A new electronic system of recording court proceedings will replace traditional court reporters.
By CHASE SQUIRES
Published April 2, 2004
CLEARWATER - Pasco-Pinellas Circuit Court leaders ushered in a new era in court reporting Thursday, introducing a digital system in the Clearwater Criminal Justice Center and announcing plans to connect Dade City's courthouse next.
Circuit Technology Officer Ken Nelson said the new system eliminates the need in most cases for traditional court reporters, a fixture in courtrooms for decades. Court reporters use a form of shorthand to take down everything said in a courtroom at every hearing along the way in a criminal case, from the time a plea is entered to the day a verdict is rendered.
Transcripts provide a record of every detail in case of appeals.
But with the advent of the new digital system - the circuit is using a computerized setup from Massachusetts-based CourtSmart - nearly all routine court matters will be recorded digitally, using a combination of microphones, video cameras and computer equipment at hearings, motions and, in some cases, trials.
"The hope is at some point we have people asking, "What do we need paper for?"' Nelson said Thursday.
The digital system has been installed in eight Clearwater courtrooms, with another 14 due to get the system by July 1.
At the same time, Nelson said crews will begin installing the CourtSmart system in Dade City's four courtrooms, as well as four judges' chambers so the system will be operational by July.
It's all part of a changeover mandated in part by Florida's move from county-funded courts to a unified state-funded system. The switch also reflects a difficulty in finding qualified court reporters willing to work in the criminal court system, Court Administrator Gay Inskeep said.
Under the new system, eight microphones pick up conversations throughout the courtroom, while a technician working in a remote control room monitors up to four courtrooms at once, electronically marking the recordings at critical points in the proceeding, even noting who is speaking in spots.
If an attorney or judge needs a question or testimony played back, a message can be relayed to the control room, and a digital recording will be played over a speaker system.
If an appeals court someday needs a paper transcript, one can be produced from DVD disks that will hold the entire recorded session.
In the Clearwater control room, four technicians started work Monday. On Thursday they were at a panel of video monitors testing the system and working with the digital controls. On the screens in front of them, they manipulated courtroom images, watching four courtrooms at once, or zooming in on one specific courtroom.
Inskeep said beginning next week, technicians will start easing into the job, slowly replacing the existing system of court reporters over the coming months.
Inskeep said some cases will continue to demand live court reporters, such as capital felony cases and cases where the courts are seeking to strip a parent of their parental rights. As the system gains acceptance, the rules of what requires a live reporter and what can be covered digitally will evolve, she predicted.
The digital setup averages $20,000 per courtroom, Nelson said. The money for the Pinellas changeover came out of county funds provided for court services, and Nelson said Pinellas County commissioners helped ensure the money was available.
In Pasco County, Inskeep said she hopes to work as well with Pasco commissioners.
Inskeep said a packed room of attorneys and other courthouse workers got their first look at the system in meetings Thursday.
She said court administrators also have worked with judges to explain the system and the new roles judges will have in keeping the system working.
Nelson said in addition to training offered everyone in the courtroom, the system has a built-in fail-safe. A backup system turns itself on every morning at 7:30 a.m., recording everything until 8 p.m.
"We're very comfortable," Nelson said. "Everything that's supposed to will get recorded."
