By MARY FOSTER
Associated Press Writer
NEW ORLEANS- Criminal trials in New Orleans could begin again by March, a judge said, and the first grand jury since Hurricane Katrina hit could begin work in February _ when it may hear the case of some 40 patients who died at a hospital after the storm.
Almost five months after the hurricane, judges remain displaced while the criminal courthouse is closed for repairs and experts try to restore mold-covered evidence that sat in flood water for more than a week.
Criminal court judges are working in two courtrooms in the federal court building, in an area that didn’t flood. They hope to get a third room there for trials, which Chief Judge Calvin Johnson wants to start soon.
“That’s our plan,” Johnson said Tuesday. “We’ll have our first grand jury next week and it will begin work in February. We’ll be sending out subpoenas for regular jury duty next week, and trials are to start in March.”
In October, officials said about 3,000 criminal cases were pending in Orleans Parish, with new ones continually turning up.
To make sure enough potential grand jurors are available, court officials have sent out 3,000 summonses. It was uncertain how many would reach people, given the number of people who fled Katrina. Before the storm, officials would send 350.
The 14 grand jurors may hear the findings of an investigation into the deaths of at least 40 people at the 317-bed Memorial Medical Center after the hurricane. The state attorney general is looking into the deaths, as are local authorities.