Jury trials ready to resume again

“Jury trials are at the heart of ensuring public access to justice, and as an essential service, courts must make every effort to protect the public that uses our court facilities and services,” Presiding Judge Jonathan E. Karesh said in a statement.

Jury trials have been suspended for the past three months as courts throughout the state were forced to significantly scale back operations because of COVID-19.

The resumption of jury trials Monday is statewide, though San Mateo County has been granted a 30-day extension on time limits for trials to July 15, which Karesh said will provide breathing room in addressing the extensive backlog of cases. The court will not be able to schedule as many trials as usual, but roughly 40 cases, based on the date of arraignment, must go to trial within the next month, he said.

When jurors enter the courthouse in Redwood City — report times will be staggered to avoid large crowds — they will first register in an outdoor tent and complete a simple onsite health screening in which they describe their health status. Those with significant symptoms may be excused from jury duty.

Seating has been spaced out throughout the building and may be marked to guide jurors and the public while elevators will be limited to two occupants at a time. Hand sanitizer stations and rubber gloves will be provided and courtroom staff will be wearing face coverings.

The jury selection process has proved to be the most difficult part about resuming trials during a pandemic, said Karesh, adding the new protocol could make the process take one to two days longer than usual.

Jury selection will occur in the large courtroom 2M on the second floor, which will have a max capacity of about 17 prospective jurors due to social distancing rules. Under normal circumstances, there’d be as many as 70 jurors in a courtroom for the selection process.

The remaining prospective jurors will be placed in the jury assembly room, which normally can accommodate 150 people but with social distancing there’s now only room for 27. Those jurors will watch the proceedings via Zoom and be ready to take the place of the prospective jurors who get dismissed.

During trials, just three of the usual 12 jurors will sit in the jury box while the rest will be scattered throughout the gallery.

Prosecutors and defense attorneys will likely sit at the counsel table or be in the jury box if there’s enough space to have all jurors in the gallery.   

Plexiglas will surround the witness while testifying to protect the nearby court reporter. The courtroom will also be disinfected twice daily.

“We’re doing everything we possibly can,” Karesh said.

Where jurors will deliberate has yet to be decided as the usual rooms can only fit three people with social distancing guidelines. Deliberations may have to occur in the courtroom, Karesh said.

Because of the above restrictions, Karesh said it’s likely there won’t be room for the public or media to attend trials in person, though they’ll have the option to submit an online request to access audio, but not video, of the trial.

That’s concerning local defense attorney Paul DeMeester who this week filed a complaint on behalf of his client, Leon Seymour, arguing that providing only audio access to the public and media to trials violates the first and sixth amendments.  

“Granting the public online audio only falls well short of the public trial and access rights guaranteed by the above cited provisions of the first and sixth amendments and their California constitutional counterparts,” according to the complaint.

Karesh said the above restrictions, while inconvenient, are necessary during a pandemic and will be lifted whenever the ongoing crisis subsides.

“But we have no idea how long it’ll last,” he said.

zachary@smdailyjournal.com

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