More space needed at the Hall County courthouse

GRAND ISLAND, Neb. (KSNB) - In the early 1900′s the Hall County courthouse opened it’s doors, now over a century later the county has grown.

Along with that growth, a crime rate that four judges are forced to handle by themselves.

“In Hall County currently as county court I have been told that we have about 11,000 cases this last year,” said Ron Peterson, Hall County Board of Commissioners Chairman. “When you look at that as compared to other counties across the state it’s a significantly higher number of cases.”

Senator Ray Aguilar is asking the Unicameral to approve adding another county court judge and a juvenile hearing officer. He testified in front of the judiciary committee Friday afternoon, and emphasized the need for juvenile court help. Joining him was a current Hall County Judge Arthur Wetzel, and he has seen first hand how big the need is.

“The needs of the juveniles in Hall County Nebraska are not being met the way that they need to be,” Judge Wetzel said. “We have an overwhelming juvenile population that unfortunately continues to grow and the depth of their crimes and behaviors continue to grow, and the depth of their crimes and behaviors continue to grow.”

Senator Aguilar said juveniles need to get fair and thorough treatment.

“Many come from disadvantaged backgrounds, their voices deserve to be heard, and every case needs to be considered carefully and not rushed through the system like products off a factory assembly line,” Senator Aguilar said.

Even with the help space becomes the next issue, both Judge Wetzel and Judge Alfred Corey sent a letter to the Hall County Board of Commissioners.

Stating if legislature grants the two new positions, they will need two more courtrooms. Ron Peterson said the courthouse is already cramped.

“Some of our courtrooms are not big enough to handle the kind of cases that we have particularly when you get into jury trials,” Peterson told Local4 News. “We had a recent jury trial which we had a courtroom that was severely overcrowded, that creates real security issues not only for the safety of the judges and the jury panel, but also for the attorneys that are there and also the defendants themselves.”

Peterson also said the board is working through a variety of solutions for the courthouse space issue.

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