covid 19
Covid-19 has presented many challenges for the last year. People have had to face many hardships and difficult choices because of stay at home orders and social distancing requirements. Mask mandates have also been something that many people have found hard to accommodate. Businesses of all industries have felt the strains of the pandemic as well, and many have closed as a result. 

No one seems to be talking about the court system during the pandemic.

The court system has all but shut down and it is causing problems for both civil and criminal cases.

*Below is a video going over our thoughts on the matter.

Criminal Court in a Pandemic Setting

Criminal court cases are facing the most disruption due to the pandemic. Many of these issues are unprecedented, and the court system is slowly responding to the issues.

The first issue is scheduling hearings. Most courts were backlogged before the pandemic, and now it is even worse. People charged with crimes who have been unable to make bail are waiting months and months to go before the court, and this is a clear problem when it comes to the “speedy trial” clause in the Constitution.

non speedy trial

The prosecutor’s office in many areas have been slow to respond to this problem and have retained very high bail amounts. Many offices are also refraining from offering deals to help move cases through the system without a trial. It is a deadlock between prosecution, defense, the accused as well as the victims are being hurt by the process. Even getting voir dire or jury selection is becoming impossible because people do not want to sit next to others, be in a jury room or courtroom with them either. It’s very hard to get a jury of your peers right now for these reasons.

The next issue that has perhaps caused the most problems is the right to face your accuser. In a pandemic setting, most courts are trying to hold court via Zoom call or similar video setting. This presents the following problems:

  • Many witnesses are wearing masks during their testimony because they are sitting close to the attorney or the person monitoring the session
  • You can only see the witness or accuser from about mid-torso up in the video call, eliminating the jury and the defense the right to read their body language while giving testimony.
  • You do not get the same type of connection between any of the parties when they are all interacting by video instead of in person.
  • The jury can become easily distracted during testimony because of the length of time these sessions take and most people do not respond well to staring at a computer screen for long periods of time without moving.
  • Many witnesses cannot make a positive identification of the accused because they were either wearing a mask when the event occurred, or are required to wear a mask during the court session.
  • The use of masks and other personal protective gear has also made police cam footage almost inadmissible because you cannot clearly identify who is behind the mask or shield. Additional issues have also arisen from remote litigation that is causing the court system to slow down even further so that they can evaluate the situation and ensure that the rights of all parties are protected under these circumstances.

The Future of Remote Litigation

At this time it appears that remote litigation will continue for at least another year. No one is sure how much longer the pandemic will continue or how much longer social distancing will be required. Until then, the courts will have to continue to move slow to protect all involved.

Best Civil Attorneys - Gina Tennen

Gina Tennen

Founder

At A Glance

  • Expert legal strategist.
  • Experienced in both prosecution and defense.
  • Relentless fighter for her clients with results to prove it.
  • Received the National Top 100 Trial Lawyers Award
  • Featured in Time Magazine’s “Leaders of Criminal Defense” in the 100 Most Influential People edition.

Executive Managing Attorney Gina Tennen is a renowned leading advocate of personal liberties. Her meticulous trial preparation and exceptional ability to pursue every possible defense has earned her the admiration of clients and respect from prosecutors, judges, and other criminal attorneys all over the nation.

Lawyer Tennen began her career as a Senior Law Clerk for one of the toughest District Attorney’s offices in the country where she gained remarkable experience in juvenile crimes, elder abuse, parole hearings, child abuse, sex and other serious crimes. Her experience at the District Attorney’s Office armed her knowledge and case strategy in exploiting the other side’s weaknesses for the client’s advantage and building a rock solid defense. Criminal attorney Tennen’s experience on both sides and brilliant maneuvering throughout is evidenced in her winning track record. In fact, even before earning her law degree, she was instrumental in getting excellent results on several criminal cases outshining her peers.

