WEST PALM BEACH — A U.S. district judge closed the federal courthouse Friday after receiving complaints that mold spawned by Hurricanes Frances and Jeanne was making people sick.
 
Two security guards were posted at the doors of the courthouse, at 701 Clematis St., to turn away visitors Friday afternoon.
 
"We are closed indefinitely," one guard said, pointing to a notice from Chief U.S. District Judge William J. Zloch.
 
Zloch ordered the closing after people complained that mold or mildew had formed as a result of water damage from the hurricanes, said Clarence Maddox, court administrator for the U.S. District Court, Southern District of Florida.
 
Despite complaints about headaches, sinus problems and watery eyes, no one has been hospitalized, Maddox said. He wasn't sure whether any of the 130 employees missed work because of the mold.
 
The mold has sprouted around the bottom of windows, mostly on the building's west side in areas that suffered the most water damage. No court records appear to have been damaged by the mold, Maddox said.
 
"It's nothing over-alarming," Maddox said. "But it's a public building and we need to have a handle on it."
 
Business will be relocated to the U.S. Courthouse in Fort Lauderdale, at 299 E. Broward Blvd., while a Washington-based contractor conducts tests. Maddox didn't know how long the courthouse would be closed.
 
There will be no change in filing deadlines, Maddox said. Lawyers can register to file papers over the Internet instead of going to Fort Lauderdale.
 
Magistrate judges still can sign warrants from their homes, said Andrew Lourie, chief of the U.S. Attorney's Office in West Palm Beach.
 
"The wheels of justice don't grind to a halt just because the courthouse closes," Lourie said.
 
Courthouse mold is not new to South Florida. Martin County's courthouse complex became infamous for its designation as one of the nation's most costly public "sick buildings," caused by water intrusion and toxic mold.
 
More than 100 employees filed worker compensation claims stemming from the contaminated complex that was gutted and renovated, reopening in 1998.
 
More recently, after the September hurricanes, the St. Lucie County School District spent $2 million to prevent the growth of mold in its 32 schools before reopening last month. Cleanup workers wearing protective suits wiped away all signs of mold with powerful detergents and used industrial-sized dehumidifiers to suck moisture out of the air.
Nationally, toxic-mold litigation against building owners and contractors has been growing during the past decade, often ending in multimillion-dollar settlements.
 
Toxic mold — not the same as the "good" mold in cheese and some medicines — produces substances called mycotoxins. In large quantities, they can work their way into a person's nose, lungs, throat and eyes. Those susceptible can develop rashes, bloody coughs, sinus infections, sore throats and even memory problems.
 
Case reports of serious illnesses caused by mold are rare, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. And a causal link between the presence of the toxic mold and these illnesses has not been proved, it says.
 
Criminal defense attorney Gregg Lerman spent five weeks inside the main federal courtroom trying a money-laundering trial. Jurors will begin deliberation after Thanksgiving.
 
Lerman said he saw a red footstool covered in mold outside a judge's chambers. He and another attorney got sick during the trial and Lerman wondered aloud if it was because of the mold, he said Friday after learning of the closure.
 
But Lerman was most concerned about the effect the Interstate 95 commute to Fort Lauderdale would have on jurors who have to decide the fate of five defendants who face 20 years in prison.
 
"They're judging the lives of five people, and now they have to deal with I-95 and traffic," Lerman said.
 
"I can hear them saying, 'I don't want to drive again. Let's get through this case today.' "
 
 

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