UTICA, N.Y. — The county courthouse in downtown Utica was built in 1909, but it has received many technological upgrades over the years.
Most recently, microphones, cameras and monitors were added to facilitate remote witness testimony and evidence presentation.
The changes were brought on by necessity during the pandemic, but Judge James Murphy, who oversees courts across upstate, says they are here to stay.
“It’s hard to say anything good came from a global pandemic. But one of the things that it did do is that it accelerated rapidly our use of video technology,” Murphy said, “and it allowed us to do more remote proceedings, or hybrid proceedings. Maybe you have a witness who’s in Pennsylvania, who can’t get here. All of that we did during COVID, and now, we’re just trying to figure out the best and most efficient way to use those examples.”
A crowd of lawyers, judges, and elected officials gathered to celebrate the Utica courthouse’s distinction as a “state-of-the-art” facility.
Since May 1, 1971, Amtrak has connected friends and family through rail travel.
