AUSTIN, Texas – How do you appear in court without physically going to court but still fulfill all legal obligations? That’s a question judges have been trying to answer since the coronavirus pandemic arrived in the U.S., and a Texas judge is taking the first steps to toward holding binding teleconferenced criminal jury trials.

On Tuesday morning, Travis County Justice of the Peace Nicholas Chu joined 30 jurors in a Zoom conference room for a class C misdemeanor traffic ticket case.

According to the county, the case was the first of its kind in the country. Back in May there was a summary jury trial in Collin County, Texas, but that verdict was non-binding.

“This pandemic has forced the Travis County judicial system to make creative and technological adjustments in order to better serve our constituents,” said Judge Chu in a written statement. “Tuesday’s criminal jury trial via videoconference is a small step that will provide guidance to the other courts in Travis County and throughout the nation.”

Jurors who did not have access to log into the video conference were provided loaner equipment. All people involved in the lawsuit agreed to participate in the video trial.

The next step in testing the use of video conferencing in courtrooms will land in Bexar County, Texas, for a multi-day trial later this month.