For information on specific cases, please visit the court’s website

The Superior Court of Placer County is announcing updates to operational and service changes made due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The changes announced today are expected to remain in effect, so long as they remain consistent with law, until further notice and may remain in effect after the end of the current state of emergency.

On March 9, 2020, the Superior Court of Placer County announced the first changes in its operations due to the emerging COVID-19 pandemic. The first notice expanded available telephone hearings and modified self-help services. Today’s notice, roughly 15 months after the first change in court services, represents the 56th notice from this court in response to the pandemic. The court has continued to remain open throughout the pandemic with varying levels of service and operations in response to guidance from local public health authorities in an effort to balance the obligations to provide access to justice with the need to protect the health of the public, parties, attorneys and justice agency staff entering our courthouses, along with the health and safety of our judicial officers, employees, and court security.

The California Department of Public Health’s (CDPH) announcement that it will terminate the tier system defined in California’s Blueprint for a Safer Economy, effective June 15, 2021, signals a major change to our collective response to the pandemic. In recognition of that change, and following discussions with local public health officials, the Superior Court of Placer County is adopting the following changes to its operations:

 Effective June 15, 2021

The court is revising mitigation procedures implemented as a result of COVID-19:

• Jury selection will resume at the Historic Courthouse in Auburn and North Lake Tahoe and will continue to be held at the Gibson Courthouse in Roseville. The court will discontinue use of the Dietrich Theater at Sierra College as an off-site jury selection location.
• Occupancy and seating in all courtrooms and lobbies will be returned to normal.
• Individuals entering court facilities must continue to follow state masking guidelines issued by the CDPH when in court facilities. Current CDPH guidelines, as of the date of this notice, require face coverings when indoors with limited exceptions.

Effective June 21, 2021

Effective June 21, 2021, the court will remove all mandatory remote appearances with the exception of those that existed prior to the pandemic for certain mental health proceedings and those that are necessary to support COVID-19 transmission mitigation efforts implemented in correctional facilities.

Eligibility for voluntary remote appearances are defined by case type and hearing type. Many hearing types allow parties and attorneys to appear remotely without seeking judicial approval. Trials, in most case types, are defined as a mandatory in-person appearance with a process for requesting judicial approval for a remote appearance in extraordinary circumstances. Details for remote appearances for each case type are provided in the attached Remote Appearance fact sheets.

The Court will also be posting the following updates to explain remote appearance guidelines going forward:

• Updated Emergency Local Rule 10.28, effective June 21, 2021, will be posted on June 11, 2021 and can be found here: http://www.placer.courts.ca.gov/general-local-rules.shtml
• Updated Local Forms will be posted on the website on June 11, 2021. Once posted, they canbe found on the Court’s Local Forms webpage: http://www.placer.courts.ca.gov/forms-
• The Court’s Remote Appearance webpage (http://www.placer.courts.ca.gov/RAS.shtml) will be updated to reflect the approach outlined in the attached fact sheets on June 18, 2021.

The court anticipates moving the Emergency Rules, as adopted effective June 21, 2021, into its non-emergency Local Rules no more than 90 days following the end of the declared COVID-19 state of emergency so long as these rules are consistent with then applicable laws and California Rules of Court.

The court’s Self-Help Center has transitioned to primarily remote services. The court does not anticipate a return to primarily in-person services at this time. Please visit the Self-Help Center page on our website to schedule a telephone or video appointment. Future changes to in-person services will be announced on the court’s website.

If you believe you are sick or experiencing symptoms of COVID-19 or any other communicable disease, or if you are subject to quarantine due to close contact with someone who has COVID-19, please contact the Court Clerk’s Office at 916-408-6000 for further information. If you are represented by an attorney, contact your attorney first before calling the court. Defendants who have posted bail are encouraged to discuss their bail with their attorney and bail bonding company.

For information on specific cases, please visit the court’s website or call 916-408-6000.