Pandemic precautions for the resumption of jury trials, for the Wall Street Journal
July 7, 2021

Plexiglass barriers and hand sanitizer are seen in a makeshift Norfolk County Court courtroom at Lombardo's Meetings & Occasions in Randolph, Massachusetts, an event space usually used for weddings, corporate events, and other large gatherings, seen here on Mon., May 10, 2021.The facility's function halls have been converted into courtrooms for jury trials of Norfolk County Court because the large spaces allow for greater social distancing and other safety protocols required by the ongoing Coronavirus (COVID-19) global pandemic. Jury trials had been on hold throughout Massachusetts for much of the pandemic but recently resumed. Officials said that Lombardo's began being used as a court facility in the second week of April 2021.

For the Wall Street Journal, I spent a day in Massachusetts Superior Court and Norfolk County Court jury rooms, courtrooms, and other facilities, as the state's judicial system resumed jury trials put on hold due to safety precautions required by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. There was abundant hand sanitizer, plastic shields around places where people would be, social distancing markers, and lots and lots of signage about staying apart from other people, wearing masks, and keeping hands clean. Due to the nature of the legal system, and not wanting to impact any ongoing legal proceedings, I was very limited in what could be photographed. No jurors or potential jurors could be photographed, for instance. Most interesting was Norfolk County Court, which had converted the ballrooms and function halls in Lombardo's, a popular wedding and event venue south of Boston, into courtrooms and jury deliberation rooms as a way to allow people to spread out from one another more than the county's courthouses ordinarily allow.

