Iowa’s court system is also being affected by COVID-19.
The Iowa Supreme Court has issued an order postponing all criminal jury trials until April 20th and all civil jury trials until May 4th unless the jury has been sworn in.
The postponements are to protect public safety by mitigating the impact of the coronavirus.
Clerk of court offices throughout the state will remain open.
The order also sets the priority case types for rescheduling criminal jury trials, allows district courts to accept written guilty pleas in felony cases, suspends all grand jury proceedings, and allows defendants to waive initial appearance by executing a written waiver.
The order includes procedures to mitigating the impact of coronavirus/COVID-19 in small claim cases, juvenile cases, appellate cases and problem solving courts.
The full order is posted on the Iowa Judicial Branch COVID-19 Information and Updates webpage at:
https://www.iowacourts.gov/iowa-courts/covid-19-information-and-updates/
