LOUISVILLE, Ky. — The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted community members in different ways — people have gotten sick, others lost their jobs and some kicked out of their homes. It's also heavily impacted the court system.
According to the latest order by the Kentucky Supreme Court, all civil and criminal jury trials have been postponed until after Feb. 1, 2021. For some, that means an even longer wait for justice.
It's been almost two years since 25-year-old Jose Munoz was shot and killed at an Olive Garden on Outer Loop after an argument.
"The pain is horrible. I can't even explain how much I miss him," his sister-in-law Donna Munoz said. "What was so bad in that moment that you could shoot a human being in that restaurant? It hasn't gotten any easier... not one bit."
Munoz said she still struggles to come to terms with it all.
"I sit and I look at a picture and I'm like, this is real, this is real life happening," Munoz said.
Police arrested Devone Briggs within 24 hours of the shooting, charging him with murder and seven counts of wanton endangerment.
The trial was originally scheduled for July 2020, but in March, COVID-19 hit Kentucky and courtrooms were forced to adjust. Now, they're looking at a trial in mid- to late-July 2021.
Chief Judge Angela McCormick Bisig said she's also frustrated to have to postpone these trials, and sympathizes with those involved. She said in-custody criminal cases will take priority when trials resume.
"I understood it, I just didn't expect it to be postponed a whole year," Munoz said.
Munoz said it's made the holiday season especially rough — the family hoped for some closure in the case this year.
Briggs pleaded not guilty to the charges, and his attorney argued the shooting was out of self-defense. In August, he bonded out and was put on HIP.
"This individual is having Christmas, he just had Thanksgiving, this is his second Christmas at home. We don't have that," Munoz said. "He's getting credit for his time sitting at home, as if he's sitting in jail when he's not. There's been no justice for us."
Munoz said a pretrial conference scheduled for January has also been postponed. She said she hopes that won't affect the new trial date in July.
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