The Superior Court of Los Angeles County will close down for three days beginning Tuesday in an emergency effort to control spread of the coronavirus.
According to Los Angeles Superior Court Presiding Judge Kevin C. Brazile, all county courthouses and courtrooms will be closed Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. Courts will reopen Friday “for the limited purpose of hearing or handling essential or emergency matters in criminal, civil, probate, family law and dependence/juvenile cases.”
The emergency order closing courthouses was issued with the authorization of the chief justice of the state Supreme Court.
The court “is committed to providing equal access to justice through the fair, timely and efficient resolution of all cases,” Brazile said in a statement. “However, it is imperative that we continue aligning our court with the most recent directives and guidelines issued by our national, state and local public health officials.
“Let me be clear: We will continue to serve the needs of the most vulnerable people in Los Angeles County — our children, the elderly, domestic violence victims, people whose life and liberty interests are at stake and in many other emergent cases as is possible and safe.”
The order effectively makes the next three days court holidays, which extends the normal timeline for legal actions, such as filing criminal charges and holding hearings such as arraignments.
Brazile had previously put new jury trials on hold for the next 30 days, saying no new jurors would be summoned to the courthouses during that period. He gave individual judges discretion on whether to delay trials already in progress.
The Superior Court of Los Angeles County has 550 judicial officers and more than 4,600 permanent employees serving a population of more than 10 million people. The largest trial court in the nation, the court has 38 courthouses in 12 judicial districts throughout the county’s 4,752 square miles.