CALABASAS, Calif. -- Alcatel (NYSE:ALA - news) today announced that Seminole County Court, 18th Judicial Circuit, Sanford, Fla., has selected Alcatel to provide video streaming capabilities to its courthouses to improve security and logistics regarding transportation of inmates for court proceedings. Seminole County Court, which conducts proceedings at three locations in Sanford, has selected Alcatel's OmniSwitch to produce reliable video streaming to the courthouses from the jail. Seminole is also using Alcatel's OmniStack switch to supply additional Ethernet ports for printers and visiting lawyers using laptops.

This older courthouse district was not designed to handle prisoners, who must share common hallways with the public, judges and juries. With the new video arraignment capabilities, officials no longer have to transport prisoners from the jail to the courthouse, which is approximately 8 miles away, give contraband searches and risk potential prisoner escapes. The court can hold its proceedings via video arraignment directly from the jail.

"Alcatel is essential to the court's long-range strategy as we move into the next millennium," said Horace McMorrow, deputy court administrator, Seminole County Court. "Having top-quality video capability is extremely important. Judges must be able to interpret the body language of prisoners, witnesses and others involved in court proceedings when making their decisions. Video over ATM is both secure and robust."

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