How First Ever Zoom Jury Trial Held by Texas Court Is Going
The trial, a civil lawsuit over hail and wind property damage, began Monday in Collin County.
A court in Texas is making work-from-home history by holding what is believed to be the first jury trial on Zoom. The trial, a civil lawsuit over hail and wind property damage, began Monday in Collin County, as courts throughout the country continue scaling back in-person proceedings in the wake of the coronavirus.
More than two dozen potential jurors logged onto the videoconferencing app for jury selection, which was live-streamed on YouTube, Reuters reported. One judge was overseeing the case and the other was handling technical issues.
The lawyers said they are glad to be part of legal history in the making.
"It's like the 'Brady Bunch' on steroids," one of them said.
To brief the potential jurors, one judge went over rules, including a hand signal for when they needed to take breaks. There were some technical glitches when one of the jurors disappeared.
"Mr. Silva, if you can hear us, please return to your chair," said one of the judges. "We've all been waiting six or seven minutes for you to come back."
Inside Edition spoke to Judge Emily Miskel about the virtual hearing.
"Surprisingly, everyone liked it," Miskel said. "The jurors were very engaged."
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