The state Judicial Branch announced it would close courthouses in Middletown and Milford at the end of the business day Wednesday, in its continued efforts to protect employees and staff from the further spread of the new coronavirus.

Cases from the Middlesex Judicial District courthouse will be heard at the New Britain Judicial District courthouse until further notice, and cases from the Ansonia-Milford district will be transferred to the courthouse at 1061 Main St. in Bridgeport.

The closures represent further action by the Judicial Branch to ensure the highest possible level of protection to the public and to the staff who work in state courthouses, according to Chief Court Administrator Patrick J. Carroll III. He said in a statement that the closures were implemented after an analysis indicated they could be safely closed without compromising the ability to conduct constitutionally mandated work at the remaining open courthouses.

The branch had announced late Tuesday that it temporarily closed the Stamford-Norwalk Judicial Courthouse and transferred cases to the Fairfield Judicial District after employees were exposed to another employee exhibiting possible symptoms of COVID-19. The Stamford courthouse will undergo a comprehensive cleaning and sanitization.

The employees who may have been exposed to the one exhibiting COVID-19-like symptoms have been instructed to self-quarantine at home for 14 days, or until the potentially infected employee's test results are received.

The branch has been consolidating courts, reducing hours of operation and limiting business to priority cases in its ongoing efforts to respond to the social distancing mandates in place during the outbreak.

Branch officials said last week that four employees have tested positive for COVID-19, including an adult probation officer from Stamford; a judicial marshal from Torrington, an officer from the Hartford detention center; and a clerk in Danbury, according to Rhonda Stearley-Hebert, program manager for communications for the branch.

A staff member and a juvenile at the branch's juvenile detention facility in Hartford also have been confirmed to have the virus and the facility is not accepting new detainees, according to a branch spokeswoman.

The New London Judicial District courthouse at 70 Huntington St. remains the only courthouse open in southeastern Connecticut. Cases from Danielson also are being heard there.

The branch is seeking to obtain more protective equipment for judicial marshals, who continue to staff the courthouses and interact with the public and prisoners. Most criminal cases are on hold, except for the arraignments of newly arrested offenders in domestic violence cases and those who are held on bond for other alleged offenses.

k.florin@theday.com