Queens judge has COVID-19, but courthouse remains open
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The Queens Supreme Court building on Sutphin Boulevard in Jamaica. Eagle photo by David Brand
By David Brand
UPDATE [March 19, 2020 1:51 p.m.]: The judge last entered the courthouse on March 13, according to the Office of Court Administration.
A Queens Supreme Court judge has tested positive for COVID-19, though trials and other proceedings continue at the Jamaica courthouse where the judge presides.
Court officials have implemented modified schedules and closed several parts and offices, but the building remains open.
The judge “tested positive with mild symptoms,” and last entered the courthouse on March 13, said Office of Court Administration spokesperson Lucian Chalfen,. Court officials are going through the judge’s calendar of matrimonial and child custody cases and attempting to contact everyone who visited the courtroom, Chalfen said.
The judge’s “courtroom and related areas were immediately deep cleaned when we became aware of the results,” he added.
The Eagle could not reach the judge for comment Thursday and is not identifying the judge at this time in order to preserve their health privacy.
The Chief Clerk in Queens Supreme Court, Tamara Kersh, declined to comment and directed questions to OCA.
Ongoing criminal and civil trials will continue to their conclusion, but courts across the state will not commence any new trials, the state’s chief administrative judge wrote in a memo to Unified Court System personnel Sunday. At least one trial is ongoing at the Jamaica courthouse.
Court officials have closed several parts and offices in the Jamaica Supreme Court building and the Supreme Courthouse in Long Island City is completely closed, according to an order posted on the state court system website.
In Jamaica, court officials have closed the Trial Scheduling Part, Compliance Conference Part, Preliminary Conference Part and Subpoenaed Records office. All judicial parts are closed except for courtrooms with ongoing trials.
An “emergency judge” will continue to sit in the Jamaica Supreme courthouse to hear emergency applications, the order states.
Courts in Queens, like institutions throughout the city, did not immediately recognize the threat of COVID-19. Business continued more or less as usual in the courthouses until late last week, the Eagle found.
This story will be updated to include more information about court closures and COVID-19 cases among court personnel.
