More than $480,000 has been designated for Lewis County Courts to purchase upgraded video equipment that can be used for virtual hearings. | Pixabay
More than $480,000 has been designated for Lewis County Courts to purchase upgraded video equipment that can be used for virtual hearings. | Pixabay
The Lewis County Board of Supervisors has approved the Washington Administrative Office of the Courts' designation of more than $480,000 for the Lewis County Superior and District Courts to install an upgraded camera system for video conference hearings.
Lewis County Superior Court Administrator Susie Palmateer said this is an opportune time to upgrade the county's video conference capabilities for virtual court hearings because they were not up to standards and the courts have been making do with less during the coronavirus pandemic.
Funds will go towards new cameras that will be outfitted in all eight Lewis County courtrooms, new monitors and the software Webex.
“It’s very expensive, there’s a lot of licensing involved … but, boy, those cameras are expensive and then the Webex behind it and all the TVs,” Palmateer told the Daily Chronicle.
With the new system, the public will be able to tune in to hearings virtually.
The courts hope this new camera system will give them the freedom to have more virtual hearings when it is appropriate post COVID-19, including when someone scheduled to appear doesn't live locally or when the defendant needed to appear from jail rather than in person.
“There’s no substitute for having somebody right in front of you, and being able to see them,” Andrew Toynbee, Superior Court judge, told the Daily Chronicle. “Right now, I’m only seeing half of their face, and there is a difference … I think the video is a great tool, we have to be selective on how we use it so we don’t lose the important aspects of in-person courtrooms.”
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