Been To New Rochelle? You're Banned From CT's Federal Courthouses

NEW ROCHELLE, NY — If you're from New Rochelle or even just visited there, you can't enter any of Connecticut's three federal courthouses as of this week. The chief judge for the U.S. District Court for the District of Connecticut issued an order barring entry of anyone who visited New Rochelle, China, South Korea, Japan, Italy, Iran and any other location that has been under coronavirus-related quarantine in the past 14 days.

In addition, if you've been in close contact with anyone who's been in New Rochelle in the past 14 days, you can't go in.

Don’t miss coronavirus updates as they are announced. Sign up for Patch news alerts and newsletters.

Commuters have an exemption. People who have driven through New Rochelle, or gone through it on a train, are excluded, the order says.

New Rochelle is at the epicenter of New York's outbreak of coronavirus, known as COVID-19. A containment zone went into effect Thursday for one mile around the synagogue where the virus spread rapidly 10 days ago. Large gatherings were banned, schools were closed, and drive-through testing was established to find infected people.

The Westchester County Executive called for tolerance in a recent Facebook post.

Federal courts in Connecticut also announced jury selections and jury trials scheduled before any district or magistrate judge in any courthouse, including New Haven, Hartford and Bridgeport, are postponed until April 10 at the earliest.

Coronavirus in New York and beyond

• Coronavirus In Hudson Valley: 161 Cases, More Schools Close
• The Coronavirus, The Congressman And Me
• Coronavirus: New Rochelle Containment Area In Effect