Courts gradually expanding operations to the public

By Holly Ramer And Lisa Rathke
Associated Press
All U.S. adults are now eligible for a COVID-19 vaccine. To register for a vaccine appointment in New Hampshire, please visit vaccines.nh.gov or call 2-1-1. To register for a vaccine appointment in Vermont, please visit healthvermont.gov or call (855) 722-7878.

Here are the latest developments regarding the ongoing novel coronavirus pandemic throughout New England:

New HampshireCourts in New Hampshire will be gradually expanding in-person operations to the public, starting with the state Supreme Court, which is allowing the public to its clerk’s office and law library as of April 27.

In-person oral arguments at the court will resume on May 5.

At the superior court, in-person hearings will be expanded. They will include suppression; contested pleas, sentencings, and violations of probation; drug court termination hearings; contested civil hearings; and bench trials.

The circuit court will resume in-person final hearings in domestic violence or stalking cases and in adjudicatory hearings in abuse and neglect cases.

The superior and circuit courts will stay open for parties of scheduled hearings, those reporting for jury service, emergency relief, landlord and tenant cases.

Court officials said by developing a COVID-19 jury trial protocol, switching to video and telephonic hearings, and equipping staff for remote operations, the superior court was able to avoid a case processing backlog. More than 44,170 hearings were conducted in 11 superior courts during the pandemic and 24 jury trials have been held since August 2020. All superior courts are now conducting jury trials.

Unemployment: Starting next month, New Hampshire is once again requiring that people receiving unemployment benefits be looking for work.

“Traditionally, you had to prove that you were searching for gainful employment while collecting unemployment benefits,” Gov. Chris Sununu said at a news conference Thursday. That was waived last year during the coronavirus pandemic.

Since, the economy has rebounded and New Hampshire has one of the lowest unemployment rates, at 3%. Starting May 23, residents are being required to look for work while on unemployment benefits. It doesn’t mean that if a person can’t find work, they will lose their benefits, Sununu said.

“There are tens of thousands of high-paying jobs across the state available today,” he said. “It’s just an awesome opportunity.” He said in one recent virtual job fair, there were over 100 employers offering more than 3,000 jobs, but only about 140 job seekers showed up.

Sununu said jobs need to be filled, especially in tourism-related areas, restaurants, hotels, and tech and manufacturing.

New Hampshire Works job centers will be opening to the public by May 10 to assist people. Job fairs are scheduled May 6 for veterans, May 11 for students, graduates and individuals using adult education programs, and May 13 for people in the construction industry.

The numbers: More than 93,000 people have tested positive for the virus in New Hampshire, including 377 cases announced Friday. Two new deaths were reported, for a total of 1,281.

The seven-day rolling average of daily new cases in New Hampshire decreased over the past two weeks, going from 415 new cases per day on April 7 to 341 new cases per day on Wednesday.

VermontVermont is preparing to resume the use of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine against COVID-19 next week if the federal government gives the green light, Gov. Phil Scott said Friday.

By day’s end, an advisory panel to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said it’s time to resume use of vaccine, despite a very rare risk of blood clots, saying the the vaccine’s benefits outweigh that serious but small risk. The government was deciding next steps.

“Depending on the outcomes of the advisory committee, we could begin vaccinating as early as Tuesday in the Northeast Kingdom,” said Deputy Human Services Secretary Jenney Samuelson during the governor’s twice-weekly virus briefing. The state will likely have more information to share on its plans as early as Saturday morning, she said.

In the meantime, over half of all Vermonters aged 16 and older have started or completed vaccination with either the Pfizer, Moderna or Johnson & Johnson shots, and the number of new COVID-19 cases in Vermont has dropped by about 36% in the last two weeks, state officials said.

“Our data continues to move in a very positive direction as we are seeing more consecutive days where daily reported cases are under 100 now,” said Health Commissioner Dr. Mark Levine at the governor’s twice-weekly virus briefing. He added that the state’s test positivity rate has dropped dramatically to 1.2%.

As the end of the school year approaches, graduations, proms, and other end-of-school-year celebrations will be permitted but must follow certain safety requirements, Education Secretary Ed French said. Guidance is expected to be released later Friday afternoon.

“These celebrations are not only being permitted this year but also being strongly encouraged,” he said. “This has been a long a year for our students and our schools and we want to do whatever we can to ensure the school year ends in a safe and celebratory way.”

The numbers: Vermont reported 89 new cases of the coronavirus on Friday, for a statewide total to date of more than 22,400.

A total of 26 people were hospitalized, with five in intensive care.

The AP is using data collected by Johns Hopkins University Center for Systems Science and Engineering to measure outbreak caseloads and deaths across the United States.

The seven-day rolling average of daily new cases in Vermont did not increase over the past two weeks, going from 163.71 new cases per day on April 7 to 94.43 new cases per day on April 21.

The seven-day rolling average of daily deaths in Vermont did not increase over the past two weeks, going from 0.43 deaths per day on April 7 to 0.43 deaths per day on April 21.