Court Personnel

Judge Carnahan

The judge will assign your sentencing based on how you plead. For a guilty plea, you may be assigned community service, fines, fees, or jail time. A not guilty plea will grant you a trial date to have your case heard further at a later date. There are currently two elected judges who sit in district court. Judge Carnahan handles DWI cases, while Judge Hogue handles domestic battery cases.

Judge Hogue

The court clerks can be found in a few places. They are often behind a desk after the door and the bailiff, but they are also inside of the courtroom itself. They sit on either side of the judge and sometimes there will be one with the public defender. They assign court dates, keep track of the dockets, take notes on sentencing amounts, and a lot more.

The prosecutor represents the State and can recommend penalties for the case if asked by the judge. In some cases, they can elect to drop the charges. You can ask the prosecutor about potential penalties and your case before court starts.

If you plead guilty, you will see special services after seeing the judge. They will help you set a payment plan, pay your fine, or tell you about community service opportunities.

If you plead not guilty and are facing jail time in your case, you may qualify for a public defender. The judge will have you fill out an affidavit of indigency to state your assets and income and determine if you qualify.

There are other law enforcement officers in the courtroom who are mostly there for if things go wrong or to attend to the incarcerated people who are in the court. There will be a section of seating between the attorneys and the judge that will be occupied by incarcerated people. The court asks that defendants do not interact with these people and that they do not interact with other defendants. They are heard by the judge at the end of the day's proceedings.

There will be a bailiff at the door when you arrive who will have you go through a metal detector and empty your pockets. He will also hand you one or two sheets of paper after you pass him. There will be another bailiff within the courtroom itself that hands out pens to fill out the defense attorney waiver to sign if you plan on pleading guilty and other waivers you may need to sign. Bailiffs will help direct people as they enter the courtroom.