Courts gradually expanding operations to the public

CONCORD, N.H. (AP) - Courts in New Hampshire will be gradually expanding in-person operations to the public, starting with the state Supreme Court, which is allowing the public to its clerk’s office and law library as of April 27.

In-person oral arguments at the court will resume on May 5.

At the superior court, in-person hearings will be expanded. They will include suppression; contested pleas, sentencings, and violations of probation; drug court termination hearings; contested civil hearings; and bench trials.

The circuit court will resume in-person final hearings in domestic violence or stalking cases and in adjudicatory hearings in abuse and neglect cases.

The superior and circuit courts will stay open for parties of scheduled hearings, those reporting for jury service, emergency relief, landlord and tenant cases.

Court officials said by developing a COVID-19 jury trial protocol, switching to video and telephonic hearings, and equipping staff for remote operations, the superior court was able to avoid a case processing backlog. More than 44,170 hearings were conducted in 11 superior courts during the pandemic and 24 jury trials have been held since August 2020. All superior courts are now conducting jury trials.

In other coronavirus developments:

SPEEDWAY SECOND DOSES

Another mass vaccination clinic will be held at the New Hampshire Motor Speedway on Saturday, but it is limited to those who had received their first doses there on March 27 and 28.

This weekend’s clinic has been shortened to one day because many individuals decided to move their appointments to other locations closer to their homes, state officials said Friday. All remaining appointments that had been scheduled for Sunday at the speedway have been rescheduled for Saturday.

The site will be open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Individuals are encouraged to login to the state’s vaccination system to confirm their appointment times.

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THE NUMBERS

More than 93,000 people have tested positive for the virus in New Hampshire, including 377 cases announced Friday. Two new deaths were reported, for a total of 1,281.

The seven-day rolling average of daily new cases in New Hampshire decreased over the past two weeks, going from 415 new cases per day on April 7 to 341 new cases per day on Wednesday.