AG's OFFICE SECURITY TEMPORARY, SAYS OFFICIAL

Questions remained Wednesday regarding why security has been increased at the Missouri attorney general's office in Cape Girardeau. However, an official says measure is temporary.

Locally based officials and those at Attorney General Jay Nixon's main office in Jefferson City have maintained secrecy regarding the new security measures.

Scott Holste, a spokesman for the attorney general, said Nixon likely wouldn't comment on the matter. Nixon was in St. Louis attending a meeting of a governor's task force on rising fuel prices.

"I have no reason to think he would comment," Holste said in a telephone interview. "Clearly, in a situation if there are security issues, they can't be compromised by discussing them in detail," he said. "We don't want to say anything that compromises security issues at a government agency."

Earlier this week it was noticed that the inner doors to the office at 2860 N. Mount Auburn Rd. remained locked during business hours. Visitors are allowed into the building by a private security guard employed by Wolsey Investigative Services.

James A. Pinkston, the assistant attorney general based in the office, has refused to comment on the situation, referring all inquiries to Holste.

Holste had repeatedly declined to elaborate on what prompted the office lockdown, how long it had been in effect and how long it would remain in place. Wednesday afternoon, however, he said "these are temporary measures at the Cape office."

No threats against the local attorney general's office or its personnel have been reported to the Cape Girardeau Police Department.

The Cape Girardeau office is one of four satellite offices around the state, the others being in Kansas City, St. Louis and Springfield. The attorney general's main office in Jefferson City is on the first floor of the Missouri Supreme Court Building.

Assistant attorneys general at the Cape Girardeau office primarily handle consumer protection and workers' compensation cases as well as some criminal matters, Holste said. There are more than 160 assistant attorneys general based throughout the state.

Marc Powers may be contacted at 635-4608 or by e-mail at mppowers@socket.net.