Lawmakers take up backlog of court cases caused by pandemic
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March 19, 2021
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Kansas legislators are working to give prosecutors and courts time to clear a backlog of several thousand criminal cases that built up during the coronavirus pandemic.
The Senate approved, 32-7, a bill Wednesday night that would suspend until May 1, 2023, a law aimed at protecting defendants' constitutional right to a speedy trial. The law requires cases to come to trial within five months of a defendant who has been jailed entering a plea, and within six months if the defendant is free on bond.
Lawmakers have said there's a backlog of about 5,000 criminal cases, and prosec...
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