Emile Donovan speaks to RNZ court reporter Anneke Smith about the unusual predicament the justice system found itself in. READ MORE:* Coronavirus: Courts, Corrections start to reopen* Coronavirus: Solutions needed to address jury trial backlog caused by Covid-19* Judges to run court hearings for those in custody mainly by videolink* Coronavirus: Justice staff to maintain hygiene officers in courts that will remain openRicky Wilson/Stuff A call was made to halt all jury trials when the lockdown started. Chris Skelton/Stuff Chief District Court Judge Heemi Taumaunu has started a committee to brainstorm how courts could be streamlined. At that point, there were 3500 active jury trials on the books. Now, that number has ballooned out to around 4000 - and jury trials are only recommencing at the start of August.

Source: Stuff July 27, 2020 16:52 UTC