COVID-19 Latest: Maryland Federal Courts Suspend All In-Person Proceedings, Closes Courthouses To Public
ANNAPOLIS (WJZ) — Maryland federal courts will suspend all in-person proceedings and close courthouses to the public as coronavirus cases worsen throughout the state this month.
Chief Judge James K. Bredar issued an order Wednesday with the new restrictions.
All in-court hearings and proceedings for the District of Maryland will be suspended starting November 16.
Some proceedings will be moved to virtual format and others will be postponed.
No one will be allowed into a U.S. Courthouse in the District of Maryland without permission from the Chief Judge, the Clerk of the District Court, or the Clerk of the Bankruptcy Court.
The two Courthouses are in Baltimore and Greenbelt.
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The public will be able to access drop boxes at the entrance of each Courthouse to deposit and date-stamp papers between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. Monday through Friday.
Court staff can enter the Courthouse with the instructions of their supervisors. No one can enter who
No one can enter who has been diagnosed with COVID-19 or had contact in the last 14 days with someone who tested positive, been asked to self-quarantine, or have a temperature of 100 degrees or higher, show symptoms or live with someone who shows symptoms.
Maryland has entered into a second surge of the coronavirus, with nine straight days of daily increases of over 1,000.
For the latest information on coronavirus go to the Maryland Health Department's website or call 211. You can find all of WJZ's coverage on coronavirus in Maryland here.