Washington County District Court Role
District Court is the primary limited-jurisdiction state trial court in Washington County. It hears misdemeanor prosecutions, early felony proceedings, small claims, district civil cases, unlawful detainers, and state traffic matters. A felony may begin with an arrest, complaint, initial appearance, bond decision, or preliminary hearing at the district level, then move to Circuit Court after indictment or bind-over. Sheriff Richard Stringer's office handles arrest, booking, and sheriff-service functions, while the court file itself remains with Circuit Clerk Valerie Bailey. A misdemeanor can remain in District Court through plea, trial, disposition, and sentence unless the case arose under a city ordinance in a municipal court.
Washington County sits in Alabama's First Judicial Circuit with Choctaw and Clarke counties. The regional circuit does not erase the local District Court. Judge William Alexander Odom serves as the Washington County District Judge, while the Circuit Clerk maintains the public files for both district and circuit cases. The Washington County First Circuit Court site provides the courthouse and clerk access point, including a public computer for court-record searches.
Statewide paid access is available through Alacourt ACCESS / Just One Look. It supports name and case-number searches for Alabama trial-court records. When a paid search is not suitable, the Circuit Clerk's public computer and staff assistance are the direct Washington County fallback.
Washington County District Court Contact
Official research identifies one county District Court and one district judge contact block, not several numbered district courts. The court hears its civil, small-claims, criminal, and traffic work through the Washington County courthouse structure. Circuit Clerk staff handle the court files, while the judge's office has its own mailing address and phone.
| Court identifier | Type | Address | Phone |
|---|---|---|---|
| Washington County District Court | District civil, small claims, misdemeanor, preliminary felony, traffic | Court Street; P.O. Box 1025, Chatom, AL 36518 | Judge: (251) 847-2164 |
| Circuit Clerk records counter | District and circuit record access | 45 Court Street, Chatom, AL 36518 | (251) 847-2239 |
The official district judge listing identifies Hon. William Alexander Odom. Court users should call the Circuit Clerk for file searches and the judge contact only for the court functions the office permits. Neither office should be asked for private legal advice.
District, Circuit, Probate, Municipal Courts
Alabama does not use the county-court and justice-of-the-peace pattern shown in some state templates. Washington County records instead divide among District Court, Circuit Court, Probate Court, and the municipal courts that serve incorporated towns. The source of the charge or claim, its level, and its subject decide the venue.
| Point | District Court | Circuit Court | Probate / Municipal |
|---|---|---|---|
| Civil work | Small claims through $6,000; district civil $6,000.01-$20,000; unlawful detainers | Larger and non-monetary civil cases; domestic relations | Probate handles estates and protected-person matters; municipal court is not a general civil venue |
| Criminal work | Misdemeanors and preliminary felony matters | Felonies and major criminal proceedings | Municipal ordinances and city misdemeanors; probate is separate |
| Traffic | Many state citations | Appeal or related higher-level action as law permits | Municipal court handles city citations |
| Record custodian | Circuit Clerk | Circuit Clerk | Probate Office or municipal clerk |
Probate is not a lower division of District Court. The Probate Court's separate authority comes from Ala. Code § 12-13-1, which covers wills, estates, guardianships, and related matters.
The statute image reinforces why a probate filing should not be routed to Washington County District Court or the Circuit Clerk.
Washington County District Case Flow
A District Court case does not follow one path. A misdemeanor can stay in the court from charging through disposition. A felony may use District Court only for its first stage before the grand jury and Circuit Court process. Small claims and district civil cases move from a statement or complaint through service, response, setting, judgment, and possible appeal. The court record tracks each filed step and setting.
Misdemeanor flow: Complaint or citation › Initial appearance or setting › Plea › Pretrial action › Trial or plea › Disposition and sentence › Appeal
Felony start: Arrest or warrant › First appearance and bond › Preliminary district proceeding › Indictment or bind-over › Circuit Court arraignment and case
Small-claims flow: Statement of claim › Service › Answer or default › Setting › Judgment › Collection filing or appeal
District or municipal appeals may reach Circuit Court for de novo proceedings depending on case type. “De novo” means the Circuit Court considers the matter anew rather than merely reading the lower-court record. A final Circuit Court judgment then routes to the proper Alabama appellate court based on whether the case is civil or criminal.
Washington County District Case Types
Small claims are a District Court division. The local cost schedule groups claims at $1,500 or less, $1,500.01-$3,000, and $3,000.01-$6,000. A file may contain the statement of claim, service return, answer, setting, default or trial judgment, satisfaction, execution, and garnishment papers. District civil covers claims from $6,000.01 through $20,000 and unlawful detainers. Its confirmed filing charge is $293.
On the criminal side, District Court handles misdemeanors and early felony events. Public files may show the complaint, bond, party and attorney details, setting dates, pleas, orders, financial history, and disposition. Juvenile files and protected identifiers are confidential or restricted. An ordinary public name search should not be expected to reveal juvenile court information.
Family and domestic relations original filings principally belong in Circuit Court, not the District Court division profiled here. Likewise, a Washington County will, estate, adoption, or involuntary commitment belongs in Probate Court. Keeping these subject lines distinct makes the District Court records search much more precise.
Washington County First Judicial Circuit
The First Judicial Circuit links Washington, Choctaw, and Clarke counties at the circuit level. Presiding Circuit Judge Charles R. Montgomery has a Chatom mailing address and phone at (251) 847-2304. Circuit Judge Perry Newton is listed in Grove Hill at (251) 275-8363. District Judge William Alexander Odom remains the local District Court judge for Washington County.
This shared circuit matters when a lower-court case is appealed, a felony moves beyond preliminary District Court proceedings, or a larger civil case begins in Circuit Court. It does not merge all county files into one court. The Circuit Clerk is unified for district and circuit records, but the docket still identifies the court and case type. A public searcher should verify that label before relying on a result.
Washington County Municipal Courts
Chatom Municipal Court and McIntosh Municipal Court form separate city-level paths. Chatom court meets at Town Hall, 44 West Front Street, on the fourth Tuesday at 6:00 p.m. McIntosh court meets on the third Monday at 5:00 p.m.; its official court phone is (251) 944-2428, and ticket payments may be mailed by cashier's check or money order to P.O. Box 385, McIntosh, AL 36553.
A city traffic ticket, ordinance case, city misdemeanor, or municipal failure-to-appear issue may not appear as a Washington County District Court matter. The court named on the citation or notice controls where the person should call and pay. State traffic matters use the Washington County court traffic process, including OTR for eligible cases, Alapay, or approved mail and counter channels through the Circuit Clerk.
Washington County warns that failure to dispose of a state traffic case and failure to appear can result in an arrest warrant, ALEA license suspension, a higher fine, and bond forfeiture. The date on the ticket is not a trial date. A defendant who pleads not guilty must appear on that date to request a trial.
Federal Courts Outside Washington District Court
The U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Alabama is a federal court, not the Washington County District Court. Federal civil and criminal cases use the federal clerk, CM/ECF, and PACER. Bankruptcy filings use the separate U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Alabama. Neither belongs in the Circuit Clerk's Alabama District Court record system.
The Southern District of Alabama Bankruptcy Court identifies the federal venue for Chapter 7, 11, 12, and 13 cases.
This federal source keeps a bankruptcy search from being misrouted to Washington County District Court in Chatom. The bankruptcy court's CM/ECF and PACER access page explains its electronic docket system.
Use that system for federal bankruptcy documents, while Washington County District Court records remain with the state Circuit Clerk and Alacourt.