When the first jurors return to the Gwinnett Justice and Administration Center April 19, they’ll find the experience novel not just because of the number of seats that are roped off in the jury assembly room.
In fact, they’ll find a whole new room. It’s part of a new wing in the judicial complex — the Charlotte J. Nash Court Building, named after the recently retired chairman — that’s been more than a decade in the making.
It wasn’t designed with the coronavirus pandemic in mind, but the extra wing will make it easier to space people returning to courtrooms for the first time in more than a year.
Abby Carter, Gwinnett’s jury manager, said notices have gone out to 1,200 people, and the county hopes to get 600 people for trials for the two weeks beginning April 19. Because of the backlog of cases that have built up through the pandemic, there’s a need to move forward with trials.
Residents can request one 90-day coronavirus deferral, but a second one will need a doctor’s note.
The county is taking steps to make people feel safe when they come in the building. For starters, the new 505-capacity jury assembly room will have a 60-person capacity for the duration of the pandemic.
And instead of bringing in hundreds of potential jurors at 8 a.m., the county will stagger groups of 12 three times a day.
Jurors shouldn’t expect to spend more than a few hours waiting in the courthouse; attorneys will take pictures of them and use those to aid in the selection process instead of making people sit in the building. They’ll be contacted later with information about whether or not they’re chosen.
“We want to keep jurors here as short a time as possible,” Carter said. “We need jury trials done. We need people to trust us, trust we’re keeping them safe.”
Other changes to court proceedings will include the way evidence is handled — it will be projected on screens for people to see — and the communication with bailiffs, which should be improved, Carter said.
Plus, with the new building, juries will deliberate in empty courtrooms, giving them extra space to spread out. Only two Superior Court judges will be working in-person cases that first week, and there are eight courtrooms in the building, plus a floor and a half of empty space, to be built out in the future.
One of the judges coming back next month is Superior Court Judge Tim Hamil, who said he’s “really excited” about the new space.
“It’s been a long time coming,” Hamil said.
The $82.2 million wing was paid for with money raised in a 2009 sales tax, and expansion needs had been discussed long before that.
In addition to updated courtrooms with 86-inch screens, seating areas outside the courtrooms all have their own electricity. There’s a kitchenette with each jury room and suites for each judge.
The new building is also more secure, said David Smith, the project executive with Gilbane Co. Each courtroom has attached holding cells with security cameras near a secure elevator. The access to such spaces means judges will not have to shuffle courtrooms, as they have in the past.
Construction began in 2017, and included the demolition and rebuilding of a parking deck.
Phil Boudewyns, the court administrator, said the coronavirus shutdown was a challenge for a lot of reasons — but it allowed the opportunity to rethink the way the new wing would be used.
“We’re certainly nervous, but confident it’s going to be a good experience,” he said.
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