of business before the courthouse move will be Wednesday, Aug. 11. (Top photo-Sgt. Steve Smith. Bottom photo-Bailiff Bruce Rutledge.)
Mary Dean Barwick, the Sheriff's Office Finance Director, is a Certified Public Accountant and the mission of the Finance Division is to provide professional finance, budget and grant assistance to the Sheriff's Office. In order to achieve this mission the Sheriff's Office must operate in a fiscally responsible manner, which includes linking strategic planning and the budget process for the organization as a whole.
