Kentucky courts lift most COVID-19 restrictions in line with CDC recommendations Morgan Eads, Lexington Herald-Leader
May 18 Most COVID-19 restrictions in Kentucky courts are being lifted and some jury trials may now resume, Kentucky Supreme Court Chief Justice John Minton Jr. announced Tuesday.
Minton cited in his order the recent declining COVID-19 numbers and hospitalizations as reasons for the change that allows in-person access to court facilities, eliminates general mask requirements for those who are fully vaccinated and permits most jury trials to resume.
Judges will have discretion in deciding whether to hold or postpone a jury trial, and attorneys will be able to request a trial be delayed if they or their clients are sick or at an increased risk of COVID-19, according to Minton s order.
A class of former inmates in Kentucky who were either acquitted or had charges dropped argue counties cannot stick them with the bill for expenses related to their incarcerations.
Attorneys argue before the Kentucky Supreme Court on Wednesday in a case over pretrial detainees being charged for the costs of confinement. (Screenshot via Courthouse News)
FRANKFORT, Ky. (CN) A Kentucky county violated state law and the bedrock principle of innocent until proven guilty when it charged a detainee for confinement costs even after the case against him was dropped, the former inmate argued Wednesday before the Kentucky Supreme Court.
David Jones was arrested and booked into the Clark County Detention Center on Oct. 26, 2013, and although he spent the next 14 months in jail, all of the charges against him were dismissed and he was released from custody on April 2, 2015.
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In this October 2010 photo, Circuit Judge Jeffrey Burdette (right) surveys some of the security equipment at the newly opened Pulaski County Judicial Center.
A veteran judge is turning in his gavel, at least in terms of the daily docket.
Jeffrey T. Burdette, Chief Circuit Judge for the 28th Judicial Circuit, has announced that he is retiring after 30 years of public service. His last day on the bench will be March 16.
But Judge Burdette isn t totally done with the law. He has been asked by Kentucky Chief Justice John Minton Jr. to become a Special Judge and will travel across the commonwealth to hear various felony cases and civil mediations when home-based judges aren t available.
FRANKFORT, KY â Gov. Beshear and Kentucky Department for Public Health Commissioner Dr. Steven Stack have announced the next priority group for COVID-19 vaccinations in Kentucky.Â
Phase 1b will be Kentuckians who are at least 70 years old, as well as first responders and educators, Gov. Beshear and Dr. Stack say.Â
Depending on the vaccine distribution schedule, Phase 1b could begin as early as Feb. 1, 2021, give or take a week, according to the governor.Â
Beshear also says 40 additional sites will receive vaccine doses for the first time this week.Â
âIn Kentucky, we are going to include people who are 70 and older â thatâs five years younger than the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommended. We believe here, because we have such a disproportionate burden of death in this population, we want to make the vaccine available as quickly as possible,â said Dr. Stack. âWe are also going to include first responders who hav