N.C. Superior and District Courts Suspended for 30 Days Starting Monday

“Today’s order will allow us to drastically reduce the exposure caused by crowded sessions of court,” said Chief Justice Cheri Beasley said in a press statement. 

The North Carolina Supreme Court has directed district and superior courts to postpone most cases for a month or more in order to prevent the spread of coronavirus.

The order goes into effect today.

“Today’s order will allow us to drastically reduce the exposure caused by crowded sessions of court, which often bring hundreds of people at a time into our courthouses,” Chief Justice Cheri Beasley said in a press statement. 

There are a few exceptions to the emergency decree, which Beasley said are necessary to ensure due process rights would not be violated: Bond, probation and probable cause hearings, as well as domestic violence protection orders and cases where a jury has already been empaneled.

North Carolina has also suspended all prison visitations to prevent the spread of the virus in the vulnerable population, where it could quickly spread due to close quarters and sanitary challenges.