Circuit Court: All criminal cases currently set for March 16, March 23, March 30, and April 6 will be continued to Tuesday, April 14, 2020, at 9:00 a.m. It would be impossible to actually have all of those cases heard in one day. Therefore, attorneys should confer with opposing attorneys to attempt to find a different date in the future, if possible, and reschedule cases by agreed order where appropriate. All civil and domestic cases set for March 16, March 23, March 30, and April 6 will be continued to Wednesday, April 15, 2020, at 9:00 a.m. Again, attorneys should attempt to find a suitable date to re-scheduled these cases where appropriate to a different date via agreed order. In sum, there will be no Circuit Court cases heard from Monday, March 16, through Friday, April 10, except for emergency matters. Judge Stark is aware of the Kentucky Supreme Court’s March 13, 2020 Amended Order and will be entering a more detailed Order re: proceedings involving incarcerated defendants and other matters.
District Court: Arraignments only for incarcerated defendants will be Monday, March 16, at 10:00 a.m. Arraignments only for incarcerated defendants will also be held Wednesday, March 18, at 10:00 a.m. Preliminary Hearings only for incarcerated defendants will be held Wednesday, March 18, at 1:00 p.m. All bench trials set for Monday, March 16, will be continued. All probate and/or other civil hearings or trials scheduled before Friday, April 10, shall be rescheduled to a later date. Attorneys should confer with opposing attorneys to attempt to find a different date in the future, if possible, and reschedule cases by agreed order where appropriate. Attorneys can also contact the clerk’s office regarding rescheduling proceedings. In sum, there will be no Court proceedings in Graves County District Court until after Friday, April 10, except for emergency juvenile hearings, time-sensitive hearings involving an incarcerated defendant, and temporary removal hearings. Attorneys should confer with opposing attorneys to attempt to find a different date in the future, if possible, and reschedule cases by agreed order where appropriate.
Probate Court: Attorneys can still file Petitions to Dispense with Administration, as parties rarely need to attend Court for these anyway. Also, attorneys can file Affidavits of Oath and Affidavits to prove a Will to have an Executor/Administrator appointed without appearing in Court.
The judges want us to resolve as much as possible via Agreed Order so that time will be preserved when motion hours resume for the cases that must be heard. In the meantime, the goal is to have as little person-to-person contact as possible.
The Circuit Court Clerk’s office will be open during normal business hours. However, electronic filings are encouraged.