A consummate strategist and top criminal attorney, lawyer Tennen works tirelessly on many high profile criminal cases. She is known as a relentless fighter who never gives up on any case. Whether the case is hers or handled by another criminal defense attorney from LibertyBell Law Group, no matter how small the case may seem she asserts that every client deserves the right to the best legal representation.

It is her deep belief and what she has built her entire career and lifelong dedication to that there is always hope for every client and every avenue should be pursued regardless of the time and energy it takes. For criminal attorney, Gina Tennen, devoting the finest criminal defense for clients is a habit and talent that you must apply and do all the time.

You demand the best defense. Take hold of your life and speak to our defense attorneys by calling 855-LAW-PRO1 (855-529-7761) now.

Founder Gina Tennen and all the sex offender attorneys at LibertyBell Law Group uphold that when the bell rings, it rings for life and liberty for all.

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Gina was like a lioness protecting her cub.

    

I hired Gina and her team for my son who was facing 10 years for something they said he did when he was 17 years old. Gina was like a lioness protecting her cub. She did not stop. She fought hard and was able to defend the charges. We are so grateful to her and her team. They gave us our son. He recovered his life!

– L. W.
Best defense lawyers in the country.

    

I hired this law firm in 2014 for my son who was facing 16 years in prison for a felony robbery. Lina Helou answered all our questions. I was extremely distraught regarding what my son was facing but Lina comforted me and told me that it would be okay. And thank goodness LibertyBell saved my son from going to jail and they were able to obtain only 3 years of probation. I could not have hired a better law firm for my son and if you want the best defense call LibertyBell Law Group. Thank God for this great group of lawyers.

– V. J.
A great team of lawyers.

    

I do not have enough words to describe how incredible the experience with this firm was. They work very hard to make sure you have winning results. I could not have asked for better service from the moment I called, until my case was over. I was glad I made the right choice. Thank you again LibertyBell Law Group!

– S. O.
She took her time to review all of my evidence and proved my innocence.

    

My father had found this group through his company and coworkers. I was assigned Gina Tennen and I cannot explain in just a review on how gratefull I am to be working with her. My case was an accusation of unlawful sex. This had looked extremely bad on my part since I was in a fraternity and she was in a sorority. During these times with Greek life, there are too many bad stigmas surrounding these organizations. Gina had believed in me and knew that I was innocent and that these accusations just were not true. She took her time to review all of my evidence and proved my innocence. I totally recommend this law group because they are willing to put in the work to help your situation.

– C. D.
Gina always kept me fully aware of how the case was proceeding.

    

When I first heard I was under a criminal investigation, I initially thought I would try and resolve this in the best way possible, without legal representation, as we were all interested in a "just" outcome. I quickly discovered that was not the case and contacted Gina at LibertyBell. She clearly described the expectations and the choices available to me. She was always available to me, and when I called, if she couldn't talk with me at that time, she would quickly get back to me. Gina always kept me fully aware of how the case was proceeding. Her fee's were stipulated up front, as well as what those fees covered and what they did not.

– S. B.
Attorney Gina Tennen was on point from day one.

    

Attorney Gina Tennen was on point from day one putting pressure on the sherrif's office to get things handled. With Child molestation accusatinos being thrown around Gina and Attorney Castro were great at keeping the pressure on and had no charges filled. The DCFS indications were appealed and we won with flying colors. Great service, great work, and will use again for all legal matters.

– A. B.
Will Recommend, Total Experience, Awesome Team

    

Being involved in legal matters can be scary. When researching who to put my trust in, I came across Liberty and I am glad that I did. From the first time that I met with Gina and her team she made me feel comfortable and listened to all that I had to say. She assured me that her team would be on it and that they would do everything that they could! A little while in, Alan took over my case. When meeting with him you can tell that this is his passion and I immediately knew he was going to do everything in his power to make the outcome right! He was relentless and worked day and night working on the case. He kept in constant communication with me and truly cared not only about me but about my family as well. I am forever grateful for the support that this whole team has given me and would definitely recommend them to anyone who is looking for truly the best lawyers!

– L. B.
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