Facing a growing backlog of cases, Michigan court officials still point to health and safety as being at the top of the priority list in making the decision to reopen courthouses and their various activities.
State court administrators and local judges say the decisions being made on gradually conducting jury trials again center around keeping jurors and everyone in the courtroom safe.
To that end, the Michigan Supreme Court issued guidelines for the state’s local courts as they consider opening back up after most have been shut down since March. Based on COVID-19 data and ongoing discussions with local health officials, each local court is placed in one of four phases in the return to full activity.
The phases gradually expand from limited in-person activity all the way back to normal, said Jodi Latuszek, senior director of Administration for the State Court Administrative Office.
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Courts must submit a request to move from one phase to another and show a decrease in the positivity rate, as well as downward trajectories for documented cases, per the supreme court’s Return to Full Capacity guide.
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“During any phase, we have focused so heavily on ‘continue to do what you can do virtually,’” Latuszek said. “For all phases, we have provided basic guidance, but the real substance is what’s in the court’s safety plans. … Their phase … comes from their interactions and conversations with the local health department.”
In Muskegon County, the decision to reopen the courthouse on March 1 was made in consultation with the county’s public health officer, Kathy Moore. The first jury trial there is planned for the week of March 22. The schedule allows time for employees to acclimate to having public visitors, as well as time to get out jury summons letters, Moore said.
“I have been meeting with judges and court administrators every Monday and we review the statistics based on the parameters set by the Michigan Supreme Court,” Moore said.
Those statistics include examining any cases and outbreaks among county employees as well as community COVID rates, she said.
It’s important to remember that while very few jury trials have happened since the coronavirus pandemic began in March 2020, other court proceedings have happened virtually, regardless of the phase a court is in, Latuszek said. Courts have logged 2 million hours of Zoom hearings as of Jan. 31.
“At the end of the day, it’s people’s lives,” Latuszek said. “The last thing we want is for a court employee to get sick, or somebody visiting the court to get sick because we didn’t have adequate safety guidance. This is very important.”
Face coverings, social distancing, plastic dividers and health screening questions are part of the safety plan for the first three phases.
These are the phases:
Phase One
This means courts have very limited in person activity, where employees who can work remotely should work remotely, Latuszek said. Faxes are utilized for court filings, along with emails and other electronic systems.
“It’s really limited to things where people have a Constitutional or statutory right to be present in the court,” she said.
Phase One happens for a couple reasons, according to the supreme court’s guide. One reason is that there is a state or local order requiring shelter-in-place or restricted movement.
The other reason is the COVID-19 test positivity rate is 15% or higher and there is an increasing number of cases during a 14-day period, per a Local Administrative Order.
Phase Two
Court proceedings will continue virtually, and each court can decide if they want to allow the public inside on a limited basis, per a Local Administrative Order.
Jury trials can restart in very limited circumstances in Phase Two, if the county has 70 cases or fewer per million per day and the test positivity rate is below 10%, Latuszek said.
Courts move into Phase Two when the county has a test positivity rate between 5 and 15% in the seven days before the request to change phases, per the supreme court guide.
“During Phase Two, courts have a lot of wiggle room to adjust their safety practices based on what their current local public health conditions are,” Latuszek said.
Phase Three
This phase is when jury trials, with proper safety measures, are recommended.
“Phase Three is as close to normal as things will get,” Latuszek said. “Some public facing activity resumes. Courts can have jury trials with safety plans in place.”
Making jurors feel safe is an important part of Phase Three, she said. Jury selection can bring in a hundred people or more, so courts must find a place to safely select jurors.
Some jurisdictions meet social distancing guidelines at a location outside of the courthouse, like a gymnasium, Latuszek said.
Courts move into Phase Three when the test positivity rate in the county is at 5% or lower, in the seven days before the request to change phases, per the supreme court guide.
Phase Four
Phase Four starts after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention or President of the United States declares the pandemic over.
“Phase Four is ‘Hey we’re out of the pandemic. Life is back to normal,’” Latuszek said.
-- MLive reporter Lynn Moore contributed to this report.
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