Stanislaus Court seeks emergency order to suspend trials for 30 days due to coronavirus
Stanislaus Superior Court, like many others around the state, is requesting an emergency order from California’s Chief Justice that would allow the courts to suspend all jury trials for 30 days in an effort to reduce the number of people entering court facilities amid the coronavirus pandemic.
Among guidelines released by President Donald Trump during a press conference on Monday was to limit gatherings to 10 people. Roughly 1,500 people enter the courthouse on 11th Street in downtown Modesto each day.
If granted, the order would suspend all criminal and civil jury trials that are on calendar, including those in which the defendant did not waive time, for the next 30 days, Court Executive Officer Hugh K. Swift said Tuesday.
People who receive a jury summons during the dates of the order, from Wednesday to April 16, would not be required to appear.
Swift did not know how many cases could be impacted but said there are trials scheduled to begin every week in nearly all of the court’s nine criminal departments during the course of the 30 days.
Already the court has suspended services that provide assistance on matters including family law, child custody and child support. They are also asking people to pay traffic tickets through the court’s website at https://portal.stanct.org/Portal/ instead of in person.
To maximize social distancing on Monday, juvenile court Judge Ruben Villalobos held part of his calendar, matters related to truancy court, in the lobby instead of the tight juvenile courtrooms at the facility on Blue Gum Avenue. He continued all further truancy court hearings until September to limit the number of people in the courthouse.
But some courtrooms at the main courthouse on 11th Street had to accommodate more people than normal on Monday because six judges heeded the Trump Administration’s advice for older people or people with underlying health conditions to stay home. Cases assigned to those judges were sent to the remaining judges, who handled them in addition to their normal caseload.
Swift said the court is looking at other ways to reduce the population at the courthouse, potentially by limiting hearings to only those that are essential, including arraignments, juvenile detention hearings, requests for domestic violence and emergency child custody orders.
He said the court is also in discussions with the Sheriff’s Department about implementing video arraignments for in custody inmates.
Swift said he expects to have a plan in place by the end of Tuesday.
In neighboring San Joaquin County, all non-emergency services were suspended Tuesday through April 3, according to a press release.
The only matters that will still be heard are criminal arraignments with in-custody defendants and matters in which the defendant did not waive time, civil harassment cases, domestic violence restraining orders, child custody hearings where ex parte orders and most juvenile detention hearings. All other hearings will be rescheduled.
This story was originally published March 17, 2020 at 12:15 PM.
