Hancock County to Beef Up Courthouse Security

Carthage, IL – The Hancock County Sheriff is replacing four part-time deputies with one full-timer to provide courthouse security. John Jefferson says the county board increased to $25 from $15 the security fee added to most criminal convictions. Jefferson says the fund should now produce about $49,000 dollars yearly, more than enough to pay for the deputy. He's also looking into other equipment to screen courthouse visitors. He says that could include an X-ray machine or a walk-through metal detector.