Court administration is responsible for overseeing and coordinating trial court functions, minimizing disruptions to routine court operations during a high-profile case or trial, supervising trial support roles, and serving as the liaison with external stakeholders and to existing high profile case resources. Key tasks associated with high-profile cases include identifying critical personnel; developing technological infrastructures, internal and external communication networks, and a chain of command; and securing the necessary resources to support court operations during the pendency of the case. Depending on the jurisdiction, this role may be performed by the Clerk of Court, the Court Executive Officer, or the Trial Court Administrator.
Determine the critical roles needed for a HPC team. This normally includes the trial judge, court administration, clerk of court, public information officer, Information Technology (IT) , and court security. Next, identify the staff who will occupy these critical roles in a high-profile case. Here is a preplanning checklist.
- Document state and local statutes, rules, and orders regarding issues relevant to a high-profile case (i.e., televised proceedings, access to court records, media access, change of venue, etc.) and keep copies of these rules in an easily accessible location, such as a notebook or shared drive that all members of the HPC team can access.
- Periodically, assess the capabilities of the facilities, technology, and security to handle the increased pressures of a high-profile case as well as how to access supplemental funding if necessary to support the extra workload.
- Determine which courtroom will be used in the event of a high-profile case and use that courtroom as a starting point for planning around facilities and security.
The increased demands of a high-profile case will often require the court to work with external stakeholders to handle the specifics of the case, maintain control of decorum, and finance additional resources. Identify all agencies intersecting with the court regarding logistical issues and establish direct lines of communication with all community partners who would be affected by a high-profile case. Partners will typically include local law enforcement (i.e., sheriff’s office and/or state or local police departments), state investigative agencies (i.e., bureaus of investigation), county officials, town/city administrators, agencies or tenants located in the courthouse/courthouse complex, and the grounds/facility director. Depending upon the situation, a health inspector, fire official, and the mayor might also be included.
- For cases involving terrorism, contact the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and other relevant federal agencies to address potential security demands.
- Identify an individual to serve as the liaison to the state administrative office of the courts (AOC), local government, and local leadership (i.e., bar, community leaders, etc.) to address issues and resources regarding specific court support.
- If a high-profile case has been identified and is pending, schedule and conduct an interagency logistical planning meeting as soon as possible and before the critical stages of the proceedings.
- Develop a shared understanding of how the court and external stakeholder agencies will respond to media inquiries.
- Create a plan to alert external stakeholders to upcoming case events (i.e., jury selection, trial) with sufficient time for internal review and to respond to their questions or concerns.
If courthouse access restrictions are necessary, be sure to communicate with those who use the facility on a regular basis, including the public, local attorneys, and external agencies.
- Meet with court staff, judges, and any other agencies located in the courthouse to coordinate daily workloads and routine work activities, and troubleshoot any issues that are likely to occur, such as noise and disruptions to other dockets, scheduling changes if staff have to be assigned to other courts, and notices to parties for cases that must be moved to other courtrooms.
- Redistribute workloads as necessary to prevent excessive stress from burdening any one person.
- Ensure that the entire court staff knows what their roles are and to whom to direct case specific questions.
- Delineate written responsibilities for each staff position. Include back-up personnel in this document. Conduct regular staff briefings to discuss procedures, issues, etc.
- Provide appropriate training and supervision to any temporary staff hired to alleviate workloads related to the high-profile case. Ensure cross training of regular staff and temporary staff so that there will be coverage as staffing demands change.
- Provide resources to help court staff cope with the stress and pressures that accompany high-profile trials. Ensure appropriate support resources are available to court staff.
- Eliminate as much inconvenience and as many disruptions as possible for those trying to conduct normal business with the court.
- Publicize how to contact the person who will respond to media requests and calls to divert as much traffic as possible from the clerk's office. Also, provide this contact information to all court employees. More about media relations.
Facilities management
High-profile cases place increased stress on facility infrastructure systems. Assume that anything that can go wrong will go wrong, including power outages, plumbing problems, and other disruptions to basic facility functions. Develop procedures for addressing every conceivable emergency. Educate court staff on these procedures, including providing contact information for key personnel responsible for addressing problems that might arise.
- Identify dedicated parking for satellite trucks in a location that will not impede normal traffic flow. Ensure it is agreeable to local officials and does not interfere with other court business. Note: When satellite trucks are located more than 1,000 feet from the pool camera, a booster must be utilized to transmit the signal to the distribution box. The booster requires a power source or generator.
- Pool audio feeds that cross a street to reach the distribution box must go overhead on poles or in troughs placed on the surface or installed underground. Consequently, the placement of the audio/video feed should take the following factors into consideration: height clearance, impediment to traffic flow, safety, and expense.
- Collaborate with law enforcement to establish fenced areas to separate the media staging areas from the public.
- Make or facilitate arrangements for auxiliary listening/viewing rooms for the public and the media. If rooms are unavailable in the courthouse, negotiate alternative options for trailers or adjacent buildings. This can also be accommodated by livestreaming video, or even just audio, proceedings (reducing the potential crowd at the courthouse).
Detailed planning and strict enforcement of the seating plan between the media, the public, and the parties may limit complaints about public access, but they will never fully eliminate the problem. Even the development of a uniform seating allocation policy may be contentious. Generally, one-fourth to one-half of the seats in a courtroom are reserved for the media, with the rest of the space allocated between the parties and the public. Consider where members of the defendant’s family, victims of the crime (if not testifying as witnesses), guests of the court, or other individuals will sit. Members of the defendant’s family should be seated away from victims of the crime.
Jury Facilities
- Start to plan for any extra space requirements that may be necessary for voir dire. (This may be a big issue if jurors are called into court to fill out juror questionnaires.)
- Plan for additional seating for alternative jurors in the jury box.
- Work with court security to determine an alternate entrance/parking for jurors.
- Read more about courtroom and facilities management.