Changes in The Criminal Justice System to Protect Personnel and People Served
The COVID-19 pandemic has remained to be a top concern in the world. From the time that this deadly virus was first detected in Wuhan city, China, things have never been the same. Various sectors have been adversely affected and the criminal and justice system is one sector that is worth mentioning (Skolnik, 2020). Services offered by the criminal and justice system are regarded as essential services as law has to be followed to ensure that there is peace across the world. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the federal, state, and local governments have been making crucial decisions that directly affect the manner in which the criminal and justice system operates (Baldwin, et al., 2020) . Various agencies that fall within the criminal and justice system such as courts, correctional facilities and law enforcers have made some changes in the manner in which they provide their day to day services in order to protect the stakeholders involved from contracting this deadly virus. The COVID-19 pandemic is very contagious and various measures have been taken by agencies to help in protecting the personnel and the people that are services such as victims and offenders.
The agencies in the criminal and justice system have made various changes in the manner in which they carry their day-to-day activities especially on how the law enforcers handle victims or criminals. Various adjustments have been made especially on how the judges and other members of the jury handle criminals and victims.
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Court Responses to COVID-19 Challenges
The courts have had challenges in meeting the general safety guidelines when at the same time maintaining the full operations and usual loads of cases. Since COVID-19 is highly contagious, the first primary response by most of the courts was to eliminate or reduce their in-person practices. Following this, most of the courts limited the number of people who could attend case proceedings at a given time through a process known as scheduling (Miller, & Blumstein, 2020). Some courts decided to postpone most of the proceedings to make legal decisions later depending on the reduction in COVID-19 infection rate. At some point such as from March to May, some court practices were halted and the physical location closed. These changes were made in order to keep the judges, victims, offenders, and other personnel safe from the COVID-19 pandemic.
The courts have also changed how they handle the different demographics. In this change, the courts have been considering the vulnerability of the populations when deciding on which case proceedings to conduct and which people to allow in the courtroom. The vulnerable people are those of 65 years and above and people with serious underlying health complications such as asthma, chronic lung diseases, high blood pressure, obesity, diabetes (Skolnik, 2020). It also covers the individuals whose immune systems are compromised such as those suffering from HIV/AIDS and different types of cancer.
To keep the few people attending court proceedings safe, the courts have greatly changed in the manner in which they offer services. More routines have been added to make sure that the judges, victims, and offenders are safe from the deadly COVID-19 infections. The following are some of the measures that have been taken by the courts;
Screening
Courts have highly invested in screening machines to help in keeping people safe. Before entering the courtroom or courthouse, the few people allowed to enter must be taken for screening. During screening, the people found to be feeling feverish or those found with a abnormal body temperatures are not allowed to enter the courts (Baldwin, et al., 2020). The people found with some symptoms of COVID-19are also not allowed entering the courtrooms. Special attention is given to judges, detainees, or inmates who are transported to the courts from the jail and juvenile facilities. When screening, the screeners are also provided with appropriate gear such as gloves and face protection.
Face coverings
It has been made a must that the people attending court sessions should wear face coverings such as masks. Even the judges have changed how they are required to officially present themselves in terms of clothing (Justia, 2021). All the people within the courtrooms are required to use cloth face coverings. For all the time that the proceedings are going on, everybody is expected to have face coverings which will ensure that their nose and mouth are covered.
Cleaning and hygiene
Courts have invested in various types of detergents to ensure that people in the courts maintain high levels of hygiene. Most of the courts have bought hand sanitizer dispensers which have been distributed in different places within the compound and inside the courts (Skolnik, 2020). For example, the hand sanitizer dispensers and running water taps with detergents have been placed in locations such as entry and exit points of the courtrooms and other buildings within the same compound (Baldwin, et al., 2020). To add more alertness about safety, most of the agencies have also posted readily visible signage which reminds people about the protocols of best hygiene. Compared to how it used to be done earlier before the pandemic, the courts have ensured that there is appropriate and frequent cleaning of surfaces in and around the courthouses. Sanitization has been the routine of the courts and common areas and it is regularly done when victims and offenders are transitioning and after every recess.
From May going onwards, it was realized that the COVID-19 pandemic was not something to pass but to stay for a considerably long period. This is when the thought of using modern technologies in court proceedings came. The agencies such as courts have adopted all-virtual and hybrid modes of operation to ensure that justice is served even in this time of pandemic (Miller, & Blumstein, 2020). The use of virtual technologies has been done while at the same time complying with the health and safety directives (Baldwin, et al., 2020). In the USA, the transition to virtual environments and remote working in the criminal justice system has been aided by different NGOs such as the National Center for State Courts, National Association of Court Management, The Justice Management Institute, and The Council on Criminal Justice.
