An angry Edmonton judge halted proceedings Tuesday because of a lack of security available in the courtroom.

Justice Terry Clackson temporarily halted proceedings in a child pornography trial and publically criticized the Alberta government for not having a provincial sheriff available.

Alberta’s Associate Chief Justice John Rooke also expressed concern about the number of sheriffs in Edmonton, taking his complaint to the Alberta government.

Rooke said the Solicitor General's Department told him it does not have enough staff for all courtrooms or the money to hire more sheriffs.

Solicitor General Jonathan Denis said this was the first time he has heard about a lack of security in the Alberta courts, adding that the number of sheriffs has not been cut.

"We already have a mechanism in place where we do speak with the Court of Queens' Bench justices and the provincial court justices on a regular basis. And as soon as we get some more information, we'll bring this up in our next meeting," Denis said.

The courthouse on Tuesday had five criminal courtrooms without security. The judges say the problem has been going on since early September

Rooke has given judges permission to stop proceedings if there is a safety concern.