In response to the novel coronavirus’ arrival in Oregon, the state’s courthouses are making a whirlwind of changes to reduce the number of people walking through their doors and limit close contact for those who must show up for court.

Some of the state’s 27 Circuit Court districts -- including those in Multnomah, Clackamas, Benton and Crook counties -- have announced that they’re postponing all jury trials in civil cases until the beginning of May.

Multnomah County Circuit Court also has said it will delay all jury trials for people accused of misdemeanor and felony crimes if they aren’t currently being held in jail until the beginning of May. Traffic and parking cases also will be postponed until at least mid-April in the downtown Portland courthouse.

“We are prioritizing the cases that must be done and postponing the ones that don’t have the same level of urgency,” Phil Lemman, deputy state court administrator, said Friday.

One hurdle is the courts’ inability to delay felony trials for defendants held in jail. Those defendants have a constitutional right to a speedy trial within 60 days, and the courts can typically increase that to 120 days with good cause. Most defendants who are locked up and charged with serious crimes -- such as murder or sexual assault -- usually do waive their rights to speedy trial because they realize their defense lawyers need more time to prepare. But not all defendants do.

“The challenge that we have is there are some things we’re constitutionally mandated to do,” Lemman said.

The Oregon Judicial Department has told members of public summoned to jury duty across the state that they can reschedule their service if they’re in a higher risk category for severely falling ill from the virus. That includes people who are 60 or older or who have underlying health conditions, such as heart disease, lung disease or diabetes.

The department, too, is urging jurors who are sick with cold- or flu symptoms to call to postpone their service.

Some courtrooms also have felt emptier because lawyers or other staff, who have cold- or flu symptoms, have been heeding public health advisories by staying home in case they have undiagnosed cases of COVID-19.

In Multnomah County, the state’s largest courthouse with a few dozen courtrooms, jurors reporting for duty are being separated into several rooms when they first arrive. That’s a break from the usual procedure of assembling all jurors in the large first-floor room designated for that purpose.

When jurors are selected for a particular case, staff members plan to rearrange chairs so each juror is sitting at least 3 feet apart from the next. That can be a challenge given that jury boxes are made up of 12 chairs packed tightly together.

“You seat people out of the jury box if you have to,” Lemman said.

Like many employers, the state court system also is exploring work-from-home options with some employees. Workers who are 60 or older or who have underlying conditions also might ask if they can be reassigned to different jobs. That might be the case, for example, for an older adult who has lots of contact with the public as a front desk clerk, Lemman said.

-- Aimee Green; agreen@oregonian.com; @o_aimee

Subscribe to our Oregon Coronavirus newsletter: