Marion County 5th Circuit Court Judicial Center
OCALA, FL
Project Details
18 Courtrooms + 6 Hearing Rooms
Full video conferencing, presentation, and audio and video recording abilities
280 Speakers
84 Cameras
206 Microphones
62 Displays
387,000 ft of cabling
“DM NVX technology provides us with the flexibility to be able to show a wide variety of evidence across multiple views and formats, which is important for the daily operations of our Judicial Center.” – Andy Nelson, Systems Administrator, Florida Fifth Judicial Circuit
Located in the heart of central Florida, the Marion County Judicial Center is part of the Fifth Judicial Circuit, which is comprised of five counties and over one million residents. The Fifth Judicial Circuit has its main administrative offices and courtrooms in Ocala, Florida, where over 130,000 court filings are processed each year.
THE CHALLENGE
The Marion County Judicial Center features 18 courtrooms and six hearing rooms which previously were very limited in their ability to distribute video and present evidence. This project would include an entirely new holistic networked audio and video system for the entire facility. Using funding from the CARES Act, this project needed to be completed from design to installation in under six months.
“We went from the Stone Age to the Space Age pretty quickly. It’s important for us to make things as efficient as possible in our courtroom operations and Crestron helped make that possible.”
– Andy Nelson, Systems Administrator, Florida Fifth Judicial Circuit
THE SOLUTION
Andy Nelson, Systems Administrator at the Florida Fifth Judicial Circuit worked with AV Integrator Clark, with programming support from Crestron Service Provider One Button Control, to design and implement a technology infrastructure that would futureproof content distribution and deliver ease of use for judges and attorneys. Crestron DM NVX® AV-over-IP technology was selected as the backbone for the Judicial Center because of its scalability and ability to be seamlessly deployed.
THE TECHNOLOGY
The 24 courtrooms and hearing rooms can either work independently or together as part of a larger, connected system. With the push of a button, audio and video content can be sent from one courtroom to another without worrying about videoconferencing calls or complicated setups. DM NVX has allowed participants to spread out when needed, as the Judicial Center is able to use multiple courtrooms and create a feed that can be shared with smaller groups simultaneously.
With nearly 500 DM NVX endpoints in the Marion County Judicial Center, every participant has a view of what is being presented and shared. DM NVX does not lock in the design of the system, allowing the sources and displays to evolve as needed in the future. Nelson and his team can manage the flexibility of the Crestron system while still delivering ease of use for the judges and attorneys.
“DM NVX has been helpful in our spectator operations due to the ability to send overflow video and audio to just about anywhere in the building.”
– Andy Nelson, Systems Administrator, Florida Fifth Judicial Circuit
Crestron XiO Cloud® was a gamechanger for this deployment, as it enables the hardware to be pre-commissioned with firmware updates and system settings before arriving onsite. XiO Cloud saved the IT teams an enormous amount of time during the installation process, allowing Clark to fully install commission a room in just under four hours. Following the deployment, XiO Cloud has continued to add value to the Judicial Center for seamless system updates and daily monitoring of the devices.
“XiO Cloud was a no-brainer for this project. It has enabled our team to deploy rooms at a faster rate, which was critical for this project’s timeline.”
– Kyle Goyer, Design Engineer, Clark
The new system also provided ways for the Judicial Center to adjust to hybrid sessions that were conducted during COVID-19. The court recorder can remotely monitor the audio from the microphones, and check the video feed and the courtroom equipment using the Crestron XPanel from their home computer. “XPanel allowed us to provide our courtroom operations staff with the same ability to systematically turn the room on, start the court reporting system, and listen in without actually having to physically go in and push the button,” explains Nelson.
RESULTS
With Crestron, the Marion County Judicial Center was able to update its technology capabilities to more effectively present the emerging types of evidence that are brought in during cases in the modern world. “Our judges have so much on their minds when they are on the bench, and the last thing that they need is a complicated piece of technology that's going to distract them and slow the judicial process down,” says Nelson. “Crestron helps alleviate any of those pain points with a system that is both reliable and easy-to-use.”