Jury trials halted in Cobb County again due to omicron wave of COVID-19

COBB COUNTY, Ga - As COVID-19 numbers continue to climb, Cobb County is pressing the pause button on jury trials through the week of January 17.

Cobb Superior Court Chief Judge Robert Leonard says after seeing the numbers spike into record territory, he decided it was the right thing to do.

"We're hovering over 15 times what is considered high community spread, it seems like the safest thing to do," said Chief Judge Leonard.

This isn't the first time jurors won't be walking through the doors of the courthouse.  In 2020 the State Supreme Court Chief Justice halted all jury trials for more than a year. Cobb resumed their jury trials this past April.  Since then, they've conducted 31 jury trials and were getting back on track. Then omicron hit.

Judge Leonard said the biggest challenge is having room for social distance.

"Our restraints are primarily limited to courtroom space and the ability to bring enough jurors in and have places for them to deliberate and congregate.  I think it would be highly unlikely that we could complete a jury trial without jurors testing positive or lawyers or court staff," said Judge Leonard.

This doesn't mean the courthouse is closed for business.  There's still a lot of work being done.

"Litigants can expect to see judges taking steps to stagger their cases, maybe limit how many people are reporting in.  Many judges are offering virtual options for some appearances," said Judge Leonard.

The judge said he'll be watching the numbers week by week and determining if jury trials will resume by the end of the month. Of course, it all depends on the COVID-19 numbers.

"Hopefully, they'll go down at the same speed at which it is rising," said Judge Leonard.

Anyone who has received a summons to appear for jury service will not be asked to come in through the week of January 17.  Those with summons can call the jury administrator for further instructions. 

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