LAW DAY: Courthouse Staffs Win OBA Public Service Award
When the coronavirus pandemic hit last year, very little was certain, and the courts were left scrambling to keep their doors open.
The experience was like “being on board a plane that’s being built while it’s in flight,” said Douglas County Court Administrator Ron Murtaugh.
That sentiment was echoed by other staff at both the Douglas and Sarpy county courthouses as they suddenly had to juggle their everyday jobs with ever increasing procedural changes as the justice system had to figure out how to operate during a pandemic on the fly.
“There was so much information that was coming from multiple directions from a court procedure standpoint, putting out notices, continuing cases, while the staff was balancing their own personal and family needs as far as health and welfare,” Murtaugh said. “It quickly became apparent how important the staff is.”
The Omaha Bar Association also recognized their importance, choosing to bestow its annual Public Service Award to the people who kept the two county courthouses running during an unprecedented public health crisis.
At first, most assumed the measures would be temporary.
“It started out like, everybody assumed this is going to be a short-term thing,” Douglas County District Court Administrator Doug Johnson said.
When it became apparent that the pandemic was going to be an ongoing concern, courthouse staff had to quickly acclimate to new rules and procedures while also juggling their own health care and that of their loved ones.
“Everyone was anxious,” Johnson said. “Between judges and staff, just understanding the process, what we’re doing and not doing, peoples’ misconceptions of, the old days are over, what we used to do is not what we do now. It’s hard to get that across to people sometimes that it’s not just business as usual.”
At the start of the pandemic, Johnson hurriedly ordered gloves, masks and other sanitation supplies, sometimes having to deal with inflated prices due to the heightened demand. After receiving CARES Act funds, Johnson oversaw the courtrooms being outfitted with new equipment to help facilitate video conferencing and other social distancing measures.
In Sarpy County, staffing was cut in half, with some employees in a “ready-to-work” status, Sarpy County Clerk Barb Pousson said.
“I think the staff was just kind of unsettled as to what was going on and what was happening with the world,” Pousson said.
But despite the uncertainty, justice still had to be served.
“The judges were moving a lot of cases out and we were sending out notices and having just a very minimal court, with things that they needed to hear — bond settings, people in jail, things like that,” Pousson said.
Murtaugh said the court staff knew they were taking care of people and making a difference.
“It was hectic, but also rewarding,” Murtaugh said. “We knew that things we were doing, through either continuing cases or taking pleas at the window, were having a direct impact on the community. We took an active role in our actions in reducing cases being heard, we took a proactive role in minimizing risk in exposure by not bringing people into the courthouse.”
It’s safe to say that without the dedicated courthouse staff, access to justice in the two counties would have ground to a halt.
“My staff are rock stars,” Murtaugh said. “They’re the ones that get it done. They’re the ones that make a difference in peoples’ lives. I’m just blessed to have the staff that I have and I’m very fortunate to have such a dedicated group.”
Pousson was similarly complimentary of her staff.
“They’ve done a wonderful job,” Pousson said. “We all kind of blazed the trail. There were no real guidelines, so you just kind of did what you needed to do. Whatever I asked of them, they did, and they just did a great job.”
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