One employee at the Stanley Mosk Courthouse called this “hell week” as hundreds of Los Angeles Superior Court workers braced for layoffs. The L.A. Daily News reported that 539 employees will be impacted, and broke the number down: “The move will result in 177 layoffs, 139 workers who will be demoted with pay cuts, 223 who will be transferred to new work locations and some positions that will remain unfilled, a court official said.”
Mary Hearn, a court spokesperson, told the newspaper that “… there will be delays in getting hearing dates and there will be much longer lines… we have prided ourselves on being the largest neighborhood court ever in a county the size of Los Angeles County, because no matter where you lived you didn’t have to go far if you had court business to attend to. But with the closure of these court houses … we’ve also had to reorganize the work because now we’re providing service in fewer locations than before.”
She also singled out eviction cases and small claims courts as examples of court service cuts. Evictions, called “unlawful detainer cases,” that have been heard in 26 courthouses will be heard in only five. Small claims cases went from 26 sites to two sites.
You can read Kevin Smith’s excellent Daily News story here.