Loyola University Law Professor Dane Ciolino
Jury trials can resume today in the state of Louisiana. The pandemic placed jury trials on hold, creating a backlog of cases. Loyola University Law Professor Dane Ciolino said without firm trial dates most civil cases do not settle and criminal trials cannot be resolved unless the defendant pleads guilty.
“The threat of a trial date is often the driving factor for even a consensual resolution of these sorts of cases,” said Ciolino.
Ciolino predicts it will take about a year for the courts to get through the backlog of cases. He says each judge is responsible for setting their own docket.
“By in large the judges are going to take the criminal cases first, set those for trial, and then set older civil cases, and then the lowest priority is going to be the newer civil cases,” said Ciolino.
Seating a jury will be another change for the judicial system, Ciolino said most courtrooms are not designed for social distancing with jurors typically sitting side by side in chairs that are often bolted to the floor.
“Obviously, the judges are going to have to work around that, probably put the jurors in the spectator’s pews. It’s going to be an adjustment, but jury trials have resumes elsewhere,” said Ciolino.
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