As the pandemic progressed the courts have been using virtual technologies which entail the use of audio and video conferencing technology. Conferencing has enabled the court personnel, judges, and counsel to continue to convene and confer in various situations that require cooperation or consultation (Skolnik, 2020). By the use of the same virtual technologies, the courts have been able to provide remote access proceedings where the court participants including the victims, offenders, advocates, witnesses, and judges have been able to freely interact and reach a legal decision (Justia, 2021). To also cater to the public, some of the courts have been streaming their proceedings online for the public to follow up.
Correctional Facilities Responses and Changes Due to COVID-19 Pandemic
For the offenders who had already been arrested and kept behind the bars, their contact with the outside world has been greatly limited. All the correctional facilities in the US were instructed to respond to COVID-19 in a very unique manner. One of the techniques used has been limitation and cancellation or visitation. Before the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, the criminal justice system had some specific days for visitation in different prisons (Baldwin, et al., 2020). In some prisons, the inmates can be freely visited any time of the day so long as the time falls within the official working hour, which is from 8 a.m to 5 pm for most states. The law enforcement officers closely monitor the inmates and no person, whether a parent, spouse, relative, or friend is allowed to visit the inmates or have any physical contact (UNODOC, 2020). For some special cases especially after the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, the rules were relaxed in some correctional facilities and visitation could be done (Skolnik, 2020). However, in these cases, the communications were made virtually between the inmates and their loved ones. In connection to this, the time and number of visitors are limited. In the correctional facilities, a limited number of police officers have been directly handling inmates and every person has to wear face masks that cover the nose and mouth.
In conclusion, the COVID-19 pandemic has affected various industries and the economy at large. The criminal and justice system has also been affected in various ways and to contain the spread of COVID-19, various agencies such as correctional facilities and courts have modified their operations and implemented several new strategies. For example, the use of virtual court proceedings by the use of audio and video conference has been used at different levels including the Supreme Court of the US. Some courts have even made it possible for the public to follow proceedings through online platforms such as YouTube. Frequent cleaning and more hygiene measures have also been improved in various agencies. All these changes have been made to protect personnel and people served such as victims and offenders.
References
Baldwin, J. M., Eassey, J. M., & Brooke, E. J. (2020). Court Operations during the COVID-19 Pandemic. American Journal of Criminal Justice , 45 (4), 743-758. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s12103-020-09553-1
Justia (March 2021);, Remote Criminal Court Proceedings During COVID-19. External link, https://www.justia.com/covid-19/impact-of-covid-19-on-criminal-cases/remote-criminal-court-proceedings-during-covid-19/
Miller, J. M., & Blumstein, A. (2020). Crime, justice & the CoViD-19 pandemic: toward a national research agenda. American journal of criminal justice , 45 (4), 515-524. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s12103-020-09555-z
Skolnik, T. (2020). Criminal law during (and after) COVID-19. Man. LJ , 43 , 145. https://heinonline.org/HOL/LandingPage?handle=hein.journals/manitob43&div=28&id=&page =
UNODOC (2020): Ensuring Access to Justice in the Context of COVID-19,. Link https://www.unodc.org/documents/Advocacy-Section/Ensuring_Access_to_Justice_in_the_Context_of_COVID-191.pdf
APPENDIX
Memorandum
TO: The Criminal Justice Agency
FROM: Tedd Jim
CC: The Court Judges and Correctional facility Officials
DATE: April 5, 2021
SUBJECT: Changes to be made in Response to COVID-19 Pandemic
Due to the COVID-19 infection outbreak, I would like to remind all the employees and other stakeholders that we have decided to take some measures. This is a difficult time not only for our agency but to the whole world. Therefore, it is important that we take certain measures to protect our lives and the lives of our loved ones.
Several changes are going to be initiated in all our agencies and I request for maximum cooperation. The following are some of the changes that are going to take effect:
The number of people in the courts is going to be limited as per the list that we will give in our departments.
Cleanliness and hygiene is going to be improved. Water running taps and sanitizers are going to be placed in several strategic locations for the use of all our employees and those who visit.
For most of the cases, we are going to use virtual methods. This is where we will use video and audio technologies to carry out our services. All the stakeholders will be informed prior to make arrangements.
No public following of the proceedings in the courts. In order to cater for the public viewing, we will stream some of our case proceedings on social media platforms such as YouTube and Facebook.
Wearing of face masks that cover the nose and mouth is necessary when visiting any of our premises. All employees are expected to wear face masks.
There is a mandatory leave for the adults who are 65 years and above. We are giving them time to go home and have a rest until the time that everything will be contained.
The employees with underlying conditions will also be given a chance to home and will not be reporting to the job. However, their services may still be required virtually and should resposnd any time contacted. The underlying conditions include those suffering from diabetes, cancer, HIV/AIDS, obesity, high blood pressure, heart diseases and more.
Again am reminding you that this is for our own benefit. We have decided to make these changes in order to protect our employees and also the victims and offenders. This is disease is highly contagious and it kills within a very short period. Therefore, I urge all to follow all these guidelines for our own safety.
