With vaccines limited, 30+ Queens court staffers test positive for COVID in 2021
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An employee who worked in the Queens Criminal Court building Monday tested positive for COVID-19 Tuesday. Eagle photo by David Brand
By David Brand
More than 30 Queens court employees have tested positive for COVID-19 in the first three weeks of 2021, with vaccines still out of reach for a number of people reporting to work each day.
A Queens Criminal Court employee tested positive for COVID-19 Tuesday after spending time in the building the day before, staff emails show. They are at least the 31st person working in a Queens court employee to contract the coronavirus since the beginning of 2021.
Assistant Deputy Chief Clerk Carolyn Christiansen sent a message to courthouse staff notifying them of the positive COVID test Tuesday. The individual who tested positive a day after reporting for work did not want to be identified, she said.
The person worked on the first floor, mezzanine level and inside the AP6 courtroom on Monday. An OCA spokesperson declined to identify their occupation in the courts.
They are the latest court system staffer to test positive for the virus amid a surge in Queens.
Thirty other employees across Queens courts tested positive for COVID-19 in the first 20 days 2021 alone, according to reports published by the Office of Court Administration.
At least 10 staffers in the Queens District Attorney’s Office also tested positive in the first two weeks of 2021, Patch reported.
Though some court staffers, like court officers and clerks, are eligible for vaccine shots, other employees — including judges, prosecutors and defense attorneys — cannot yet access the vaccine unless they qualify based on age or another factor.
New York court leaders have interpreted the state Health Department’s vague vaccine eligibility guidelines to mean that all non-judicial staff are allowed to get their shots.
“This means that court employees who are interested in receiving the vaccine should schedule an appointment to do so on the State’s or New York City’s vaccination website,” Chief Administrative Judge Lawrence Marks wrote in the memo shared with the Eagle earlier this month.
OCA spokesperson Lucian Chalfen said court leaders “are continuing to strongly advocate that the eligibility guidelines be immediately interpreted or expanded to include” judges and justices.
Mayor Bill de Blasio has also called on the state to also provide vaccines for people serving on grand juries.
“We want people to serve on juries. We want them to be safe. We need those juries to happen reliably,” de Blasio said. “Everyone who participates in a jury should have the opportunity to get vaccinated so they know that they can participate safely.”
