Constitutional Protections Implicated by the Reopening of Criminal Courts in the Face of the COVID-19 Pandemic

A discussion of early responses to the COVID-19 pandemic and their impact on constitutional protections from the Advocacy in the 21st Century Task Force (prior to becoming a committee in 2021). The paper analyzes suspensions of Speedy Trial Act time limits, tolling of state statutes of limitations, suspensions of grand juries, the attorney-client relationship and effective assistance of counsel, the potential effect on a court’s ability to seat a jury from a fair cross-section of the community, and the use of social distancing measures and/or videoconferencing for different court proceedings.