Zoom And Court Appearances

[tightpurchaser]

My Church seems to get better quality out of Zoom than the New Jersey State Superior Court.  Last Friday I had to attend a virtual pretrial hearing where the Court uses Zoom for these appearances.  I call this trial rigging.  The overall quality, especially the audio, was poor.  I should be used to this by now; but I don't want to experience more consequence than necessary.  Most parties to these hearings just put up with the bad quality because they want it over with.  From a trial I attended last year, my audio/video transcript the Court gave me last year reflects the same bad quality.  As with the recent hearing, the audio had an underwater quality to it.  The Court I noticed uses metal boxes with glass fronts to house the TV that they connect with Zoom.  Through these hearings and trials, the Court makes Zoom look bad while delivering such poor quality.

[MGSR · Accepted solution]

Hello @tightpurchaser,

Welcome to the Zoom Community, and I apologize for the late response. 

Thank you for sharing your experience. We’re sorry to hear about the audio and video quality issues during your recent virtual court appearance. Each organization manages its own hardware, network, and room setup. Factors such as microphone placement, acoustics, bandwidth, or the use of enclosed display systems can all impact sound quality.

The “underwater” audio you described is typically linked to local hardware or environmental conditions rather than the Zoom platform itself. We recommend reaching out to the New Jersey State Superior Court’s IT Department or Judicial Administration Office to report the issue. Their technical team can review and adjust the courtroom’s setup to help ensure better quality for future sessions.

We appreciate you bringing this to our attention and value your effort to help improve the virtual hearing experience for everyone.

[tightpurchaser]

Mark, Thank you.  I never thought of doing that.  However, I don't want to portray a negative image of justice.  I notice that they place the TV in metal boxes with glass fronts through which to view the screen.  Rather than Zoom, this likely reflects on the Court.

[storyhub]

As an audio and broadcast engineer I can tell you that computer audio can be very complicated. In the past I have also managed software development for the judicial system. I currently design and manage state of the art Zoom meeting systems for one of Zoom's largest enterprise customers. I would welcome the opportunity to assist any judicial system with improvements that would raise their production value. If you would like this assistance you can send me a private message.

[tightpurchaser]

storyhub, I will pass this onto my public defender.  I have no position in the Court except as a Defendant.  When I last participate in these Zoom hearings, I was a guest of the County (get it?). Thanks for your contribution to this thread.