A California appellate court has found that Contra Costa County Superior Court’s denial of an in-custody defendant’s demand for a prompt preliminary examination wasn’t justified during shutdowns prompted by the coronavirus pandemic in the latter part of March. 

In a published opinion issued Wednesday by the First District Court of Appeal, the appellate court expressed sympathy with the difficult choices that faced the trial courts as state and national emergencies were declared in March due to the ongoing public health crisis. But the court held in the case of Dyjuan Bullock, who was charged with one count of human trafficking and two counts of pimping in early March, that “no particularized evidence” supported the lower court’s decision to deny him his right to a speedy preliminary hearing.