Mercer County Common Pleas Judge Michael J. Wherry says he can't always hear what's going on in his courtroom.

Continuing renovations in the courthouse have destroyed the acoustic quality of his courtroom, not enhanced it, he said.

Wherry said to his knowledge no study was done to determine the effect renovations would have on the acoustics of his courtroom before the work started. He said he expressed reservations about the removal of the acoustical tile that lined the walls and was told that renovations would compensate for the lack of them.

Wherry said before the renovations, the courtroom was "one of the finest courtrooms in western Pennsylvania, from an acoustical standpoint."

Now, Wherry said, court reporters often can't hear the testimony being told in front of them. Lawyers and witnesses often can't hear each other either, rendering the courtroom "useless as a forum for serious extensive litigation," he said.

To correct the problem, county commissioners had six speakers installed. The commissioners added cushioned benches and carpeting to help muffle echoes.

But litigants, lawyers and court stenographers still can't hear each other, Wherry said.

"I next expect that the county is going to hire the services of a couple of druids to utter magic incantations and fling magic powders about the courtroom to drive away the evil spirits that are creating the problems," Wherry wrote to commissioners in a letter complaining of the problems and ineffectiveness of the "solutions" installed so far.

Wherry said he was told that the tiles, which were added during the 1950s, were removed because they weren't historically accurate.

"What we have now," Wherry said, "is a beautiful, early 20th-century courtroom -- with all its deficiencies."

President Judge Francis J. Fornelli said the problems aren't limited to Wherry's courtroom.

Pipes that run along the ceiling of his courtroom make too much noise, Fornelli said, and a special muffling device has to be added to soften the sound. Also, several "dead" spots in the courtroom, where nothing can be heard, have been identified, Fornelli said. These spots include the lawyers' table, the defendants' table, in front of the jury box and in front of the judicial bench.

The issue is especially pressing, Wherry said, because arguments in a large malpractice suit are scheduled for next month. Witnesses have been subpoenaed since August, and the trial is expected to last about two weeks.

"It is not fair to the litigants, the attorney, the court personnel or the court to permit this condition to continue," he wrote.

While Wherry wants a quick fix, Fornelli said he has asked the commissioners to finish the courtrooms and then bring in a sound engineer to make suggestions on how to improve the acoustics.

Commissioner Olivia M. Lazor said, "We're aware of it. We're going to address it, but we are not going to go quickly and spend a lot of money."

Mrs. Lazor said an acoustics study would be done once final features, such as draperies, a blind system and a complete sound system, are in place and working properly.

You can e-mail Herald Staff Writer Amanda Smith-Teutsch at: ateutsch@sharonherald.com