Texas tries nation’s first virtual criminal trial

A Texan’s speeding ticket put her in the legal history books last week.

To combat the backlog in criminal cases created by the pandemic, a Travis County justice of the peace conducted the nation’s first virtual criminal trial. The case was livestreamed on YouTube, and the jurors deliberated in a private Zoom room.

Legal experts debated whether trial by Zoom properly balanced constitutional concerns such as the right to a speedy trial and the right to confront witnesses.