Santa Clara County Superior Court Shutters Amid Protests

SANTA CLARA COUNTY, CA — Amid public safety concerns during ongoing protests over the death of George Floyd, the Santa Clara County Superior Court has been closed for at least one day.

Court officials said Sunday night the court will be closed Monday "in the interest of public safety" in response to the civil unrest and the city of San Jose's curfew and local emergency proclamation.

The city of San Jose enacted a citywide curfew from 8:30 p.m. to 5 a.m. that went into effect on Sunday night and will be in place for seven days unless otherwise amended, The San Francisco Chronicle reports.

San Jose imposed the curfew following clashes between protesters and police over the weekend that turned violent and reports of looting.

San Jose police said one officer was hospitalized with non-life threatening injuries and several others suffered minor injures after being struck by rocks and bottles, KGO reports.

Protesters shut down part of the Highway 101 on Friday night, the report said.

San Jose Police Chief Eddie Garcia said there were more than 100 arrests over the weekend, KTVU reports.

"With consideration for the safety of the public, our judicial officers and employees, I have made the difficult decision to close our courthouses tomorrow," said Presiding Judge Deborah A. Ryan, who made the decision to close all courthouses.

The court will provide updates Monday as to whether the courts will reopen Tuesday.

"We will closely monitor circumstances in Santa Clara County and the City of San Jose and continue to act in the best interests of our community and public safety going forward," Ryan said.

Bay City News contributed to this report.