Deputies Warn Security Always On Alert At Tulsa County Courthouse

On Thursday, a man who tried to run from a Tulsa County Courtroom and officials had to use and stun gun and tackle him.

Surveillance video, requested by News On 6, was released on Friday.

Maj. Shannon Clark of the Tulsa County Sheriff's Office said cameras now show every hallway in the courthouse, the perimeter of the building and the parking lots.

In the surveillance video, the far end of the hallway, a man is seen rushing out of a courtroom and immediately being tackled by deputies and bystanders.

Deputies say they had to use a stun gun on Kaliah Owens to get him under control.

2/28/2013 Related Story: Tulsa Deputies Use Taser To Stop Escaping Inmate

At the squad car, deputies say Owens took off again. They caught him about two blocks away where he was zapped again by a stun gun before being taken to jail.

"Just because somebody comes to court, you can't underestimate the fact they know we're an obstacle between them and freedom and will do anything they can to get free," Clark said. "They don't usually make it far, because deputies are in every courtroom, sometimes several at once, depending on the number of inmates or if there's a high-profile trial.

"We also have undercover deputies in plain clothes working the courthouse," Clark said. "People don't realize they may be sitting next to a deputy in the gallery and not know that."

In addition to cameras and deputies, changes are being made to the entrances.

The new entrance on Denver Avenue just recently opened.

It, and a renovated north entrance, will be opened and the current south and west entrances will likely be closed. All will be monitored.

"There's gonna be no way to enter the courthouse without a security checkpoint," Clark said.

The sheriff's office says the changes are needed because people are willing to commit violence anywhere, and people from every walk of life do business in courthouses.

"Security is not convenient," Clark said. "You're gonna have to wait in line. We're doing the best we can to get everybody through, but we want everyone in the courthouse to be safe."