By Julian Verdon
FRESNO/SACRAMENTO – A surge in coronavirus cases and Governor Gavin Newsom’s regional Stay-at-Home order Dec. 8 has led Fresno, Sacramento and other county superior courts to suspend all civil and jury trials and jury service until at least about mid-January, 2021.
That date may not be the end of suspensions, and as cases, hospitalizations and deaths continue to spike through Christmas Day, there may be a continuation of the trial suspension in the coming weeks.
Most county courts closed and suspended jury trials in the spring when the first state stay-at-home orders began, and it was many months before jury trials resumed.
The reason behind suspending upcoming trials was to limit the spread of COVID-19. According to the National Center for State Courts, the most common reason courts stop jury trials is the pandemic.
“All matters set for jury trial on the criminal master calendar are ordered continued 20 days, on a rolling basis, from their currently set court date,” stated the Fresno Court’s administrative order. The order also stipulated that some trials could proceed if the trial judge allows it.
Since trials will resume on a rolling basis, many defendants will not begin their trial immediately after the 20 days. Unless a judge decides to continue with their trials, the defendants will not get a speedy trial. They may wait in the jails for months before seeing the inside of a courtroom.
Although some counties attempted to proceed with Zoom trials or with social distancing guidelines, Fresno County gave no indication they would do so. However, the court stipulated that it would 
proceed remotely regarding other criminal cases not set for trial.
“The Court will continue to hear in-custody (misdemeanor, felony, and violation of supervision) criminal cases. All parties are encouraged to attend hearings via Zoom,” said Michael Elliot, the court executive officer.
In Sacramento, Presiding Judge Russell Hom wrote that jury trials and jury service are suspended until Jan. 18, 2021, and perhaps much longer in the Sacramento Region. And any “in progress” trials will remain in session.
“The court is deemed an “essential service” and will in all other areas of court operations remain open to the public and serve the public through remote means,” said Hom. Sacramento has used Zoom livestreaming for all other criminal hearings for more than half the year, while most other county superior courts either have no way to monitor the courts, or have audio only.
“The court is committed to reducing the number of people in our facilities to protect the public, judicial officers and employees. Again, the pause in jury trials and jury service is temporary and in direct response to the current health environment,” the judge said.
Although the Constitution guarantees the right to a speedy trial, many courts have struggled to do so because of COVID-19. Doing so can leave defendants stuck in jails indefinitely, which during a pandemic can prove deadly.
The Fresno County Jail dealt with a massive outbreak over the summer where over 1,100 inmates and 76 staff members were infected with COVID-19. Suspending trials is not something unique to Fresno but has occurred across the country.
Sacramento’s two jails, with close to 4,000 inmates a year ago, were trimmed by several thousand. COVID has infected dozens of staff and inmates.
“At least 231 people have died from COVID-19 in Texas correctional facilities,” according to a report from the University of Texas at Austin. Moreover, the publication found that 80 percent of those who died were not convicted of a crime.
Kirsten Tynan, the Fully Informed Jury Association executive director, posted on an open-access Excel spreadsheet 78 different courts that postponed their jury trials. Some counties postponed their trials indefinitely, with no clear end in sight for defendants.
“We have tacitly permitted our government to wield against us the very power that trial by jury was intended to prevent it from ever gaining: INDEFINITE DETENTION,” said Kirsten Tynan in a Facebook post.
Jenni Bergal at the Pew Research Center said, “But having a specific jury trial date scheduled makes a huge difference in moving cases along and getting parties talking, attorneys and court officials say. That often results in plea agreements and dismissals in criminal cases, and settlements in civil ones.”
Julian Verdon is a senior at UCLA majoring in English. He is from Los Angeles California.
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