Welcome to TBO.com. Skip directly to: our Keyword Search, Section Navigation, Content.

TBO.com - TBO is Tampa Bay Online

Highlands Today

Highlands Today > News

Bailiffs Put Smiles On Young Faces At Courthouse

Kathy Waters/Highlands Today

Samara Vassell, 4, of Avon Park looks at her new doll she picked out on Thursday at the Highlands County Courthouse. Stuffed animals and dolls were given to every child who entered the courthouse.

By Dan Fearson | Highlands Today

Published: December 24, 2007

SEBRING — Often, kids who enter the Highlands County Courthouse are more afraid of the front lobby than they are of actually going inside a courtroom.
With this in mind, bailiffs at the courthouse have been celebrating the holidays by handing out stuffed animals to kids.
After going through the building's metal detector and letting their items pass through an X-ray machine, children are allowed to choose a toy amongst a group of stuffed animals sitting underneath a Christmas tree.
"It's been pretty successful," said bailiff William Dilling. "We had a little girl come in a few days ago who was afraid to go through the metal detector, but we were able to convince her that she'd get a (stuffed animal) out of it."
The girl that Dilling described couldn't decide which animal to choose, so Dilling picked one out for her.
"I picked out the biggest bear I could find," said Dilling. "I thought it was a good idea considering the bears are our most popularanimals."
The giveaways can serve as a way to take a child's mind off of what could potentially be a stressful day in the courtroom, depending upon the situation of their parents or guardians.
"I think it's a great idea," said Dilling.
Dilling said that the stuffed animals were donated by community members to the Highlands County Sheriff's Office, and the tree is restocked with new toys every couple of days.
"We had a man come in the other day and tell us he had a whole bunch brand-new stuffed animals at home and he wanted to know if he could donate them," said Dilling. "He ended up coming up here with a huge bag full of them. We took them in, made sure they were nice and stuck them under the tree."