Since there's no official site that appears to be updating CJC employees on what's going on, I will keep posting what I know. Hopefully it will be of some help to somebody.
This morning, about 15 to 20 District Court Chiefs reported for duty at the request of Judge Don Stricklin in the hopes of moving some of the more minor cases that would be on the docket the morning. Apparently, some members of the Defense Bar have also volunteered their time to help out, as well.
The big problem with the plan is where in the hell to run these dockets.
The CJC building at the moment is considered to be a health hazard, and all non-essential personnel have been ordered to leave. If you are saying to yourself "Hey, wait a second! I thought we were ordered into work!", you would be correct in your interpretation. We've got a full blown Catch-22 here.
My optimistic side is hoping that the County (once it is done doing search and rescue) will start issuing some Floating Holidays for those caught in the middle here. However, personnel is being told that they can work from home. That's all well and good for prosecutors and even investigators who could take a file home and work on it, but it kind of screws the Administrative Assistants.
Right now, there is no projected time for the building reopening. It may be tomorrow. It may be next week. I don't think that it will be a "Tropical Storm Allison typed of situation". But, then again, I didn't think that Tropical Storm Allison would be a "Tropical Storm Allison type of situation", so take that for what it's worth.
I will keep you posted as news develops.
7 comments:
It's not the first place I would have looked, but justex.net had the following to offer: Courthouse Closed Monday-No Juries 9/14/2008
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Harris County Courts will be closed Monday September 15. Cases set for Monday will be rescheduled for a future date. For information on specific cases, please contact the court.
The jury call has been cancelled for Monday Sept. 15 and Tuesday Sept 16. Citizens summoned for jury duty with Harris County should not report.
Decisions regarding further closures will come by 2pm tomorrow
see:
http://www.justex.net/Article.aspx?ArticleID=29
First, thank you for being the ONLY source for information. Maybe you should get a "blogging stipend"...apparently the person hired to be in charge of communications should take up blogging.
Secondly, ain't gov'ment at work a beautiful thing.
Steve - That the courts are closed has nothing to do with the employee's reality. Even if the courts are closed most of us have a lot of behind-the-scenes work to do.
AHCL - With tongue in cheek, please define nonessential.
The catch-22 certainly is as you described.
Leviathan
health hazard? no one mentioned this to me.... should i be wearing gloves and a respiratory mask? gee... what a mess. i'll be doing my behind-the-scenes work today although i have a lot of behind the scenes stuff to take care of at home.
Let me get this straight, you want me to send my pregnant fiance to work tomorrow in a building that is a health hazard because the county is too crappy to give away a few days in a natural disaster?! no thanks, I'll go ahead and preserve the life of my future kid. Hope your family fared well in the hurricane AHCL!
I'm not "essential" but they said we either work or take comp/vacation. As my family lives outside of Houston, and it takes a freaking act of Congress to let us get comp time, and I need my comp/vacation for the holidays, I opted to come in to work. I hope it wasn't a hazard to my health!!!
It really does screw the secretaries. Gas is hard enough to find in this town, so they wanted us to report into work for 1-2 hours just so they could conveniently change their minds when they found out, "Oh hey, nevermind, you could die from the environment here...go ahead & leave."
How exactly are we supposed to work from home without power anyway? I am not Uncle Fester...I do not generate electricity through my mouth to light my house.
All female ranting & raving aside, I do greatly appreciate your blog & updates!! Thanks!!
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