Judge shortage closes Mecklenburg courtrooms set to handle cases on Friday
A judge shortage closed two Mecklenburg District Court rooms Friday morning, according to court schedules.
When one judge scheduled to preside over first appearances called out sick, a scramble left two courtrooms judgeless for at least an hour Friday morning, according to a judicial email obtained by The Charlotte Observer.
The Mecklenburg District Attorney’s Office had to continue 15 cases because of the delay. It was at least the second time Charlotte courtrooms were closed by absent judges in about a month.
The District Court bench “has been operating on a tight margin for quite a while,” District Attorney Spencer Merriweather said in a statement to the Observer. The closings and delays impacted the “administration of justice” and “litigants, witnesses, and most importantly, victims of crime.”
“I think everyone understands that no institution is immune from unforeseen circumstances... I am confident our judicial leaders are doing and will continue to do what they can to limit those impacts,” Merriweather said.
Courtrooms 4150 and 4170 did not have a judge Friday morning. The judge presiding over 4170 covered 4330 in order to hear scheduled first appearances. First appearances are defendants’ first time appearing before a judge after arrests. They are mandatory under North Carolina law and generally must be held within 72 hours of an arrest.
According to courtroom schedules, 4150 was consolidated into another courtroom. By Friday afternoon, three courtrooms had been consolidated into one.
Friday’s courtroom closure comes amid a judge shortage in Mecklenburg that last month also closed at least one courtroom.
The closings also come at a time when one Mecklenburg District Court judge, Tyyawdi Hands, remains out on medical leave. Hands has been out on leave since after a June 2024 car accident in which she suffered a concussion, she said.
She has said she hopes to return to the bench but her medical team has not cleared her.
Maia Nehme contributed to this report.
This story was originally published September 26, 2025 at 1:49 PM.
