Jury trials in Monterey County Superior Court resume on Monday. What to know if you've been summoned for jury duty.

Monterey County Superior Court will be back in session for jury trials on Monday, June 1. A shelter-in-place order is still in effect in Monterey County, and Court Executive Officer Chris Ruhl says the courts have taken measures to provide for social distancing and keep jurors safe. 

"The Court definitely understands the potential concerns of people who have been summoned for jury duty under these extraordinary circumstances," he writes by email. "As a result, over the past month we have put into place a whole array of safety measures and protocols to ensure everyone’s safety as we undertake this important step of restarting jury trials within the new normal of social distancing, required face masks/coverings, and other safety measures."

Those steps include: marking outside public entrances for six-foot distancing; employees are encouraged to use employee entrances to reduce traffic in public areas; required face coverings for all court personnel and members of the public; experimenting with touchless thermometer checks at entrances to screen visitors; asking health screening questions of all visitors at the entrance; and reducing elevator capacity to one passenger at a time. 

"For people with health concerns, we are adopting a very liberal deferral policy during the Covid-19 emergency," Ruhl adds. "We want people to feel positive and comfortable about serving as jurors during this time."

There is information on deferrals at this link. Public access to court proceedings has been made available by phone, and information on how to call in is available here.