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39 verbatim requirements from AO 2020-14 Specific Procedures for Nassau County Felony, Misdemeanor, and Juvenile Delinquency Divisions (Amended).
Fourth Judicial Circuit (Duval, Clay, Nassau). Procedural information only; not legal advice.
Verbatim from https://www.jud4.org/getContentAsset/90f7375c-c1b4-4b0e-9574-e125c47a2409/135b97c9-84fa-4e82-b956-0fbccec4aa1f/2020-14-Admin-Memo-Order-Specific-Procedures-for-Nassau-Criminal-Divisions_.pdf?language=en, harvested 2026-07-25; whitespace normalised only. • County which are set-forth in the attached Appendix A shall apply to all felony cases until further order of the court; • Nassau County which are set-forth in the attached Appendix B shall apply to all misdemeanor cases until further order of the court; • Nassau County which are set-forth in the attached Appendix C shall apply to all juvenile delinquency cases until further order of the court; • All parties and attorneys appearing before these divisions shall familiarize themselves and comply with all temporary emergency procedures attached to this administrative order. • In response to the current emergency brought on by the COVID-19 virus, the following procedures shall remain in place until further notice of this court: • Procedures for Incarcerated Defendants 1) Pursuant to Nassau County Administrative Order 2020-07, all hearings involving defendants incarcerated in the Nassau County Jail (NCJ) shall be conducted remotely by Zoom application. • No private attorneys will be allowed in the presiding judge's chambers and all must appear remotely. • It is the responsibility of all counsel to obtain the link to participate in any Zoom application session. 2) Docket for incarcerated defendants shall start each Thursday at 8:30 a.m. and conclude by 10:30 a.m. 3) Prior to any scheduled remote hearings for inmates in the NCJ, the presiding judge's office will contact all defense attorneys with incarcerated clients on the docket to determine if their client's case may be administratively passed to another day. • Attorneys do not need to appear if their client's case is administratively passed. • 4) If a defendant needs to appear remotely before the court, it is ultimately the responsibility of counsel to communicate that information to the presiding judge's assistant no later than 1:00 p.m. on the Wednesday before docket. • If no written waiver, counsel must communicate this to the presiding judge's assistant by the 1:00 p.m. deadline on the Wednesday before docket. • No private attorneys will be allowed in the presiding judge's chambers and all counsel and their clients must appear remotely. • Counsel need not join the remote court session until it is their time to appear. 5) Any case not specifically scheduled by counsel or the court will automatically be passed to another date. 6) Waiver of Appearance and Plea of Not Guilty - Neither counsel nor a defendant is required to appear for arraignment if the defendant has filed a Waiver of Appearance and written • Location - For an out-of-custody defendant who is entering a plea that will result in a period of incarceration in either the county jail or state prison, the defendant is required at the appointed time to appear at the Nassau County Jail to enter such plea. • For an out-of-custody defendant who is entering a plea that does not involve any period of incarceration, including a time-served plea, the defendant is required at the appointed time to appear at the Jury Assembly • In order to schedule a plea hearing for an in-custody defendant who will enter a plea in exchange for a sentence that includes a period of incarceration in the Florida State Prison, counsel must contact the judge's assistant to request permission. • In the request, counsel must provide the total amount of time the defendant will remain incarcerated (sentence minus credit for time served). • It is the responsibility of counsel to provide the remote link to any third-party witness they intend to call. 4) If counsel believes an in-person hearing is required, counsel must contact the presiding judge's office and request it, in writing with copy to opposing counsel. • Procedures for Incarcerated Respondents 1) All hearings involving Respondents detained in the Duval Detention Center (DDC) shall be conducted remotely by Zoom application. • Unless there are exceptional circumstances, no private attorneys will be allowed in the Courtroom and all must appear remotely. • Respondents will appear remotely from the DOC on their scheduled hearing date unless counsel has previously requested that the case be passed by contacting the presiding judge's assistant no later than 1:00 p.m. on the Tuesday before docket. • Attorneys do not need to appear if their client's case is administratively passed. 