Looking for some good news? No jury duty for the next two weeks
If you have jury duty in Florida in the next two weeks, the good news is you don’t have to show up — for now.
The Florida Supreme Court issued an order late last week suspending most court business starting Monday and extending through March 27 because of concerns about the spread of COVID-19.
The order includes grand juries, jury selection, and criminal and civil trials.
The court said in a statement that this is the first time jury trials have been suspended since the Florida state court system was unified by a constitutional amendment in 1972.
Monroe County State Attorney Dennis Ward said the exceptions to the order are bond hearings and arraignments, but judges may use electronic means for those proceedings, according to the court’s statement
The order, issued by Chief Justice Charles T. Canady on Thursday, states that proceedings already in progress may continue if “the presiding judge, with approval of the chief judge, determines that completion of the proceeding without delay, is required by the interests of justice.”
The order may be “extended or modified as needed in the future,” the court statement reads.
Federal courts took similar action Friday. Chief District Justice K. Michael Moore ordered all jury trials in Miami, Fort Lauderdale, Fort Pierce, and Key West scheduled between March 16 and March 30 continued “pending further order.”
This story was originally published March 15, 2020 at 4:12 PM.
