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New York Court Arraignments: No Video and No Social Distancing Causing Jitters

Nancy Solomon

WNYC News | Mar 19, 2020

Public defenders in New York City say the state courts are putting staff and attorneys at risk of COVID-19 exposure during arraignments.

The Office of Court Administration has set up video conferencing, but the only person in the court who is on the video and not there in person is the defendant.

Jennifer Ritter, a Legal Aid attorney, was in arraignment court on Wednesday in Brooklyn, where she says some 30 staff and attorneys were in a small courtroom where arraignments were moved to accommodate the video feed from the defendant.

"It creates a petri dish for Covid-19," Ritter said. "It's ridiculous. No one is socially distancing." She says she knows of five Legal Aid Society employees who have already gotten sick.

Legal Aid Society provides the largest number of public defenders in the New York City court system. Ritter has heard from colleagues in Manhattan and Queens who report the same conditions.

"In fact, one attorney suggested to the judge on the bench that they try and socially distance and was thrown out of the courtroom," Ritter said.

Ritter said attorneys are asking the state to begin video conferencing for all court personnel immediately. A spokesman for the Office of Court Administration was not available for comment.