News Photo by Julie Riddle Online resources for virtual courtrooms in Alpena and Montmorency counties are seen on a screen on Wednesday

ALPENA — Two Northeast Michigan women have been tapped to join the Virtual Courtroom Task Force, a group of judges, court administrators, court clerks, and county officials convened by the Michigan Supreme Court to make sure courts keep functioning even when courtrooms are off-limits to almost everyone.

Ann Marie Main, Presque Isle County clerk, and Jodi Gordon, probate court administrator for Montmorency County, are members of the task force asked to produce a set of standards for using courtroom technology to hold virtual hearings, ensure public access, and continue regular court business, from filing documents to obtaining proper signatures.

Courts were forced to adopt new technology on the fly in recent weeks when courthouses were closed to help prevent the spread of the coronavirus.

Main, who serves as a vice president for the Michigan Association of County Clerks, said the task force has offered a helpful glimpse into how other courts and counties around the state are handling the challenges of closed courtroom doors.

Courts have to consider more than just what’s practical when replacing in-person hearings with virtual ones, Main said. Courts have a responsibility to protect everyone involved, from victims to witnesses to defendants.

As is becoming common elsewhere, hearings in the 53rd Circuit Court — encompassing Presque Isle and Cheboygan counties — are livestreamed on YouTube, meeting the Supreme Court’s requirements that all court proceedings be made public either during or immediately after the hearing.

Child welfare and juvenile delinquency cases are public, but attorneys in those and certain other cases may request that hearings be closed during testimony.

More hearings are expected to be held in Presque Isle County in May as courts continue to improve their digital capabilities and work out scheduling details with law enforcement and prosecutors’ offices, Main said.

Gordon, who designs Web pages and educational components as president of the Michigan Electronic Court Reporters Association, created a virtual courtroom page for Alpena and Montmorency counties.

There, participants with court-provided passwords can connect to their hearing via videoconferencing app Zoom, while the public can access links to YouTube channels where videoconferenced hearings are broadcast live.

Buttons also connect the public to court schedules, court information, and a Zoom beginners’ tutorial.

Hoping to make actual hearings run more smoothly, Gordon launched a weekly online Zoom practice option, also available on the virtual courtroom website.

In the last two weeks, attorneys, court staff, and other court participants — up to 30 per call — have dialed in to the practice sessions, checking their sound, learning how to use breakout rooms, and preparing to help witnesses, victims, and litigants be less intimidated by new ways of doing court.

“Technology’s scary out there,” Gordon said. “But we don’t really have a choice. This is our only option right now, is to be virtual. It’s all we can do.”

Julie Riddle can be reached at 989-358-5693, jriddle@thealpenanews.com or on Twitter @jriddleX.