Other mistake: The safety goggles Barney wears is missing both of its lenses. While it's possible that Barney may wear the goggles just for the look, that possibility is negated when Barney states, "Every piece of equipment and wardrobe has a specific function: helmet - anti-crash; goggles - anti-foreign objects in eyes, that is gravel and/or bugs."
My Fair Ernest T. Bass - S4-E17
Other mistake: Barney says, "I brought the car to drive you over to Mrs. Wiley's," but later when Andy, Barney, Ernest T., and Ramona leave Mrs. Wiley's we see that they're at the house that's actually next door to Andy - though to hide this fact there's a station wagon in the driveway, and they've removed the trellis beside the door.
Answer: As noted in the previous answers, in real life, things like this provided wind and/or rain deflection, and also maintained a bit of privacy when blinds were raised somewhat. The interior courthouse set was located in the studio, so the "outside" Main Street didn't exist. I believe these things were added to the courthouse windows for practicality, to avoid some crew movement being visible on the opposite side of those windows. These are not "window boxes" to hold anything, as they're actually bottomless; we can see the Venetian blind's long pull cords under them. They're made of plywood and simple to build, so the "material and labor" was inexpensive. Similar variations made of different materials are in other movies/shows. In 1957's "12 Angry Men," textured chicken wire glass panels are in the jury room windows, and in "Jesse Stone: Night Passage" another type is in Jesse's office windows.
Super Grover ★