Juggling the courtrooms

The crush of jurors, lawyers, reporters and hangers-on outside the courtroom of Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Larry Fidler had repercussions today.

Judges in courtrooms closest to Fidler’s have been forced to alter court hours to avoid gridlock in the 9th floor hallway.

"It's for the convenience of jurors," said Donna Peale, clerk to Judge Michael Johnson in Dept. 108, which has moved up its starting hour to 9:15 a.m. Across the hall and next to Fidler’s courtroom, Judge Bob S. Bowers now starts at 9:45 a.m.

"It’s like planes stacking up at JFK," grumbled one lawyer forced to adapt to the new hours.

-- John Spano

Comments

[LACountyResident]

"The crush of jurors, lawyers, reporters and hangers-on outside the courtroom ..."

You don't mean the public when you refer to "hangers-on" do you? Who are the "hangers-on" and where is the tax-paying public on your list? Public as in public trial, public as in sunshine, public with its cynical view of mass media? How's that list go these days---used car salesmen followed by media, or media followed by used car-salesmen? I forget.

The trial is public and that constituency is probably not quite ready to give up their seats to the media. In fact, most of the media simply echo the leader/s. There is no need for more than a few reporters in the room. We certainly do not get dozens of insights from dozens of reporters. They take up space, and some of them may be "hangers-on." I sat next to one credentialled reporter, a guy from "Charles Scribner," and his guest-companion, who watched for a while, and then asked me who Henry Lee was.

The media should have no more seats than the public, especially in a case that is televised making it much more convenient to just text it in. Shame on those who demonstrate their disdain for those very readers and subscribers that give you guys such sweet little gigs. We do not all support the trick of *embedded* reporters in the field or in the courtroom. We want random REAL PEOPLE keeping their eyes on you guys, and you guys should be the first to support that.