Jury trials suspended in Indiana until March because of pandemic

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The Indiana Supreme Court on Monday handed down an order suspending jury trials statewide until March 1, citing “the need for drastic measures as COVID-19 continues to surge.”

The court said “in-person jury trials pose an exceptional risk to everyone involved—even if every precaution is taken.”

The Supreme Court has been giving local courts authority to adjust operations, included holding remote proceedings and streaming public hearings online.

“We have hope that 2021 will bring improved conditions,” Chief Justice Loretta Rush said in written remarks. “But hoping is not enough. There is more we must do, and we must act now. Since March, we have been balancing the requirement to keep courts open with the need for public health. The worsening pandemic creates urgency for us to halt jury trials as we maintain all other court operations, including through remote proceedings.”

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6 thoughts on “Jury trials suspended in Indiana until March because of pandemic

  1. I commend Chief Justice Rush on making a concerted effort to help stop the surge of COVID-19 cases. Now we need our state’s elected officials to follow suit.

  2. I am 65, a 2019 cancer patient and am high risk enough that my doctor told me to skip Thanksgiving dinner with the rest of my family. For the first time in my life I received a jury questionnaire last month. This is welcome news.

  3. World is not sterile now , never was and never will be…Open all up and protect those most vulnerable…Governor has done enough damage to all businesses and schools so now the court has to do a me too… WOW…More and More judges will be needed next to handle the self made and imposed backlog ….What happened to all the science …Not just the cherry picked that some agree with….+I guess the new normal is to request a food pass etc etc…

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