"I don't think a courtroom like this is what any of us ever envisioned," he said. "But everyone is pleased that we figured something out to try and get the courts back operational and functioning."
And so on Monday, after more than two months of holding only the most essential arraignments and hearings, the Franklin County Common Pleas courts will reopen, with jury trials possible for the first time since the coronavirus pandemic hit in March.
The courtroom of McIntosh, as the administrative judge of the general division courts, was the first of six to have the wood and plexiglass barriers recently installed in strategic locations to help stem possible transmission of the virus through the air. Jurors will be separated by the plexiglass, as will the attorneys and prosecutors at their tables. Plexiglass also surrounds the judge, the bailiff and testifying witnesses.
Courtroom observers will be limited to about 10 on benches that would normally hold probably 60.
The 17 Franklin County Common Pleas Court judges each have a docket of about 600 criminal and civil cases a year, and each handles on average between five and 12 jury trials annually.
When the courts reopen Monday, only half of the courtrooms will be open at any one time for in-person hearings, and the other judges will conduct hearings virtually. Then, the judges will alternate weeks. That will keep the flow of traffic at the South High Street courthouse down, McIntosh said.
Potential jurors will be called in fewer numbers and will be placed in more than one room for orientation to keep proper distancing.
"The bottom line is that we want everyone to feel safe and protected as we all continue these important duties and this vital work," McIntosh said.
The Franklin County Municipal Courtreopens Monday with significant changes of its own.
Movers and court personnel began work Wednesday on shifting operations to the Greater Columbus Convention Center, where traffic and eviction courts will operate now.
One of the metal detectors and X-ray machines from the entrance of the Downtown municipal court was moved to the hallways and concourse in front of Exhibit Hall B, where the judges and magistrates will be set up in rooms on two floors there.
People reporting to the court can expect to have their temperatures checked with a thermal-imaging camera and, in addition to court liaison officers, special-duty police officers will be on hand for security.
That's something Municipal Court Administrative Judge Ted Barrows said is key in the nontraditional setting.
"The officers show up and let everybody know this is still a court and you need to act right," he said.
Lawyers and staff from legal aid and case mediators will also have offices in the convention center.
Moving an operation with such a large case load as traffic court hasn't been easy to pull off, and it took the cooperation of defense attorneys, prosecutors and the clerk, Barrows said. But he said it is the right thing to do to slow the foot traffic at the usually-packed South High Street courthouse.
With criminal case hearings still happening at the main Municipal Court courthouse Downtown, much like at Common Pleas Court, judges will be alternating the days in their courtrooms.
And with traffic court temporarily vacating the building's first-floor (the court's $200,000 contract secured the convention center through August), criminal arraignments will move from the fourth floor to keep people from having to pack into the elevators, minimizing the risk of exposure.
Video arraignments will also start within the next week or two.
In addition, the Municipal Court has traditionally operated by what's known as "cattle call," where defendants all show up at 9 a.m. and wait — sometimes hours — until their cases are called.
Not anymore.
Summons will be issued for staggered times and hearings will be specifically scheduled from 9 a.m. on.
It's a long overdue change, Barrows said.
"Some judges liked it because they could get to the golf course by 1 p.m. that way," he said. "But that's not how this will work anymore."
The bottom line, he said, is for people doing business with the court to feel comfortable and protected in these still uncertain times.
"I would like them to know that we've done all we can," Barrows said. "We want them to feel as safe here as they do when they visit Kroger."
##IFRAME_1##The Franklin County Domestic Relations/Juvenile courts also ramp up again Monday with many changes in procedure similar to the other courts, such as nonevidentiary hearings or noncontested cases handled by video, mask requirements and scheduling cases at specific times.
But visitors will also see some more significant changes, said Administrative Judge Kim A. Browne. Namely, the limiting of 10 people at a time in a courtroom, including the attorneys and court personnel.
"Our court is juvenile and domestic relations court. It is an emotional place. People oftentimes are bringing a cadre of supporters in with them," she said. "That won' be happening."
New courtroom navigators (wearing blue shirts) will be in place to make sure only those with necessary business make it to the courtrooms, conduct their hearings and leave.
A video terminal has been installed for those seeking civil protection orders to allow the process be completed in one spot — video conferencing with the judge, etc. — as opposed to what used to take four stops within the courthouse.
And the Self-Represented Resource Center, where those in financial need can get help with basic filings for things like child support, custody or dissolutions, has also switched to video conferencing, and then appointments to pick up the paperwork.
It's all about limiting traffic flow and improving efficiency in a court where six judges manage a total of more than 42,000 cases a year.
"Crisis is the mother of invention," Browne said. "So we've invented new ways of doing things with technology that, I think, are often for the better."
©2020 The Columbus Dispatch (Columbus, Ohio). Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
