If you start seeing lots of activity occasionally on Tuesdays at The Commons, it won’t be the result of annual meetings, award ceremonies or artistic performances.
It will be for law and order.
A memorandum of understanding has been created that will allow jury selection for all courts in Bartholomew County to take place inside the Nugent-Custer Performance Hall, on the second floor of The Commons, across Third Street from the courthouse.
The performance hall has more than 8,000 square feet of space — more than sufficient to provide social distancing to help prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus.
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The memorandum between county government, Columbus and the Columbus Parks and Recreation Department, which manages The Commons, has been unanimously approved by the Bartholomew County commissioners. Officials at Columbus City Hall had earlier approved the agreement, said Mary Ferdon, the city’s executive director of administration and community development.
The cost of renting the performance hall for jury selection, as well as cleaning costs, will amount to $1,050 a day when it is used, commissioners Chairman Carl Lienhoop said.
“This is really a lot of money,” Commissioner Larry Kleinhenz said.
However, county auditor Pia O’Connor says it’s her understanding reimbursement will be provided through the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, also known as the CARES Act. The $2.2 trillion federal economic stimulus bill signed into law in March includes $339.8 billion to state and local governments to reimburse them for expenses related to fighting the spread of COVID-19.
In late June, O’Connor said Bartholomew County is eligible for $2.7 million in reimbursements through the CARES Act Provider Relief Fund.
It’s doubtful the facility will be used often for jury selection. On average, 94% of state-level felony convictions across the country are the result of plea bargains, rather than jury trials.
And that figure is high when compared to Bartholomew County.
“I would guess that 99% of the cases we file are resolved by way of a plea agreement,” Bartholomew County Prosecutor Bill Nash said. “Jury trials are very rare here.”
The rental of the Commons is the latest effort by the local courts to begin to return to normal. On March 19, access to the courthouse was restricted to only staff, judges, litigants and witnesses whose presence was essential in a hearing. Whenever possible, hearings were held through video conferencing.
A few days later, the courts were only handling essential matters such as setting bond for criminal defendants, issuing protective orders, child custody issues, juvenile cases and Child In Need of Services (CHINS) cases, Circuit Court judge Kelly Benjamin said.
“To say we are backed up is an understatement,” Circuit Court office manager Tammy Johannesen told the commissioners.
All three courts — Circuit, Superior Court 1 and Superior Court 2 — are already in the process of coordinating calendars and schedules, so they can share the slots of time at the courthouse that would be available for jury selection, Johannesen said.
Several factors, such as a defendant’s incarceration date and when their case was initially filed, are all considered when determining trial dates, she said.
Once a jury has been selected, all trials will be conducted in the Bartholomew Superior Court 1 courtroom, according to Teresa Million, office manager for Superior Court 1 Judge James Worton.
Due to its large size, the Superior 1 courtroom is where high-profile trials that attract large numbers of spectators are usually conducted, regardless of which judge is presiding over the case. The courtroom could hold as many as 27 individuals socially distanced, court officials said.
