September 11, 2001 heightened our awareness of our vulnerability. It brought to light what court officers, court personnel, judges and lawyers have taken for granted for some time:

Courthouses – courtrooms, clerks’ offices and even corridors – are places where the public congregates, and where people come who may have been abused, assaulted or wronged in some manner.

Courthouses are places where justice is rendered and adversaries resolve their differences. What we tend to forget is that, all too often, many of those who are directly or indirectly involved in a case before the court are confused, frustrated and often angered by the process and the people involved with it.

People in search of justice ought to find it safely.

That’s why Maine voters will have an opportunity at the June 11 primary elections to approve a bond issue to make Maine’s courthouses safer for people seeking justice in them.

The Maine State Bar Association urges Maine residents, including the MSBA’s own members, to vote for the measure and to ask others to do the same.

The proposed bond issue seeks approval for $84,000 for metal detectors, $225,000 for X-ray machines and $210,000 for courthouse security packages.

This courthouse safety money is part of Question 2 on the June 11 ballot.

Question 2 asks: “Do you favor a $34,970,000 bond issue to stimulate job growth, renovate buildings, defend against terrorism in Maine and promote tourism?” The ballot question notes that the bond issue would include $540,000 “for the protection of the lives and property of Maine citizens.”

That’s where court security comes in. The figure also includes $20,000 for a “Maine Drinking Water Program Computerized Emergency Notification System” and $10,000 that was initially slated for security at the Augusta and Bangor mental health institutes but is now part of the total $520,000 court security project.

Chief Justice Leigh Saufley, in her State of the Judiciary address to Maine lawmakers in February, warned that “Our courthouses are flatly unsafe.” She said “we do not have the resources to assure that weapons are not brought into the courthouse,” adding that “we cannot allow this to continue.”

I agree. Vote with me to keep justice secure in Maine’s courthouses – safe for all who use them.

John Logan is a member of the Bangor law firm of Gross, Minsky & Mogul, and president of the 3,100-member Maine State Bar Association.