Judge led fight to keep COVID-19 out of jail and courthouse. Now she has it.
A Mecklenburg County judge who spearheaded efforts to safely reopen the courthouse in the midst of a worsening pandemic has tested positive for COVID-19.
Chief District Judge Elizabeth Trosch confirmed her illness in an open letter Monday after the Observer contacted her about rumors that she had contracted the disease. Her statement did not give any details of her symptoms, and the veteran Democratic judge did not immediately respond to a request for an interview.
“I am writing to share with you that I tested positive for COVID-19 on Friday,” Trosch said in a letter sent out by the courthouse. “I am isolating at home until Dec. 13th at the direction of the Mecklenburg County Public Health Director.
“I have participated in contact tracing and notified all persons identified as being at risk of exposure due to contact with me.”
Trosch said her family members are “all well” and were to be tested Monday night.
Trosch last held court Thursday, in Courtroom 1150. In her letter, Trosch said her work areas had received additional cleaning and sanitizing. The courthouse also is arranging for a special “emergency judge” to handle her docket while she isolates at home, she said.
Meanwhile, several attorneys who practiced in her courtroom last week already have been quarantined.
Trosch, who was appointed chief district judge earlier this year, has been a leader in trying to lessen the risk of COVID-19 at the jail and courthouse.
Confirmation of her illness comes as Charlotte and all of North Carolina confronts a second wave of COVID-19 infections every bit as bad as the first.
Trosch is the second Mecklenburg judge known to have contracted the disease. In March, Superior Court Judge Donnie Hoover and his wife both tested positive. Josephine Hoover’s symptoms were severe, requiring her hospitalization. Both have recovered.
As acting chief district judge in March, Trosch signed an order suspending most misdemeanor arrests in Mecklenburg County to reduce the comings and goings in the jail during the pandemic.
After the virus shut down courthouses across the state for eight months, Trosch was one of the most visible members of a committee of judges and other office holders who crafted a plan to reopen the Mecklenburg courthouse in mid-November.
Chaos in the courts
Despite a long list of the unprecedented safety measures put in place, the virus continues to bring chaos to the court system.
The county’s first jury trial since March ended in a mistrial this month after repeated fears of juror exposure to COVID-19.
Meanwhile, the Mecklenburg Jail is dealing with its worst COVID outbreak to date, fueled by jailers returning to work around the Thanksgiving holiday who did not know they were carrying the virus, jail officials say.
As of Thursday, the state’s largest local detention facility had 65 prisoner cases and 255 inmates in isolation. That compared to three inmate cases on Nov. 23. Thirteen jail staff members had tested positive and were quarantining at home last week. The sheriff’s office did not respond Monday to an Observer request seeking updated figures.
Trosch’s illness offers another piece of doubt that the courts can operate safely. It also stands to be a major point of discussion when the courthouse committee meets Tuesday morning.
When the courthouse reopened, Trosch and other authors of the operations plan said they would be “guided by science, medical advice and the rights of individuals appearing in court” when deciding if the expanded schedule needed to be shut down.
Already, the rush of new cases has surpassed some of the disease measures officials pledged to use.
District Attorney Spencer Merriweather, one of the committee members, said the courthouse has multiple public heath crises to confront: COVID-19 and violent crime.
As of last month, Mecklenburg had more than 700 felony cases awaiting trial, including 100 homicides and 150 others involving rapes, assaults and other violent offenses. Those numbers continue to grow.
While Merriweather said his office has a responsibility to crime victims to begin trying cases, “we have to constantly make sure we’re evaluating the health data and consulting with our health department officials so that we’re making the right decisions,” he said.
“I think the community can take some assurances that we’re taking this seriously. If it comes to the point where we have to drastically reduce courthouse activity, that’s exactly what we’ll do.”
In her letter, Trosch urged her fellow Charlotte-Mecklenburg residents to follow health guidelines.
“More than 46,000 people have tested positive for COVID-19 in Mecklenburg County, and I am one of them,” she wrote.
“It is important that we all remain vigilant during the COVID-19 pandemic ... wear our masks, wash our hands, and limit our interactions outside of our homes.”
This story was originally published December 7, 2020 at 1:59 PM.
