Some local hotels temporarily closed
SALINAS >> Monterey County Superior Court Executive Officer Chris Ruhl said Tuesday afternoon the county courthouses were preparing to close most public functions in response to shelter-in-place orders.
“The decision was made earlier this morning by our presiding judge that effective Wednesday, the court will be closing walk-in services to the public,”
Ruhl told The Herald. “We will continue to hear only felony incustody arraignments, that’s people from the jail, and juvenile incustody matters. This will be in effect through Friday, April 3.”
Officials at the court have been in contact with officials at the Monterey County Health Department tracking the state of the novel coronavirus pandemic, with the first cases in Monterey County reported Tuesday.
Ruhl said the Charles Holifield murder trial is the only other matter still taking place at the court, noting it is a court trial with a judge making the verdict rather than a jury. According to Public Defender Michael Belter, who is acting as Holifield’s lead attorney, the defense called a number of witnesses Wednesday involved in the search and rescue efforts during the months of June and July in 1998 following Christina Willams’ disappearance.
“We will be back in session on Thursday starting at 9:30 am and expect to conclude on Friday morning,” Belter said in an email.
“The prosecution may call rebuttal witnesses. Closing statements may be late Friday or Monday.”
According to Ruhl, the only other ongoing matter Wednesday was a court hearing regarding allegations Dr. Steven Keith Mangar overprescribed opioids. Mangar waived his right to a jury trial and the court trial was continued until May.
All functions from the clerk’s office will be closed to the public while the order remains in place. However, court personnel are exempt from the Monterey County shelter-in-place order
as they are needed to perform essential services to the community.
Prospective jurors who received notice to report during the weeks of March 16, March 23 and March 30 are excused from service and should not report to court. The only new jury trials that were possible at the start of the week were misdemeanor cases that were settled last week.
The Salinas Courthouse had notices posted outside Tuesday asking people to only enter the facility if they had court business to conduct in the interest of public safety. The courts previously ramped up janitorial efforts to make sure everything is clean and made hand sanitizer and masks available to the public.
Monterey County Superior Court Presiding Judge Julie Culver requested an emergency order Tuesday from California Chief Justice Tani Cantil-Sakauye that was granted Wednesday.
“The COVID-19 emergency presents an extraordinary and unprecedented challenge to the Court,” Culver said in a press release. “We are taking this extraordinary measure out of concern for the health and safety of the public we serve as well as everyone who visits or works in one of our court facilities. We anticipate this emergency will continue to evolve over the coming days and weeks; and the Court’s response will continue to evolve accordingly.”
Ruhl said the order from the state Supreme Court was necessary due to all the implications in terms of legal timelines and deadlines that need to be suspended or extended during this emergency. Other courts around California have taken the same or similar measures in response to the COVID-19 emergency.
What’s at issue is a public health emergency versus “people’s constitutional rights, that’s the challenge and the balance we’re trying to strike here,” Ruhl said. “This is an extraordinary emergency. It’s certainly unprecedented in my career.”