Cell phones, laptops and tablets are banned from county courthouses, except for the Richard J. Daley Center.
If you’re going to court, leave your cell in the car. Beginning April 15, electronic communication devices will be banned from Cook County courthouses. This includes laptops, cell phones, tablet computers and all other recording or Internet device. The new order comes in response to reports of people misusing the technology to violate court rules. The county website cites such examples as photographing witnesses and broadcasting court proceedings. Only the Richard J. Daley Center is exempt from the electronics ban. It's easy to keep up with Patch!
A judge announced the ban, which also includes several other electronic devices, citing problems such as incidents of witness and juror intimidation.
Be wary: Next time you go to a Cook County courthouse, you may need to leave your cell phone at home. Circuit Court of Cook County Chief Judge Timothy C. Evans announced on Tuesday that cell phones and electronic devices will no longer be allowed in any Cook County courthouse that handles criminal matters, starting on Jan. 4, 2013, the Daily Herald reports. The ban includes laptops, tablets, and anything capable of making an audio or video recording or able to connect to the Internet, according to the paper. It exempts licensed attorneys, judges, members of the media and others performing “official court business.” The Daley Center downtown is not included in the ban, except for certain restricted areas. Multiple media sources report that…
Mark
8:35 am on Tuesday, April 16, 2013
The county really needs to figure out how to move the non-judicial functions (assessor, recorder, etc.) outside the security perimeter. Business people going to do business with the county in various offices (my personal experience is Markham) are now precluded from bringing electronic devices into those offices because they are inside the security perimeter. It is not a good thing when the … more ›