BENTONVILLE — Circuit Judge Brad Karren presided over 17 cases Monday afternoon, but neither the defendants nor their attorneys — not even the bailiff — were in the courtroom.
Monday was the first day for Karren to conduct some proceedings via video. Karren, his court reporter and prosecutors were in his downtown courtroom. Public defenders, the bailiff and inmates who had court cases before Karren were at the county jail.
“It’s a big change,” Karren said.
Karren will hold certain hearings via video conferencing on Mondays and Thursdays. The video conferencing will be used for nontestimonial proceedings. The majority of cases on Monday were arraignments where people entered pleas. Prosecutors had not filed charges in some of the cases, so people were given new court dates.
A 88-inch screen hangs from the wall on the opposite side of the room from Karren’s jury box. The Benton County Quorum Court recently approved spending $4,950 to purchase and install a Smart Board in Karren’s courtroom. The court already had paid $2,000 toward the equipment.
Sheriff Kelley Cradduck said video arraignments will help his transport division.
“There’s zero chance of a flight risk,” Cradduck said. “There’s zero chance of the inmate harming another person or someone harming the inmate.”
Cradduck said the setup also is a money and time-saver for jail staff. Deputies who usually would be in court with inmates can now be assigned to other tasks, Cradduck said.
According to Jail Capt. Jeremy Guyll, the largest single cost for transporting inmates is payroll. The department will save about $2,330 each month by not transporting inmates to Karren’s court.