On March 16, all criminal, civil jury trials were paused due to the coronavirus. Since the suspension, only essential hearings, such as first appearances, bond-modification hearings and pleas, have been held in-person at the courthouse, according to the Palm Beach Post. Recently, more hearings have been held over the phone or through the Zoom video-conferencing application.
Trials were originally scheduled to resume after the July 4th holiday but on Tuesday, Chief Judge Krista Marx updated an administrative order stating they would not be reopening. This decision is because they had not met criteria set by the Florida Supreme Court to do so.
As of Wednesday afternoon, there are over 159,000 confirmed COVID-19 cases in Florida with just over 3,550 deaths. In palm beach county alone there are 12,928 confirmed cases and 492 deaths.
In the suspension order “Mitigating measures in response to COVID-19,” Marx wrote that all criminal and civil jury trials, as well as grand jury and jury selection proceedings, were suspended on March 16 “and will remain suspended until further notice.”