Nine Riverside County courthouses that were closed earlier because of the coronavirus emergency will remain shuttered until May 1, court officials confirmed Wednesday.
Eight adult courts were shut down last month, and a juvenile courthouse was closed on Monday, as part of the court’s recognition of COVID-19 mitigation efforts countywide.
The Court Executive Office did not immediately say what prompted Presiding Judge John Vineyard to extend the closures another two weeks, but additional details are expected to be released Thursday.
Under an order issued by Vineyard on March 16 and re-implemented on April 2, most operations — and all public access — at the Banning Justice Center, Corona Courthouse, Riverside Historic Courthouse, Hemet Courthouse, Moreno Valley Traffic & Smalls Claims Court, Palm Springs Courthouse, Riverside Family Law Courthouse and Temecula Courthouse were suspended.
The Riverside Juvenile Dependency Court was closed on April 13, and all youth court matters were re-assigned to the Southwest Juvenile Court in Murrieta.
Vineyard cited the need to “comply with federal, state and local guidelines, adhere to the Centers for Disease Control social distancing recommendations and abide by the shelter-in-place regulations” as the basis for the shutdowns.
The downtown Riverside Hall of Justice remains open daily from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., along with the Indio Larson Justice Center, the Southwest Justice Center in Murrieta, the Blythe Courthouse and Southwest Juvenile Court.
Video arraignments, which began March 31, will continue to be utilized to preclude moving defendants from jailhouses to the open courthouses, and hence increasing COVID-19 exposure risks.
The Superior Court’s web portal remains available, though the timely updating of information on cases has been impacted.
Last month, the Superior Court implemented a series of policy changes that remain in force, all of which are based on the need to safeguard against the virus.
The foremost action was to halt jury trials, which have been suspected for 60 days, beginning March 17. Civil jury trials are suspended until May 25.
Arraignments and gun violence restraining orders are proceeding, as are civil harassment restraining orders and name change petitions.
All traffic court trials have been postponed until further notice, while other traffic hearings are being deferred for 90 days, according to the Superior Court.
Small claims matters will not be heard for 90 days, and unlawful detainer petitions, involving evictions, will not proceed for 60 days, officials said.
Some hearings may be held telephonically, and interested parties who require more information were encouraged to visit www.riverside.courts.ca.gov, or call the court at 951-275-5076, or 760-342-6264.