5) Waiver of appearance - Counsel may waive the appearance of their client if there is a substantive matter to address, but the client's presence is not necessary. • Counsel must communicate this to the presiding judge's assistant by the 1:00 p.m. deadline on the Tuesday before docket. • Respondents who are not incarcerated in the Nassau County Jail (NCJ) shall be conducted remotely by Zoom application unless the Notice specifically mandates an in person appearance by • Attorneys do not need to appear if their client's case is administratively passed. • Any case not specifically scheduled by counsel or the court will automatically be passed to another date. 4) Waiver of Appearance and Plea of Not Guilty - Neither counsel nor a Respondent is required to appear for arraignment if the defendant has filed a Waiver of Appearance and written • 1) Hearings anticipated to last 20 minutes or less can be handled during the regularly scheduled remote sessions for in-custody Respondents and for out-of-custody Respondents. 2) Hearings anticipated to last more than 20 minutes, or those involving multiple items of evidence or third-party witness testimony, should be scheduled with the presiding judge's assistant for a time after 1:30 p.m. each Wednesday. 3) If counsel believes an in-person hearing is required, counsel must contact the presiding judge's office and request it, in writing with copy to opposing counsel. • Permission will not routinely be granted, but for any in-person hearing, all procedures recommended by the CDC will strictly be followed. 4) For hearings involving exhibits, proposed orders, or copies of cases cited, the parties are directed to send these to the Court's judicial assistant, astrickland@nassauclerk.com, via email at least 24 hours in advance of the hearing with copies to all. • In response to the current emergency brought on by the COVID-19 virus, the following procedures shall remain in place until further notice of this court: • Procedures for Incarcerated Defendants 1) Pursuant to Nassau County Administrative Order 2020-07, all hearings involving defendants incarcerated in the Nassau County Jail (NCJ) shall be conducted remotely by Zoom application. • It is the responsibility of all counsel to obtain the link to participate in any Zoom application session. 2) Docket for incarcerated defendants shall start each Monday at 1:30 p.m. 3) Prior to any scheduled remote hearings for inmates in the NCJ, the presiding judge's office may contact all defense attorneys with incarcerated clients on the docket to determine if their client's case may be administratively passed to another day. • 4) If an incarcerated defendant needs to appear remotely before the court, it is ultimately the responsibility of counsel to communicate that information to the presiding judge's assistant no later than 1:00 p.m. on the Friday before docket. • Counsel must communicate this to the presiding judge's assistant by the 1:00 p.m. deadline on the Friday before docket. • If your address has changed, you must provide a current address to the Clerk of the Court. • If you have an attorney, you must stay in communication with your attorney to receive notice of the new date to appear. 2) All hearings involving defendants who are not incarcerated in the Nassau County Jail (NCJ) shall be conducted remotely by Zoom application. • No private attorneys will be allowed in the presiding judge's chambers and all counsel and their clients must appear remotely. • Counsel should not join the remote court session until it is their time to appear. 7) Any case not specifically scheduled by counsel or the court will automatically be passed to another date. 8) Waiver of Appearance and Plea of Not Guilty - Neither counsel nor a defendant is required to appear for arraignment if the defendant has filed a Waiver of Appearance and written • Location - For an out-of-custody defendant who is entering a plea that will result in a period of incarceration in the county jail, the defendant is required at the appointed time to appear at the Nassau County Jail to enter such plea. • For an out-of-custody defendant who is entering a plea that does not involve any period of incarceration, including a time-served plea, the defendant is required at the appointed time to appear at the Jury Assembly Room in the Yulee
County which are set-forth in the attached Appendix A shall apply to all felony cases until further order of the court; -- 2 of 20 --
Reviewer note: Document sha256: fd5be42ea1d3123372937a733364dab87b83e3c442f0f8f3129d8f0e12497d7f. Extracted from the document's own text layer. Text layer cleaned 2026-09-08 (Phase 3a): page markers removed; wording untouched. Text layer cleaned 2026-09-08 (Phase 3g): 1 kerning-split word rejoined; wording untouched. Text recomposed 2026-09-08 (Phase 3i, batch 5): read against the official print through the vision lane; wording unchanged.
Judge Damico's order specs are exacting: OLS submission in Word only, "DONE and ORDERED in Palm Beach County, Florida," every party's name and address, subject matter in the title, 1-inch margins, 12-point ADA-accessible font.
Judge Keever-Agrama's office is the courthouse outlier: it does not communicate via e-mail at all — call the Judicial Assistant, including for special-set dates.