A sign about wearing facemasks and social distancing hangs on a wall near elevators outside the Suffolk County Superior Court Jury Pool room in order to protect potential jurors during the ongoing Coronavirus (COVID-19) global pandemic in Boston, Massachusetts, on Mon., May 10, 2021. Sanitizing stations and other measures of COVID-19 safety precautions are visible throughout the courthouse.
Massachusetts Superior Court Justice Michael D. Ricciuti (standing in robe) speaks with a court reporter (bottom) and attorneys during a sidebar voir dire (jury selection) in a criminal trial in an 8th floor courtroom in the Suffolk County Superior Court in Boston, Massachusetts, on Mon., May 10, 2021. Plexiglass barriers, sanitizing stations and other measures of COVID-19 safety precautions are visible throughout the courthouse. Jury trials have been on hold during the pandemic and recently resumed, with some changes to protect court workers and jurors. The jury boxes (right foreground) are no longer used. This courtroom was only being used for voir dire (jury selection today) and jurors were placed in the witness stand area one by one for questioning, in order to minimize exposure to other people. None of the jury pool was present in the courtroom as these pictures were being taken.
Plexiglass surrounds desks for attorneys, court workers, and the judge, in the Suffolk County Superior Court Jury Pool room in order to protect potential jurors during the ongoing Coronavirus (COVID-19) global pandemic in Boston, Massachusetts, on Mon., May 10, 2021. Assistant Chief Trial Court Officer Henry Cordero said that before the pandemic the room might have held 200 or 250 people during a typical jury selection process, but now the room capacity is 41.
The Regency ballroom has been converted into a makeshift courtroom for Norfolk County Court at Lombardo's Meetings & Occasions in Randolph, Massachusetts, an event space usually used for weddings, corporate events, and other large gatherings, seen here on Mon., May 10, 2021.The facility's function halls have been converted into courtrooms for jury trials of Norfolk County Court because the large spaces allow for greater social distancing and other safety protocols required by the ongoing Coronavirus (COVID-19) global pandemic. Jury trials had been on hold throughout Massachusetts for much of the pandemic but recently resumed. Officials said that Lombardo's began being used as a court facility in the second week of April 2021.
Massachusetts Trial Court officers chat near the security equipment at the entrance of the makeshift Norfolk County Court at Lombardo's Meetings & Occasions in Randolph, Massachusetts, an event space usually used for weddings, corporate events, and other large gatherings, seen here on Mon., May 10, 2021.The facility's function halls have been converted into courtrooms for jury trials of Norfolk County Court because the large spaces allow for greater social distancing and other safety protocols required by the ongoing Coronavirus (COVID-19) global pandemic. Jury trials had been on hold throughout Massachusetts for much of the pandemic but recently resumed. Officials said that Lombardo's began being used as a court facility in the second week of April 2021.
Henry Cordero is an Assistant Chief Trial Court Officer, seen here near the Jury Pool room in the Suffolk County Superior Court in Boston, Massachusetts, on Mon., May 10, 2021. Jury trials have been on hold during the pandemic and recently resumed, with some changes to protect court workers and jurors. Cordero has been working for the court for 33 years. He says that the Jury Pool's room capacity is now 41 as part of safety precautions during the ongoing Coronavirus (COVID-19) global pandemic, but before the pandemic, as many as 200 or 250 people would be in the room. "I'm an optimist," Cordero says, "Before you know it, it will be back to normal." On the wall is the menu for the Court Cafe, a small restaurant next to the Jury Pool room that has been closed during the pandemic. Cordero says they encourage potential jurors to bring their own water and food now.
Lombardo's Meetings & Occasions in Randolph, Massachusetts, is an event space usually used for weddings, corporate events, and other large gatherings, seen here on Mon., May 10, 2021.The facility's function halls have been converted into courtrooms for jury trials of Norfolk County Court because the large spaces allow for greater social distancing and other safety protocols required by the ongoing Coronavirus (COVID-19) global pandemic. Jury trials had been on hold throughout Massachusetts for much of the pandemic but recently resumed. Officials said that Lombardo's began being used as a court facility in the second week of April 2021.
Plexiglass walls intended to stop coronavirus/COVID-19 spread are seen around desks in an 8th floor courtroom in the Suffolk County Superior Court in Boston, Massachusetts, on Mon., May 10, 2021. Plexiglass barriers, sanitizing stations and other measures of COVID-19 safety precautions are visible throughout the courthouse. Jury trials have been on hold during the pandemic and recently resumed, with some changes to protect court workers and jurors. The jury boxes are no longer used. This courtroom was only being used for voir dire (jury selection today) and jurors were placed in the witness stand area one by one for questioning, in order to minimize exposure to other people.
A small function room has been converted into a makeshift Jury Pool room for Norfolk County Court at Lombardo's Meetings & Occasions in Randolph, Massachusetts, an event space usually used for weddings, corporate events, and other large gatherings, seen here on Mon., May 10, 2021.The facility's function halls have been converted into courtrooms for jury trials of Norfolk County Court because the large spaces allow for greater social distancing and other safety protocols required by the ongoing Coronavirus (COVID-19) global pandemic. Jury trials had been on hold throughout Massachusetts for much of the pandemic but recently resumed. Officials said that Lombardo's began being used as a court facility in the second week of April 2021.
Social distance markers have been painted on the ground near the entrance to the Suffolk County Court House in downtown Boston, Massachusetts, on Mon., May 10, 2021. Jury trials have been on hold during the pandemic and recently resumed, with some changes to protect court workers and jurors.
Signs tell attendees about COVID-19 safety rules for Norfolk County Court at the entrance to Lombardo's Meetings & Occasions in Randolph, Massachusetts, an event space usually used for weddings, corporate events, and other large gatherings, seen here on Mon., May 10, 2021.The facility's function halls have been converted into courtrooms for jury trials of Norfolk County Court because the large spaces allow for greater social distancing and other safety protocols required by the ongoing Coronavirus (COVID-19) global pandemic. Jury trials had been on hold throughout Massachusetts for much of the pandemic but recently resumed. Officials said that Lombardo's began being used as a court facility in the second week of April 2021.
Chairs are arranged for social distancing in the makeshift Norfolk County Court Jury Pool room at Lombardo's Meetings & Occasions in Randolph, Massachusetts, an event space usually used for weddings, corporate events, and other large gatherings, seen here on Mon., May 10, 2021.The facility's function halls have been converted into courtrooms for jury trials of Norfolk County Court because the large spaces allow for greater social distancing and other safety protocols required by the ongoing Coronavirus (COVID-19) global pandemic. Jury trials had been on hold throughout Massachusetts for much of the pandemic but recently resumed. Officials said that Lombardo's began being used as a court facility in the second week of April 2021.
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