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Masks required in Idaho courthouses beginning Friday

| April 29, 2020 11:04 AM

A new order by the Idaho Supreme Court requires face masks be worn in courthouses across the state.

The order, which kicks in Friday, will require anyone who enters a courthouse or works there to cover their faces with a mask or bandana.

That means all judges, attorneys, litigants and their family members as well as courthouse employees must cover up.

The rule is in response to a call to open up state and private facilities that have been more or less closed since last month.

Most court cases have been handled electronically, and courthouses have been virtually empty since March when the Supreme Court issued its first order to limit in-person hearings.

Beginning Friday, more courtroom hearings will be scheduled although criminal jury trials will not take place until Aug. 3 and civil jury trials will not be scheduled until Oct. 5, First District Court administrator Karlene Behringer said. That means courthouses will begin to see more public foot traffic by the end of this week.