Some recent events have highlighted the importance of being ready to abandon your office and work from home or an alternate location.  If your office space is destroyed or rendered unusable as a result of criminal activity, natural or artificial disaster, or something as simple as a water leak, you should be ready with an alternate work site.  This could be your staff's various homes, the spare conference room of another firm, or temporary structures furnished by companies that specialize in disaster recovery (such as Agility Recovery -- this is NOT an endorsement).  You should also have a plan for determining when the alternate work site will be used and how to notify your staff to use it.

If your firm uses off-site computer storage (i.e., "cloud storage") for its computer files, this makes working from an alternate site much easier.  First, your files are accessible from any location with Internet access.  Second, you do not have to worry about the catastrophe at your office space also destroying your client files and data.  Of course, you will have to ensure that your staff has computers to access the files.  This can be accomplished either by renting computers during the recovery effort, or making sure that everyone has a computer at home.  Laptops that are used solely for work purposes (in the office, as well as for work at home) are a good idea.

The U.S. Small Business Administration's Prepare My Business site has a lot of useful information to help in preparing for business continuity operations.  Particularly useful for alternative work site preparation is their Recovery Overview checklist.

I have been reading "Security for Court Interpreters," published in 2006, and I would recommend it as a good foundation for learning about safety in courtrooms and other typical legal settings.  It is a bit long (310 pages -- though many are blank or contain little information), but reads quickly.  Though it is directed towards court interpreters, the advice it contains is applicable to anyone who works in a legal setting.

Recent news has indicated that a threat was posted on Facebook against a prosecutor working with the two recently slain in Texas (story here), and that a psychiatrist had warned that the alleged Colorado theater shooter was a threat to the public (story here).  Sadly, these developments highlight the need to take every threat seriously.

Few of us wish to live in the kind of world where even an obvious joke about committing violence may be reported to the authorities.  But when a threat is made, it should be noted and taken seriously.  The analysis of a threat should be a two-step process: 1) you should determine if there is any credibility at all to the threat; and 2) if so, a formal threat assessment should be conducted.  The U.S. Secret Service specializes in threat assessment, and has some good resources here.

You should not rely exclusively on this information for an assessment, though.  Report any information you have to law enforcement, and ask them to follow-through on it.  Consider hiring a threat assessment professional (many private security firms or private investigators will do this -- look for one with prior experience in the area, especially prior service in the Secret Service or U.S. Marshal's Office).  It may seem like a needless expense, but the cost is minimal for the safety and peace of mind it can bring.

Forewarned is forearmed.  We cannot always be prepared for every contingency, but being aware of a particular threat can help you prepare for that one.  Lawyers should consider, as part of their regular case/client screening process, conducting a threat assessment of the individuals involved, including the client and the opponent.

In addition to checking each name for conflicts of interest, you should also check each name for prior legal involvement (both criminal and civil).  A previous order of protection against the person, or a prior conviction for a violent offense, should raise a red flag.  In Arizona, most court records are available here, though the records are not complete and local courts may also require checking.

Finally, you may wish to screen the client for indicators of domestic violence, particularly in a domestic relations/family law practice.  Even if the domestic partner is not the opposing party, an abusive partner can easily become violent towards the attorney if he is unhappy with the case.  The Center for Relationship Abuse Awareness has prepared a useful interviewing tool that can be found here.  The American Bar Association also has some very useful information and guidance here.

This morning brought us another tragic report of a Texas prosecutor being shot -- this time along with his wife (story here).  This victim was the District Attorney of the office where another prosecutor was shot two months ago.  That attorney had reportedly been in fear for his life, and began to carry a gun for protection.  While it is still unclear whether or not these two shootings are linked, one thing seems clear: Mark Hasse (the first victim) had good reason to fear for his safety.  I generally do not advocate paranoia, but I also think that you should listen to your gut when it tells you that something is amiss.  Humans' instincts are better at detecting danger than we often realize.  If you feel like trouble is coming, be prepared for it.

There was a story on NPR this weekend that discussed in passing how stress hormones such as adrenaline and cortisol, when experienced constantly, can have serious health effects (you can learn more here).  What caught my attention, though, was the discussion how your body reacts to the threat of imminent harm -- it shuts down non-essential functions (such as digestion) and prepares for action.  One way it does this is by reducing weight, by voiding your bladder and bowels.  This usually happens only when the urgency of action is great, or when trauma is experienced, such as a gunshot wound.

I think the take-away lesson from this report, though, is that you should take care to avoid this becoming a problem.  If you feel the need to eliminate, then you should.  Don't wait until it becomes urgent -- by then it may be too late!  This will keep you healthier (see, for example, here), and ready for action.  Perhaps more importantly, though, it will help you avoid messing yourself.

Yesterday's post suggested that you should take advantage of training from the Red Cross that will be useful for emergency situations.  This includes First Aid and CPR, both of which should be learned by everyone.

After you have your certification cards, though, be careful about the situations in which you use those life-saving skills, as you could actually be jeopardizing your own life.  Any time you administer aid to another person, you expose yourself to him or her in a compromising position.  If an in-custody criminal defendant collapses to the floor, for example, restrain the impulse to rush to his aid, as it may be a ruse to obtain an improvised weapon or a hostage.  This is not to say that you shouldn't help those in distress -- just be careful and alert when doing so.  In risky situations, proceed only when you can ascertain that it is safe to do so.  If you can summon others to provide help (and to watch your back), this is best.

Angry self-represented litigants and criminals with vendettas aren't the only ones who might cause us harm.  Mother Nature and negligent people can hurt us, too.  Don't lose sight of less nefarious hazards in your zeal to prepare for gunfire.  A good resource to be prepared for such risks is www.PrepareMyBusiness.org, which will help you assess and plan for a wide variety of risks.  Although it is aimed primarily at small businesses, its risk assessment and disaster planning tools are applicable to any legal office, including government offices.  FEMA's site (www.ready.gov) also has lots of good resources.  Finally, the Red Cross offers several different classes that can help you prepare for emergencies, and can even offer training to organizations.  You can find training opportunities in your area here.

Colorado's Department of Corrections director was shot at home as he answered the door (story here). This sad incident underscores how those working with the law are targets for violence, and the importance of being wary even where you feel safest.

While it's clear that she didn't mean it as a genuine threat, Lindsay Lohan apparently recently became very dissatisfied with the performance of her attorney in court and said, "I'm going to kill you" (link here).  Again, it doesn't look like he should be afraid that she'll try, but this is the kind of warning sign that should catch your attention.  If your client is upset with your performance or the outcome of a case or case event, and especially if your client makes any statements about retaliation, you should take it seriously -- even if she's a celebrity.