Closures affect only family and civil courtrooms, not criminal

Several Wake County courtrooms are closed until further notice after five coronavirus cases were reported among staff in the past three weeks.
Posted 11/17/2020, 6:17:54 PM Updated 11/17/2020, 11:58:24 PM

WILL LIKELY TAKE SEVERAL DAYS

TO COMPLETE AND RESULTS NEED TO

BE IN BY WEDNESDAY NOVEMBER

25th.

>>> CIVIL MATTERS ARE HEARD AND

THERE IS A PARTIAL SHUTDOWN.

>> Reporter: FIVE STAFF MEMBERS

HERE AT THE WAKE COUNTY

COURTHOUSE TESTED POSITIVE FOR

COVID OVER THE LAST THREE WEEKS

AND THAT PROMPTED THE PARTIAL

SHUTDOWN.

>> DOES THAT MAKE YOU WARY

GOING INSIDE?

>> IT DEFINITELY WOULD.

>> WE FELT LIKE IT WAS

APPROPRIATE TO SCALE BACK

OPERATIONS OVER THERE AND TO

TRY AND MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE

DOING EVERYTHINGWAY CAN TO KEEP

CORE PERSONNEL AND THE PUBLIC

SAFE.

>> HERO IN THIS BUILDING, IT IS

THE CLERK'S OFFICE AND THEY

INTERRACK WITH THE PUBLIC EVERY

DAY.

THEY ARE MOVING PAPERS AROUND,

INTERACTING WITH A LOT OF OTHER

COURT PERSONNEL SO THEY ARE THE

ONES THAT REALLY WE NEED TO

PROTECT THE MOST.

>> FIVE COURTROOMS INCLUDING

FOUR FAMILY COURTS HAVE BEEN

CLOSED, AS WELL AS ALL FRONT

DESK OPERATIONS.

THE WAKE COUNTY JUSTICE CENTER

ACROSS THE STREET WHICH HANDLES

CRIMINAL MATTERS IS OPERATING

ON A NORMAL SCHEDULE.

>> THESE ARE TWO DIFFERENT

BUILDINGS AND TWO DIFFERENT

STAFFS.

WE HAVE HAD IN PLACE SINCE THE

BEGINNING OF THIS A SEPARATION

OF OPERATIONS PLAN.

SO THE CRIMINAL COURTS ARE

CONTINUING AS THEY WOULD ON ANY

NORMAL DAY.

>> Reporter: THOSE WHO TESTED

POSITIVE ARE ALREADY

QUARANTINING.

ANYONE WHO HAD CONTACT WITH

THEM WAS NOTIFIED AND THEY NEED

A NEGATIVE TEST BEFORE

RETURNING TO WORK.

>>> THE PARTIAL SHUTDOWN IS

SCHEDULED TO CONTINUE FOR THE