By JODI WOLFE
Staff Writer

DANGEROUS ENTRY – In order to access the Allenstown police station, people must descend a steep hill. That could cause people to slip and fall. There is little room in the parking lot for both police cruisers and civilian vehicles. (Jodi Wolfe Photo)

The Allenstown Police Department is offering tours the current police station any residents interested in seeing the building’s conditions.

LOBBY DANGER – This closet is located in the lobby of the police station where prisoners as well as civilians enter. The closet contains hazardous materials and wires that prisoners could use as weapons. (Jodi Wolfe Photo)

The entrance to the police station is located in the back Allenstown Town Hall. must go down a sloping pavement to the back. Alfred Burbank, of the town’s insurance company, cited in his report that the sloping pavement is dangerous in the winter when ice, snow and slush on the ground.

The tiny lobby is the entrance for both Allenstown citizens and prisoners. A sheet of glass is what separates Donna Barnett, the civilian receptionist, from the outside world.

Barnett said she is glad she wasn’t present for an incident which a prisoner grabbed pens from the booking area to himself.

It’s not a pleasant environment,” Barnett said.

SHACKLES – The booking area is located in the middle of the small police station and prisoners have easy access the booking desk. Not all prisoners have their legs secured in the shackles on the bench and shackled prisoners can still can reach for items on the desk. (Jodi Wolfe Photo)

Another issue with the current station is the air conditioning unit that sits next to her desk. When it’s on, Barnett freezes, but if she were to turn it off the other employees would swelter during the summer months, she said.

Old files and the police station’s computer server are stored in a closet that Barnett must go in every couple of days. Sometimes she and another employee need to be in the tight quarters together, one researching and one using the server.

“It’s inadequate,” said Sgt. Greg Huard.

The booking area is located in the main room of the police station where most of the employees work. The booking area is a wooden bench with shackles that are sometimes used on unruly prisoners.

EVIDENCE – The evidence obtained by the Allenstown Police Department is stored in a small, cluttered closet in police station. The facility is not properly secured and many items are not properly protected. (Jodi Wolfe Photo)

The shackles go on the prisoners’ feet but still allow prisoners to move freely enough that they could reach over the desk to grab the computer or other objects, which could endanger the employees, Huard said.

“There have been some episodes,” he said.

The police station has been located in the basement of the town hall since the 1960s.