How legal eagles and tireless staff are winning the fight to preserve justice at Sheffield Crown Court during the Covid-19 crisis
and live on Freeview channel 276
The Recorder of Sheffield, Judge Jeremy Richardson QC, praised court-users and staff including cleaners, security, ushers, clerks, and legal professionals who have implemented and followed life-saving strategies since the first Lockdown in March.
Judge Richardson said: “This building is a Covid-secure environment as far as anywhere can be secure and we comply with the rules and we go even further than what would be required in any other public space.”
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide AdThe Government imposed the first Lockdown from March 23 but the HMCTS announced Sheffield Crown Court and other priority courts would remain open with restrictions with counsel and court-users joining hearings by video-links overseen by clerks and judges.
All trials were suspended but new strategies were put in place by June allowing the gradual return of trial hearings following the easing of Lockdown restrictions with barristers returning to court rooms.
These have included a staggered swearing-in process for jurys, touch-point cleaning, staggered trial times, mask-wearing, transparent screens in jury boxes and deliberation rooms, a one-way public traffic system and optional court video-links.
In cases involving multiple defendants the accused have been kept apart or cases have even been split over two court rooms with those in a second room accessing the hearing by video-links.
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide AdJudge Richardson said being one of the first to introduce video-links transformed operations and in particular the Cloud Video Platform system has allowed court-users to access hearings and communicate remotely from other locations and has allowed defendants to be present from prison custody suites.
One of the goals has been to preserve open justice with access for the public and journalists.
Judge Richardson said: “I am wholly supportive of journalists. It’s a democratic defect if cases and what goes on in the courts is not properly reported and if CVP allows more reporting of what goes on in the courts then that is very good.”
After the first Lockdown trials were re-introduced and despite a backlog and delays they have been returning in growing numbers.
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide AdBy the time South Yorkshire went into Tier Three in October and the country went into a second Lockdown from November 5 a system had been put into operation to keep jurors safe with panelists seated apart in waiting areas.
Judge Richardson said: “In early April we had a rehearsal to see how we could get all these people through a building and we started to talk about it immediately and it takes an enormous amount of organisation.”
Sheffield Crown Court, on West Bar, introduced a Timed Recovery Programme with a Low Volume Programme followed by a High Volume Programme from September with more trials.
Judge Richardson said: “The reason it works is nothing to do with me. It’s to do with the staff who have had to learn new ways but because of their experience and skill they now operate these ways exceptionally well.”
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide AdHe added: “It’s the staff that make this work but we will not compromise safety in order to upscale but we are confident we can upscale safely now we have put all these things in place.”
A court-user group meets every Friday to discuss concerns and if court-users are diagnosed with Covid-19 or there are any Test-and-Trace issues those affected self-isolate.
The court building was temporarily evacuated for a morning after a Test-and-Trace warning in August, and the court operates a deep-cleaning process with potentially affected areas which saw three court rooms temporarily taped off at the end of October 30.
During a recent murder trial, Mrs Justice Eady QC followed guidance with a temporary adjournment so one of the barristers could be tested after an associate had been positively diagnosed with Covid-19. During the same trial, a juror was also discharged after they revealed a child at the same nursery as their daughter had tested positive for Covid-19.
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide AdJudge Richardson said: “We are as prepared as anybody could be. We expect the unexpected but we have a great deal of experience of dealing with this and we have have immediate access to advice from the HMCTS.
"We are not exceptional. All over the country in different ways courts are doing what we’re doing but because all courts are different in architecture and in the sort of cases they get – whether it’s a combined court centre - they are all different – and each court devises its ways of working.
"The over-arching point I make is that since March 23 we have gradually and incrementally increased our operations and continue to do so.
"The reason this works is the staff. It’s a combination of the staff, the administration, the co-operation of the professionals, the Bar and the solicitors and other court-users.”
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide AdJudge Richardson praised everybody’s co-operation to get the system of justice in the country and in Sheffield working efficiently though he has been concerned about having to reduce the number of people in public galleries for safety reasons.
He added: “It’s been an emormous challenge because of the jury system but we think we are getting there. That’s not to say it’s perfect and there will be problems and some people have had to wait longer than they should but that is not because we have not tried very hard.”
Sheffield Magistrates’ Court held hearings at the Sheffield Crown Court building during the first Lockdown before re-opening its building, on Castle Street, which has since adopted similar safety strategies.
An HMCTS spokesperson said: “Yorkshire is benefitting from two Nightingale Courts, eight temporary jury rooms, and state-of-the-art video technology to keep the justice system running during the pandemic.
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide Ad“This is contributing to a national recovery effort which is already seeing the magistrates backlog falling, and the number of cases resolved in the Crown Courts trebling since April.”