Criminal courts a bonanza for thieves

Houston thieves should forget scrap metal and go straight to the courthouse, where here have been a spate of thefts recently. In the most recent theft at the Harris County Criminal Justice Center, a judge's purse was stolen from her chambers and her SUV was taken from the garage yesterday — and autthorities suspect the thief might have been one of the defendants scheduled to appear in court.

The thief reportedly went into Judge Pam Derbyshire's chambers while she was on the bench at about 10 a.m. Tthursday and took her purse, keys and cell phone off her desk. He then used Derbyshire's access card to ride the judges' elevator to the basement parking garage, where he made off in her 2006 Toyota Sequoia. A lawyer in the private hallway leading to judges' chambers saw the man and told court staff; Derbyshire was called out of court to see if anything was missing, and by the time she found out it was, the thief was gone.

About the same time, a bailiff down the hall found his gun holster, briefcase and glasses missing from his private office. And in the past week, $1,000 worth of interpreting equipment and a cell phone were stolen elsewhere in the building (someone stole interpreting equipment?). Officials say access to private hallways at the courthouse must be restricted — well, we should hope so — but acknowledge that it's hard to keep an eye on every office in a 20-story building. And apparently, the threat of going to court isn't any deterrent for these thieves.