Erath County Criminal Docket Searches
Need an Erath County criminal docket search? The local starting point is the Erath Odyssey portal. The portal splits the docket work between two separate search tools. Smart Search handles case lookup, while Search Hearings covers settings on the calendar. Bring a cause number or the defendant's full name. Know, too, whether the case is a district felony or a county-level misdemeanor, because that fact decides which clerk can verify the register and issue copies.
The system needs JavaScript and cookies to run. Smart Search does not publish its live field list, so treat its controls as unconfirmed. The hearing screen is better documented. The filters are precise. Choose location, hearing type, party name, case number, judicial officer, courtroom, and a range of dates.
- Open Odyssey and choose the proper location and criminal search route.
- Use the cause number when known. Otherwise, enter the party name and check spelling.
- Match the result by court, judge, status, and setting rather than name alone.
- Review charges, appearances, motions, pleas, resets, and disposition entries.
- Try re:SearchTX, then contact the proper clerk if no local result appears.
When a docket line alone will not do, request the judgment or order by document name, either plain or certified. A screen view is not a certified record.
Erath Criminal Hearing Filters
The Search Hearings interface is a calendar tool, and that is its limit. It can show when an Erath County criminal case is set. It does not display the entire criminal docket. Courtroom choices have included the Donald R. Jones Justice Center, the Dublin Annex, the county courthouse, the jail, phone, virtual, plea, and Zoom settings. Live choices may change.
| Filter | Best Use | Limit |
|---|---|---|
| Case Number | Known criminal cause | Exact format may matter |
| Party Name | First and last name | Check alternate spelling |
| Judicial Officer | Known judge's settings | List has legacy options |
| Courtroom | In-person or remote setting | Not the full register |
| Date From/To | Narrow a hearing window | Wrong range can hide results |
A blank hearing search only means no result matched those filters. It does not prove that no criminal case exists.
Criminal Dockets: What They Show
Think of an Erath County criminal docket as a chronological register. Event labels vary from court to court. Still, the record can identify the case, the charge, counsel status, settings, rulings, and the outcome. Rely on the cause number as the safest identifier. Do not treat any invented number pattern as official.
| Case Header | Cause number, court, judge, filing or indictment date, category, style, and status. |
|---|---|
| Charge | Offense text, classification or statute if exposed, and indictment or complaint event. |
| Appearances | Defendant role, attorney indicator, public bond event, and arraignment. |
| Settings | Date, time, courtroom or remote mode, setting type, and reset history. |
| Disposition | Conviction, dismissal, deferred result, discharge, judgment, sentence, and date when shown. |
| Documents | Indictments, motions, orders, judgments, or bond papers may be linked when access permits. |
Financial fields may show costs, fines, restitution, or bond information. Restricted identifiers and sealed material can be redacted or missing from the register entirely.
Erath Resets Are Not Outcomes
A reset just moves an Erath County criminal docket setting to a new date. It is not a dismissal, conviction, or acquittal. It is not a final disposition either. Under the 266th District Court rules, plea-bargain and reset approval ties to the jury calendar. Any agreement must win approval by 5 p.m. Thursday before jury week. Otherwise the case stays on the jury docket.
Read the next line. When a docket shows a reset or continuance, find the new date and setting type, then confirm it with the clerk or scheduling office.
Preliminary matters generally must be filed at least seven days before pretrial. Good cause can excuse the deadline. That rule explains why a motion, a plea announcement, and a setting change can sit close together on the docket without resolving the prosecution.
Criminal Case Stages on the Docket
A district felony register often opens with an indictment and counsel entry. The 266th rules draw a sharp line between two kinds of arraignment. Informal arraignment covers an unrepresented accused after indictment. Formal arraignment comes with pretrial procedure. County misdemeanor practice works differently. There, a criminal docket call doubles as a pretrial date. A plea-bargain announcement should carry the later plea-hearing date. It should also show the defendant's approval.
Docket flow: Filing or Indictment › Arraignment › Pretrial › Plea or Trial › Disposition › Sentencing
- Arraignment
- A proceeding addressing the charge and required procedure.
- Pretrial
- A setting for motions, readiness, negotiation, plea discussion, or reset.
- Disposition
- The recorded outcome, such as conviction, dismissal, discharge, or deferred adjudication.
- Deferred adjudication
- A distinct criminal disposition. It is not expunction.
Erath Plea Deadline Docket
The Erath County Court at Law page links several documents. These include a Plea Deadline Docket, a criminal standing order, dismissal and discharge orders, and the court rules. Treat the deadline docket as a case-management device only. It does not replace the underlying plea, judgment, or dismissal document.
