North Dakota court leaders attend the Safer Courts National Convening in Atlanta, Georgia

Chief Justice Lisa Fair McEvers, Northeast Judicial District Presiding Judge Swain Benson and State Court Administrator Sally Holewa recently attended the Safer Courts National Convening in Atlanta, Georgia.  The Safer Courts is an initiative of the National Center for State Courts to assist courts in identifying and responding to security threats.  Phase one of the initiative brought representatives from 49 states and 4 territories together to learn how various state’s are addressing threats and to work on individual plans for improving security.  The next phase of the program will include on-line training and regional workshops. Given the increase of threats and violence against judges nationally, Chief Justice Fair McEvers has made court security and personnel safety a top priority of her administration.  In North Dakota, there were an average of 10 security incidents reported every year between 2015 – 2023.  For the years 2024 and 2025, the average jumped to 20 reported incidents per year.