Although it hosted its first trial five weeks ago, the new "Christopher S. Bond United States Courthouse" formally was dedicated and opened for business Tuesday.
Gone are the tight spaces and crowded, single elevator leading to the second and third floors above the Main Post Office at 133 W. High St.
"Jefferson City plain needed a new courthouse," Bond said during a 10-minute address during the dedication ceremony. "I was a practicing lawyer 42 years ago, and even then we needed a new courthouse.
"You may remember that, in the old courthouse, when you ride up in the elevator, you may be riding up with a judge. Or you may be riding up with a criminal defendant.