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Research Note: Courthouse Shootings 1907-2007

NCJ Number
229675
Journal
Homicide Studies Volume: 14 Issue: 1 Dated: February 2010 Pages: 90-100
Author(s)
Gregg W. Etter; Warren G. Swymeler
Date Published
February 2010
Length
11 pages
Annotation
This is a descriptive study of courthouse shootings and the security responses to those shootings in the United States during the period of 1907 to 2007.
Abstract
As long as there have been courthouses, there has been a danger of violence surrounding them. Courthouses are a place where people take conflicts to be solved. The terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001 by foreign terrorists and the earlier 1995 attack against the Alfred P. Murrah Building in Oklahoma City by domestic terrorists has increased the awareness of the need for more security in public buildings. In this descriptive study of 500 sheriff's departments across the United States, 114 courthouse shootings are examined for motive, weapon availability, and casualties occurred. Table, figures, references (Published Abstract)