Judge Blake Thompson presides over the County Court at Law. Coordinator Tonja Hilzer handles scheduling there. The County Clerk keeps county misdemeanor records. Keep three things separate in an Erath County criminal docket lookup: a plea deadline, a plea hearing, and a final disposition. Each can occupy its own line.
Note: Confirm a plea or reset date from the current docket or clerk. Do not rely on a static linked docket document.
Erath County Criminal Docket Courts
District Clerk Wanda Greer maintains felony cases in the 266th Judicial District Court. Her District Clerk's office sits at 298 S Graham in Stephenville. Reach it at 254-965-1486. For district scheduling, court administrator Candy Perry takes calls at 254-965-1485. Staff can explain access and procedure. They cannot give legal advice.
County misdemeanors run through County Clerk Gwinda Jones. Her dedicated criminal misdemeanor counter is also at 298 S Graham, at 254-965-1407. This split matters in any Erath County criminal docket lookup.
| Case Level | Court | Custodian |
|---|---|---|
| Felony | 266th Judicial District Court | District Clerk |
| County misdemeanor | County Court at Law | County Clerk criminal division |
| Fine-only local offense | Justice or municipal court | That court or clerk |
Missing Erath Criminal Results
A missing result can mean many things. The wrong court, a narrow date range, or a spelling choice could be the cause. So could a historical record, pending indexing, or a lawful restriction. Strip out unneeded filters. Switch between Smart Search and Search Hearings. Then check re:SearchTX as a second layer. Remember that statewide criminal coverage and historical dates can differ.
For a felony, start with the District Clerk. Give the name, the approximate filing date, and any known cause number. For a county misdemeanor, contact the County Clerk criminal division. Ask whether a public register exists. Ask whether a named paper can be released, and whether certification is available. Until the custodian confirms the status, say "not located in the searched public interface."
Note: Portal failure is not proof. It does not mean an Erath County criminal docket was sealed or destroyed.
Access Rules for Criminal Dockets
Texas access rules shape what the public can see in a criminal docket. The Texas judiciary access policy makes clear that court rules, other laws, and common law all govern judiciary access. Court case records, judicial administrative records, and law-enforcement incident files each sit in a separate bucket.
Key Texas rules:
Family Code Chapter 58 gives juvenile records special access, sealing, and destruction treatment.
Code of Criminal Procedure Article 42A.106 addresses clerk records involving deferred adjudication.
Government Code Chapter 552 leaves judiciary access to court rules and other law.
An expunction is not something an online request can accomplish, and deferred adjudication is not expunction. Display limits can also come from protected identifiers, juvenile material, and ordered restrictions.
Erath Docket Versus Indictment
An Erath criminal docket is only an index of case events. The indictment is the charging paper behind one of those events. A judgment, plea paper, motion, and order are each their own document. A public Erath entry may show that a paper was filed. It will not reveal the full text. Nor will it hand you an authenticated copy.
Track Erath sequence and settings with the Erath County criminal docket. Exact terms matter. Request the named Erath document itself from the District Clerk or County Clerk. Give the Erath court, the cause number, and the document type. Say whether you need a certified copy. Ask about Erath fees and image access up front. The blank portal never established document-image pricing.
Verify Erath Criminal Entries
Verification starts with the Erath event you care about. For a hearing, write down the date and time. Add the setting type, the judge, and the courtroom or remote mode. Then ask the Erath clerk or scheduling office whether that setting is still current. For an outcome, find the latest disposition line. When exact terms matter, request the signed paper. Ask for the signed Erath judgment, dismissal, discharge, or other order. This habit pays off. It keeps a calendar result, a register entry, and a filed paper from being mistaken for the same thing.
The clerk needs enough detail to pull the right Erath County criminal docket. Offer the Erath cause number if you have it. Give the court level and the defendant's name. Add an approximate filing or indictment date and the document you want. Ask whether the copy is plain or certified, and whether redaction affects release. Erath District Clerk staff keep the district register. The Erath County Clerk criminal division keeps the county misdemeanor register. Neither a general Erath records request nor an Erath Sheriff's incident-record request replaces those court-copy routes.
Save your Erath search date and filters. Portal data shifts as Erath clerks enter later settings and orders. A note of the Erath court, your criteria, and the result helps. It makes a focused follow-up search far easier.
Route each Erath question to the right office. The Erath District Clerk confirms felony register entries and district documents. The Erath County Clerk criminal desk confirms misdemeanor register entries and county documents. A municipal or Justice Court matter stays with that Erath court. Whatever the request, name the Erath court, cause number, event, and paper you need.