Justice Center officially opens

Wendy Alexander/The Madera Tribune

Madera County District Attorney Sally Moreno, and Chief Probation Officer Chris Childers, far right, holding scissors, are joined by local dignitaries for a ribbon cutting ceremony on Friday for the new Madera County Justice Center.

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After spending the last few years in a dilapidated, 100-year-old building that was not sufficient for the inner-workings of the Madera County Probation Department and the Madera County District Attorney’s Office, the Madera County Justice Center officially opened last week to house both entities.

“We were adjacent to the old superior court, which was an old elementary school building that is about 100 years old,” said Sally Moreno, Madera County District Attorney. “It was full of asbestos and vermin. We are super happy to be in this new building.”

“The other building is archaic,” said Chris Childers, Madera County Chief Probation Officer. “It had a boiler system that worked half the time. We have lawyers and support staff that couldn’t work in that environment.”