Regular hearings in West Virginia’s courts are to be rescheduled after April 10, according to an administrative order issued by the Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia on Monday.
Domestic violence petitions, child abuse and neglect petitions, criminal arraignments and criminal hearings with legal time requirements, mental hygiene petitions and “other matters deemed by the presiding judicial officer as requiring immediate resolution” are specifically exempt from the order.
The order states hearings can be held by phone and any state or local rule that limits the ability to use remote communication is suspended, provided their use does not infringe upon a party’s constitutional or legal rights.
Should a judicial office close to the public, the offices will be accessible by telephone and email during regular business hours, according to the order. A drop box or another means of physically filing should be used.
The order states those involved in court proceedings should still follow the WVSCOA’s guidance from last week.
“The Monongalia County Court system is coming together to address the challenges of the coronavirus situation,” Chief Judge Debra Scudiere, Seventeenth Judicial Circuit, said. “The goal is both to serve the needs of the litigants and also to do our best to keep everyone safe. For example, telephone hearings will be utilized as much as possible so that litigants’ problems can be addressed while still keeping the people themselves physically separated.”
According to the March 12 COVID-19 planning document, employees that have a fever or other symptoms of COVID-19, which include a cough and shortness of breath, are not permitted to come to work. Employees are required to stay home for 14 days from the onset of their symptoms and will be granted 14 calendar days of paid leave that does not count against their annual leave or sick leave.
Employees who have been exposed to a confirmed case will not be allowed to work for 14 days. Those employees will also benefit from additional leave to cover that time period.
Those who have traveled to areas with COVID-19 outbreaks, which is every state surrounding West Virginia as of Monday, are encouraged to get tested for the virus. Some employees who are self-quarantined or recovering from the illness may be able to work from home, according to the document.
Attorneys, witnesses and jurors should not come to court if they have a fever or other COVID-19 symptoms but they should contact the relevant office, the document said.
The Monongalia County Prosecutor’s Office will remain open for now, said Prosecutor Perri DeChristopher.
“We will appear at any hearing scheduled by our courts,” she said. “However, I believe that most matters can be rescheduled to a later date in that the preservation of public health served by a continuance outweighs any other interest.”
