San Diego Superior Court “Frequently Asked Questions” Concerning 10/22/07 – 10/26/07 Court Closure
Topics: 1 Jury Duty 2 Court Appearances 3 Payment of Fines 4 Emergency Protective Orders and Temporary Restraining Orders 5 Court Filings 6 Substance Abuse Assessment Unit (“SAAU”)
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Jury Duty • I have a summons to report to the courthouse during the period of October 22, 2007-October 26, 2007. What happens now? Because the court was closed and you were unable to serve, your jury service will be rescheduled to the week of May 12, 2008. You will receive a new summons in the mail approximately one month before your new reporting date. If, by chance, you appeared at the court and gave your summons to a court employee before you were aware of the court closure, your service has been completed and you will not be receiving a new summons. If you have a summons for telephone standby for the week of October 22, 2007 at the South County Regional Center that required you to call in on Saturday, October 20, 2007 or Sunday, October 21, 2007 for reporting instructions, your service has been completed and you will not be receiving a new summons. If you mailed in your summons to request an excuse for jury service, your request will be processed and you will be notified only if your request is NOT granted. • I have a summons with a reporting date for jury service dated after October 26, 2007. Do I still report? Yes, the courts will be reopening to the public on Monday, October 29, 2007. If you have a summons with a reporting date of Monday, October 29, 2007 or thereafter, please follow the reporting instructions on your summons for jury service. • I have been impacted by the fires and cannot report to jury duty. What do I do? Please call the Automated Jury System at (619) 236-2677 to obtain a postponement. Beginning Monday, October 29 2007, jury staff will be available Monday-Friday from 10:00am to 4:30pm to assist callers.
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I need to delay my jury service that is scheduled on or after October 29, 2007. What do I do? For a postponement, please call the Automated Jury System at (619)2362677 or visit the court website at www.sdcourt.ca.gov and click on Online Jury Services.
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I was serving on a jury panel as of October 19, 2007. Do I report back to court on Monday, October 29th? If you are currently assigned to a specific courtroom for a trial, please report to that courtroom on Monday, October 29, 2007 at 9:00am UNLESS you have been instructed by the courtroom staff to do otherwise.
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I have a jury summons with a reporting date prior to the court closure. I had planned to report the week of the closure, which was within two weeks reporting time per the instructions mailed with the summons. May I still report for jury duty on Monday, October 29, 2007 or what should I do? If you are reporting to the Hall of Justice, East County Regional Center or North County Regional Center you can report to the jury lounge on any Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday (excluding court holidays) two weeks before or two weeks after your reporting date at the reporting time indicated on the insert letter mailed with your summons. If you have a summons for jury service with a reporting date prior to October 9, 2007 or you are scheduled to report to the South County Regional Center, please call (619)236-2677 to postpone your jury service.
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Court Appearances (Criminal, Traffic, Juvenile and Drug Court Cases) • I was scheduled to appear in court for an appearance or a trial during the period of October 22, 2007 – October 26, 2007 and am NOT in custody. What happens now? You should contact your attorney as soon as possible, if you have one. They should be able to assist you with future dates. If you don’t have an attorney, or you are unable to reach your attorney, please either contact the court (for traffic cases) or report to the courthouse where your case was to be heard (for all other cases) no later than November 9, 2007 UNLESS you have received other written instructions from the court. • My family member or acquaintance is incarcerated and was scheduled to appear in court during the period of October 22, 2007 – October 26, 2007. How do I find out when they will be in court? Criminal Cases: We are currently working on rescheduling all cases that were not heard during the fires. You may be able to find this information through the Sheriff’s website at www.sdsheriff.net/home/, or you should contact the detention facility where the person is incarcerated. Juvenile Delinquency Detentions: The court will attempt to hear these matters on Tuesday through Thursday, October 30, 2007 through November 1, 2007; however, you should contact the Juvenile Probation Department to confirm the hearing date and time. Juvenile Dependency Detentions will be heard on Monday, October 29, 2007. • I have been impacted by the fire and cannot appear in court on my appearance date that is set on or after October 29, 2007. What should I do? Please contact the court where your matter is scheduled on or before your appearance date. • I am currently assigned to Drug Court? When will we be meeting?
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Starting Monday, October 29, 2007, the drug court calendars will be heard as regularly scheduled. Court Appearances (Civil/Small Claims/Family/Probate/Unlawful Detainers) • I was scheduled to appear in court for a hearing or trial during the period of October 22, 2007 – October 26, 2007. What happens now? Civil/Small Claims/Family: Your matter will be continued by the court to a future date and a notice will be sent to you or your attorney if you are represented by one. If necessary, you may call the court on or after October 29, 2007 to check on your rescheduled hearing. Probate: Your matter will be continued by the court to a future date and a notice will be sent to you or your attorney if you are represented by one. If necessary, you may call the court on or after October 29, 2007 to check on your rescheduled hearing. All temporary letters of administration, conservatorship or guardianship have been extended by court order to the new hearing date. You may come to the probate business office where your case is assigned to have your letters reissued with the new expiration date. Unlawful Detainers: All matters will be rescheduled over the next ten days and will occur on the same day of the week for which the case was previously scheduled. You, or your attorney if you are represented by one, will receive a Notice of Rescheduled Hearing by mail with your new date. If necessary, you may call the courthouse on or after October 29, 2007 to check on your rescheduled date. • I have been impacted by the fire and cannot appear in court on my appearance date that is set on or after October 29, 2007. What should I do? Please contact the court where your matter is scheduled on or before your appearance date.
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Payment of Fines • I have already made arrangements to pay my fines at a court appearance, or am already on a payment plan, but am unable to make a payment right now. What do I do? Please contact the court or come into the courthouse where your case is being handled on or before November 9, 2007 to make arrangements in your individual case.
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Emergency Protective Orders and Temporary Restraining Orders • What if I need an Emergency Protective Order before the court reopens on October 29, 2007? Emergency Protective Orders are available with assistance from any law enforcement agency on a 7/24 basis. These orders remain in effect for five court days and must be renewed by a court hearing after that. Court hearings on all matters will resume October 29, 2007. • What happens if my Emergency Protective Order expired during the October 22, 2007-October 26, 2007 time period? As stated above, Emergency Protective Orders are available with assistance from any law enforcement agency on a 7/24 basis. You should contact law enforcement regarding your specific order. If you have been unable to do so, you should contact the court on or after October 29, 2007 to schedule a court hearing. • I had a hearing on a Temporary Restraining Order (civil, family, DV, elder abuse, etc.) that was set for hearing during the October 22, 2007 - October 26, 2007 time period? What do I do? Your TRO remains in effect until Monday, October 29, 2007. However, you must go to the courthouse listed on your TRO to ensure your hearing is reset and the other party is served again.
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Court Filings • When will the court start accepting filings? All court locations will begin accepting filings on October 29, 2007 during regular court business hours. If you mailed any filings that would have been received by the court between October 22, 2007 and October 26, 2007, or dropped any filings after hours during the past week, those documents will all be processed beginning on Monday, October 29, 2007.
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Substance Abuse Assessment Unit (“SAAU”) • What happens if I was unable to make an appointment with the SAAU because of the court closure? The court will be setting all missed SAAU appointments over the next two weeks beginning October 29, 2007. An assessor will either contact you by phone or will send a new report date by mail. However, if you are not contacted by the SAAU, you must contact the court on or before November 9, 2007.
If you have a question related to the court closure that is not answered above, please send it here.
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