Maricopa County Courts operating during pandemic

The justice system is not immune to dealing with changes due to COVID-19 concerns. We spoke with Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Joseph C. Welty about how the county is working to ensure that justice is served during the pandemic. Jude Welty mentions, pre-pandemic, about 14,000 people walked in every day through the courthouse doors. A large part of their systems was done in-person and once the pandemic hit, a huge change occurred. By April, all courts were up on electronic platforms.

This helped reduce foot traffic from 14,000 a day to 2,500-3,000. Everyone that walks in is also questioned on their health, based on CDC recommendations, and pre-screened. Face-shields are also provided to anyone that cannot, for medical reasons, wear a mask. Jury trials are where problems have occurred. State-wide they have been suspended but luckily Maricopa County is able to space out the jury to eliminate spread of the virus.

For more updates on how COVID-19 is affecting Arizona, check out Arizona PBS News.