In State v. Brimmer, decided today by the Iowa Supreme Court, the majority (Justices Dana Oxley, joined by Justices Christopher McDonald, Matthew McDermott, and David May) concluded that defendant’s public trial rights were violated by the complete closure of his trial, including the exclusion of his family (here, just his mother):
[T]he pandemic is an overriding interest that supports the court’s decision to limit the public’s access to Brimmer’s trial [in April 2021]. But identifying an overriding interest is only the first step to closing a trial to the public.