The members of our court office meet the mandatory demands on the Police Service to provide court security for all courts held in the City of St.Thomas including Provincial Courts in the Justice Building at 480 Sunset Drive, and District Courts held at the Court House at 4 Wellington Street.

The primary court officer/case manager is responsible for the efficient operation of the court office. She acts as the facilitator between the Crown Attorney’s office and the police service responding to requests for information for each court case. As case manager, she assists in setting trial dates in conjunction with officer availability in an attempt to keep officer court appearances to a minimum.

Several other court officers and Special Constables (a civilian position) provide security in the courtrooms and court buildings, and transport prisoners to and from court, as well as to and from detention facilities throughout Ontario.

Weekend and statutory holiday court utilizes teleconferencing/video technology to allow a prisoner to appear before a Justice of the Peace to be released or remanded into custody without leaving the jail facility. With this process, a prisoner is only taken from the jail to court when one of four conditions exists – bail hearing, guilty plea, sentencing or trial. By establishing a video facility within our police headquarters, the amount of escort time and prisoner transport is reduced.

Thousands of cases are heard in the various courts in St.Thomas each year and the members of our court services continue to meet the ever-increasing demands of court security and case management for our Police Service.