Vicente Chacano was taken to the Adams County jail after allegedly pulling a gun and attempting to fire at a prosecuting attorney during his trial at the courthouse in Hettinger Friday.

Details.

That is an incident that never should have happened. Maybe someone will sue whoever made the decision not to screen folks through the metal detector and maybe that will get their attention.

Good for the prosecutor because it sounds like the Sheriff was a little slow to move into action. Sounds like Mr. Byers saved the day, and his life as well as the lives of others.

An assistant attorney general says a man accused of pulling a gun in a courtroom in southwest North Dakota's Adams County tried unsuccessfully to fire at least 10 shots before being subdued.

Details.

Sounds like a really good thing the defendant didn't put a round in the chamber before he came to court. For someone who plans on using a gun, that's about as stupid as it gets.

I've practiced in counties that would use the new TSA body scanners if they could get their hands on some, and also in counties that use a basic magnetometer maybe once or twice a year.

Having had a our Courthouse Historically remodeled we find ourselves with no security or screening at all down here in Bee County. I keep my gun on the desk unless I have kids to interview. My Grand Jury is very uncomfortable and it took me some time to reassure them that the Gang members we deal with don't like to raise attention to themselves. Unfortunately it only takes one gun or knife to do the job. I plan to share this thread with my commissioners.

The def.,after being convicted of very serious felonies, pulls out a pistol and tries to kill the prosecutor with a 9 mm right in front of the judge. So the judge resets the case so there can be a Pre-Sentence Investigation done before he sentences him.

What else does the judge need to know?

Come on, Terry, he could have had a really bad childhood that means everything else doesn't matter. Where's your empathy?

Terry, maybe the judge took cover under his bench while the prosecutor was doing the heavy lifting and needs a PSI so that he knows what happened when the prosecutor went heroic.

AndreaW & GG:

After reading your posts I feel like such an idiot. Of course! Maybe he had a bad childhood, or maybe the judge didn't actually see him draw his gun because he was cowering behind his bench! Why didn't I think of those things?!!!

"Well," as they say in California, "duh!"