Three Luzerne County offices impacted by employee coronavirus cases

Precautions were implemented in three areas of Luzerne County government because three county employees who regularly deal with criminal matters tested positive for coronavirus, county Manager C. David Pedri announced Wednesday.

All three workers are experiencing minor symptoms and quarantining at home, he said, declining to identify the employees’ positions.

Due to potential COVID-19-related exposure, court officials have closed Central Court until Nov. 30.

The District Attorney’s Office and the Public Defender’s Office will be moving to a remote work force with a rotating staff in their respective offices, also until Nov. 30, he said.

The District Attorney’s Office is located in the courthouse on River Street in Wilkes-Barre. The Public Defender’s Office is in the Penn Place Building on Pennsylvania Avenue, also in Wilkes-Barre.

Pedri said he and other officials are monitoring the situation but do not believe closures of the courthouse or Penn Place are warranted at this time.

County staffers are cleaning all offices and locations potentially impacted, he said.

The county human resources department also is completing contact tracing to notify any individuals potentially at risk.

Other court-related activities in other locations will proceed as scheduled.

Although all county offices remain open, Pedri advised the public to check for online or mail options to perform business instead of visiting county facilities.

All visitors must wear masks and follow social distancing guidelines. Pedri said county security workers will continue to update screening of visitors to county buildings based on state protocol, he said.

This is the third time Central Court has been shut down due to the coronavirus.

Located in a small building with cramped courtrooms and offices, Central Court was closed for several days in early October due to a Wilkes-Barre police officer who tested positive for the coronavirus.

Central Court was also closed in early July for several days after an attorney reported his wife tested positive.

After the incident in the summer, modifications were made at Central Court to include mandatory masks, installation of Plexiglas in front of the two judicial benches, virtual hearings and the addition of a tent for defendants to wait for their cases to be called.

Families and spectators were forbidden to enter Central Court after July’s shut down.

Central Court hosts preliminary arraignments and preliminary hearings in criminal cases.