Court security is a serious subject.  But, it is possible that someday Clint Eastwood will play the role of an Indiana Judge, reprising his role as Dirty Harry and say” Go ahead…make my day” as he points a 45-magnum pistol at someone in his courtroom.

As reported by Gavel to Gavel, a bill has been pre-filed for the 2014 Indiana legislative session which would increase penalties for batteries committed on judges and allow judges to carry firearms in manner similar to law enforcement.

Under current Indiana law, Battery against specified “public safety officials” is automatically elevated from a Class B misdemeanor to a felony in some cases.  SB 3 of 2014 (the text of which is, at the time of this posting, offline) effectively expands “public safety officials” to include “judicial officers,” and then defines the term “judicial officers” to cover judges and magistrates of the state’s courts.