Above: Court employees Ciara Tymony and Qiana Bray beat the rain at Metropolitan Courthouse at an SEIU 721 rally over court closures
On the eve of an expected Thursday decision on whether courts across the state will remain closed to the public one day each month, approximately 100 court employees represented by SEIU Local 721 gathered outside Metropolitan courthouse in Los Angeles.
Click here to see more pictures from the rally.
The lines at the normally busy traffic court were down to a trickle, but court employees still handed out nearly 300 flyers to frustrated people who had taken time off work only to find the court closed.
“We’re issuing a lot more warrants for failure to pay, probably because of the economy. And a lot of people who show up when courts are closed can’t take the time off to come back,” said Josie Trejo, CSA II at Alhambra Courthouse.
“We need to make sure courts stay open so that people can get the services that they need so they can take care of their business. The health of our economy depends on the County of Los Angeles court system staying open,” said Ciara Tymony, CSA III at the Metro court.
“The closure of the courts is hurting everybody,” said Court Reporter Rose Nava. “We have people who are trying to get their lives together — and we’re turning them away.”
Court employees will speak at the Judicial Council meeting in San Francisco on Jan. 21, where court leaders are expected to vote whether to extend the court closures.
Angie Avina, CSA II at Metro, was the last person to leave. She wanted to help as many people as she could. “I feel bad for the people who are showing up,” she said as a steady stream of people dodged raindrops to reach the court door. “Esta cerrado,” she said.