Are state courts making similar preparations?
We had a symposium dealing specifically with the aftermath of September 11, that many of the chief justices or their designees attended in New York City. In California, we long have had statutory provisions authorizing the chief justice, in the event of an emergency, to issue orders that permit a trial court to hold sessions anywhere within the county or to transfer civil cases to an adjacent county, and to extend the time in which arraignments, preliminary hearings, and trials must take place, along with additional provisions dealing with such situations. The CCJ has a joint committee with the state court administrators, called the Security and Emergency Preparedness Committee, that addresses many of these issues and collects the best practices that are being followed in the various jurisdictions. There are all sorts of emergency situations that can affect the conduct of judicial proceedings, and I believe it is very important that courts be prepared for such eventualities. The state
