When you gaze across the mangroves and sparkling water from the 45-foot-tall observation tower, you can get a glimpse of the Weedon Island that the Paleoindians might have seen. Dense oyster beds ring the islands, and a little further out seagrass moves with the shifting tide. A roseate spoonbill probes the mud for shrimp, while overhead an osprey circles, searching for mullet. In the stillness you can hear the twin puffs as a dolphin mother and calf come up for a breath. The anglers paddle in brightly colored kayaks, not dugout canoes made from pine logs, but then as now their quarry is the same: snook, redfish, sea trout.

This is the environment that Marine and Environmental Lands Deputy Dinah Doherty is protecting. Thousands of years ago a civilization thrived on the natural bounty, leaving behind evidence such as knapped points and pottery, and today the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office (PCSO) protects the land, the creatures, and the relics of that ancient culture.

“I come out two or three times a week,” said Deputy Doherty. “I start my day out in Brooker Creek, meet with the head park ranger there, and then I come down here.” The preserve encompasses nearly 3,200 acres and has miles of trails through pine scrub and oak hammocks, as well as almost two miles of handicap-accessible paved trails and boardwalks. There’s a fishing pier, and a kayak launch that lets visitors access a four-mile paddling loop. A vendor has kayak rentals, and the preserve offers guided nature hikes.

Deputy Doherty responds to problems involving the preserve itself. She will check fishing licenses and inspect coolers to make sure that people are abiding by all fishing regulations and limits, conduct equipment and safety checks on boaters, and monitor for any violations involving the lands or wildlife. 

There has been an ongoing issue with people sneaking into the preserve at night with headlamps to catch mullet without regard to state regulations on size, bag limits, or fishing method. They don’t get away with it for long, thanks to neighbors who care about protecting the preserve. “The residents are great. We’ll get calls that they see lights out here at night. Then we can set up an operation.” They’re netting the fish commercially to sell, not for personal use, and that means they’re supposed to follow rules about storing the fish after they catch them – another violation Deputy Doherty can cite them for. Not only are the poachers netting mullet in violation of the law, but in their hurry to not get caught they’re not examining their haul for bycatch. “They’re just scooping and going. If they bring in something they can’t sell, they dump it, which turns into an environmental and resource violation.” 

Sometimes she patrols on land, sometimes by boat. Although Weedon Island is a beautiful place to kayak and paddleboard, people need to pay attention to the weather and the tides. The mangrove tunnels are best navigated at a rising middle tide. Too low and even boats with the shallowest draft will run aground; too high and there’s not room to get through the tunnels. Paddlers get lost, or aren’t able to paddle against the wind or current and need rescue.

In addition to protecting people and the environment, Deputy Doherty guards Weedon Island’s rich history. In the more recent past it was home to Florida pioneers, bootleggers, loggers, and at times had an airport, and even a movie company that made silent films on the island. Most precious of all though is the island’s ancient history. There are the remains of several shell middens – piles of whelk and oyster shells, broken tools, and other debris that began as garbage dumps but as they grew over the centuries often came to have a ceremonial purpose. There are also burial mounds in the preserve and on the nearby Duke Energy grounds. 

Although the area doesn’t have the gold or gems that Spanish explorers were hoping for, the artifacts on Weedon Island are treasures nonetheless because they give insight into the culture that was wiped out within a few generations of European contact. “You’re not allowed to dig for artifacts here,” said Deputy Doherty. In fact, don’t take anything from the preserve. You might recognize a spear point, but even things that don’t seem like artifacts can be part of the area’s cultural history, and valuable to archaeologists. What looks like a broken lightning whelk shell might be a ladle for holding the ceremonial “black drink” that was supposed to give visions. What looks like a half-submerged log could be a thousand-year-old canoe. Archaeological research is ongoing, and you can see some of the artifacts from more than 7,000 years of history at the Cultural and Natural History Center.

It says a lot about the security of the Pinellas County Justice Center and other county courthouses that the Court Security Response Team (CSRT) – the unit specially trained to handle emergency situations and high risk security in the courthouse – has never had an emergency callout. Security at court entrances is so tight, and the behind the scenes choreography of every jury selection or trial so coordinated, that problems rarely happen, and when they do they are swiftly and safely contained. Still, the CSRT trains monthly to be ready for any crisis that happens in any of our courthouses. 

“We do four hours of training every month,” said Sergeant Jason Samuels. “We alternate between the range, and training in one of the courthouses. Tonight we're training in the new Unified Family Courts Annex, working in the new courtrooms which are a little bit different than the older ones, to get them more familiar with this layout.” 

Like SWAT, the 12-member CSRT is a callout team that trains for the worst case scenarios. If there is a barricaded subject, active shooter, or hostage situation at the courthouse, members of the CSRT will be the first to respond. The members have other assignments as their primary jobs, but are ready for any emergency. CSRT is also used on a more regular basis for planned situations that are higher risk and may require enhanced security from members with special training. They assist in high profile trials to provide extra security. CSRT members were on hand for the Casey Anthony jury selection, and the Jonchuck trial. They will also be present in the rare cases where a jury is sequestered overnight.

On this night they rehearse the most tactical way to move up stairs, and to clear hallways and courtrooms. Two volunteers play the part of bad guys who are hiding in various areas, and the team works in either small or large groups to search the area and contain the suspect. They search in deep corners, under benches, and other places where someone could be concealed. The heavy ballistic shield presents some difficulty when the search lasts a long time, but in each scenario the team finds the hidden suspects and takes them safely into custody.

Deputy Victoria Henderson appreciates CSRT’s specialized training. “Every other month we go to the range and do competition shooting and drills, moving and shooting, non-dominant hand shooting. We train with rifles too.” In fact, the rifle school was one of the first things that interested her about joining CSRT two years ago. “This unit gives you a lot more opportunity for training.” 

Even if they haven’t had any emergency callouts, the training keeps them sharp for the rest of their duties, and gives them skills that could prove useful in any situation. Thanks to a lot of planning, problems are rare in the courthouses. “We have the element of strategy. We know which people and cases are going to be potential problems, so we make sure we have the right people in place.” Everything is very choreographed even during standard trials, which minimizes the opportunity for trouble.