Following an increase in COVID-19 cases, anyone entering the Christian County Courthouse or the Christian County Justice Center is required to wear a mask.
Both locations reinstated masks policies last week, as the county’s incidence rate grew to 34.1, which is considered in the “red zone” for community transmission. On Thursday, the health department confirmed 168 new coronavirus cases — the most weekly cases confirmed since Feb 9.
Everyone entering the old courthouse, 511 S. Main St., must use the front entrance and wear a mask in the building, the Christian County Clerk’s Office announced in a Facebook post.
The courthouse closed four times in 2020 following instances of employees testing positive for COVID-19.
Christian Circuit Clerk Paige Parker said an order entered last week by local judges requires everyone to wear a mask when they enter the justice center. Employees have some discretion to remove masks in their offices, but they must wear them in public areas of the justice center.
In some cases, the judge may also allow individuals in the courtrooms to remove their mask if there is enough space for social distancing.
“Christian County has just crossed back over into ‘red’ so we are complying with state and federal recommendations on the use of facial coverings while indoors,” Christian District Judge Foster Cotthoff said in a Facebook post.
During earlier waves of the pandemic, the courthouse and justice center — along with other public buildings in Hopkinsville — were closed at times to in-person business, with employees conducting business online or over the phone.
Jennifer P. Brown is co-founder, publisher and editor of Hoptown Chronicle. You can reach her at editor@hoptownchronicle.org. She spent 30 years as a reporter and editor at the Kentucky New Era. She is a co-chair of the national advisory board to the Institute for Rural Journalism and Community Issues, governing board president for the Kentucky Historical Society, and co-founder of the Kentucky Open Government Coalition.
