A new plan to move jury selection for district court to the Douglas County 4-H Fairgrounds appears to be working well.
"Today was fairly hairy, but it's working out," District Judge Robert Fairchild said Wednesday, mentioning two current 12-member jury trials. "It's not an ideal set-up, of course, but there's lots of room, and the acoustics are very good."
The location for jury selection has been moved to the Douglas County 4-H Fairgrounds during renovation of the Judicial & Law Enforcement Center. District Court Judge Jack Murphy watches the entrance to Building No. 2 Wednesday at the fairgrounds as prospective jurors at right gather for the selection process.
Jury selection normally conducted in courtrooms at the Judicial and Law Enforcement Center, 111 E. 11th was moved in February to the fairgrounds, 19th and Harper streets, where potential jurors can avoid parking congestion and construction at the judicial center.
"The main reason is parking," Fairchild said. "When we have to choose from a large panel, like we did today, we always have a problem with that anyway."
Construction also has squeezed available space to a premium, putting jurors, judges, attorneys and defendants close to thudding noises that rattle ceilings and settle dust.
Officials decided to relocate selection to make the process as convenient as possible, Court Administrator Linda Koester-Vogelsang said.
"We're very concerned that the jurors aren't inconvenienced any more than need be," she said. "We're trying to be flexible, given the parking situation and the construction schedule."
The $4.3 million project is expected to last about a year and entails renovating the old jail space and adding a courtroom. A sprinkler system also will be installed at the Douglas County Courthouse, 1100 Mass.
Two buildings at the fairgrounds easily can accommodate about 100 people during jury selection, Koester-Vogelsang said. She wasn't sure when it no longer would be necessary to divert jury pools.
"As long as we have to, I suppose," she said. "We have easily two to three times as much room at the fairgrounds than in our temporary assembly room here."
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