YOUNGSTOWN — Mahoning County Common Pleas judges issued a “judicial emergency” order Monday suspending most criminal and civil jury trials for the next two weeks, possibly longer.

The order contains a “continuum of flexible responses … intended to protect public health (from COVID-19), maintain essential court functions and continue to protect the rights of all individuals subject to the authority of the court.”

Court officials said one trial that was scheduled for Monday had been postponed because of the virus, and another court said a trial set for today would result in a new trial date.

The order is part of a series of changes taking place throughout Ohio, including closed restaurants, churches and schools as officials warn people to keep a safe distance of six feet from others.

The judges’ order does not say that bench trials — meaning a trial to the court without a jury — are suspended. But “if a trial, hearing or other proceeding must be held, the judge assigned to the case shall determine, on a case-by-case basis, who may be permitted in the courtroom,” the order states.

The order covers the five elected common pleas judges– R. Scott Krichbaum, John Durkin, Maureen Sweeney, Anthony Donofrio and Anthony D’Apolito — as well as Probate Judge Robert Rusu and Domestic Relations Judge Beth Smith.

The order states courthouse security measures may be amended temporarily to protect public health.

Anyone attempting to enter the courthouse will be “subject to health screening or testing, if testing is available.” And the testing can be used to deny someone access to the building, it states.

Likewise, defendants in the Mahoning County Adult Justice Center exhibiting signs of illness consistent with the virus or who test positive shall not be brought to the courthouse for any scheduled hearing.

Court officials say the reason for not issuing a blanket cancellation of trials is that defendants have speedy-trial rights that allow them to be tried within a specified time after their arrest unless they waive that requirement.

But the filing states: “This public health emergency shall be considered a finding of ‘just cause’ for (postponements) deemed necessary by assigned judges on a case-by-case basis.”

Having a jury trial while the pandemic is occuring would be difficult, court observers say. State and federal officials have said to avoid groups of 50 people, but about 50 people typically are called to the courthouse as potential jurors for a criminal trial.

OTHER CHANGES

Other changes that began at the courthouse Monday are designed to avoid exposure to the virus by employees and the public, including closing of the treasurer’s office and half of the county auditor’s employees working from home.

The county commissioners last week had maintenance personnel add hand sanitizers to the walls near the elevators on each floor of the courthouse and also have hired at least one private company to provide extra sanitizing to various county buildings, including the courthouse, said Commissioner David Ditzler.

Mahoning County Treasurer Dan Yemma announced his office on the first floor of the courthouse and land bank offices on West Federal Street are closed to the public until further notice.

“We will be staffed and performing functions other than those involving personal contact with staff,” Yemma said.

The office still can be reached by telephone or through its web site www.mahoningcountyoh.gov/218/Treasurer or by telephone at 330-740-2460 or land bank at 330-259-1040.

Yemma said his office gets a fair amount of foot traffic, especially close to the time for property taxes being due twice per year, but the last deadline was March 6.

The office also is frequently visited by people working for mortgage-services companies. But Yemma said he believes his office can still “service all of the needs as normal.”

The county auditor’s office and clerk of courts offices remain open, but both are trying various ways to encourage people to maintain a safe distances of six feet.

The clerk’s office placed signs on counters Monday stating: “Please Stand Back From the Counter.” Because employees stand at the counter to receive documents from the public, the normal distance between workers and the public generally is less than six feet.

When employees use computers at the counter, the distance between them and the public is reduced.

The auditor’s office placed blue tape on the floor several feet from its counter as a suggested “social distancing space.”

“Is this OK?” one man asked an employee of where he stood as he walked up the counter this morning. “That’s the thing. You don’t know,” the employee responded.

Janet Szenborn, abstract specialist, also wore gloves while working at her desk in the auditor’s office because of the documents she handles.

“I just made sure everybody had hand sanitizer, and we’re down to a skeleton crew because I have two employees who are scared to death,” said Stacy Marling, chief deputy auditor. “Our back room is a wide-open room, so we tried to do every other desk just to keep them apart,” she said of having half of the staff of 30 work from home.

Some employees are providing customer service from their own computers at home by using the same auditor’s real estate website the public can use. Marling said she will forward calls to those employees’ homes “if it comes to that.”

Other employees have laptops to take home that are loaded with software that enables them to work on such things as payroll, Marling said.

Marling is hoping that next week, the employees who worked from home will switch places with those who worked at the office this week, she said.

The country recorder’s office remains open.

erunyan@tribtoday.com