Jury trials to resume March 1

BOISE, Idaho (KIFI) - The Idaho Supreme Court has decided to resume in-person jury trials beginning March 1. The decision comes on the condition that courts follow certain conditions and limitations in the response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

New grand juries may also be impaneled subject to the same conditions.

Jury trials were halted late last year due to the worsening spread of the virus. It was determined to be too much of a health and safety risk to order juries, case parties, and court staff into close proximity with each other.  

The new order relies on COVID-19 incidence rates established in two earlier court orders.

You can read the new order here.

Trials will be prioritized for criminal cases, starting with those in which a defendant is incarcerated. Civil jury trials will be prioritized after those.

The order does give local courts some leeway to postpone jury proceedings if a judge feels local COVID-19 incidence rates pose a substantial increase in risk to the health or safety of jury trial participants.