County Criminal Court 3

County Courts Building
  1. Re-Certification of the Denton County Judiciary's In-Person Operating Plan
  2. Denton County Courts Eighth Amended Temporary Guidelines Regarding Health and Safety Concerns
  3. Texas Supreme Court - Twenty-Ninth Emergency Order Regarding COVID-19 State of Disaster
  4. Notice to Vulnerable Populations
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Public Notice

***IF YOU ARE EXPERIENCING SYMPTOMS OF COVID-19 DO NOT COME TO COURT! PLEASE CONTACT THE COURT ADMINISTRATOR  FOR RESCHEDULE OF COURT DATE***

County Criminal Court #3 Processes Under COVID-19 Restrictions:

Pursuant to Office of Court Administration Guidelines, no non-essential hearing should be held in person unless it is not possible or practicable to conduct the hearing remotely. Therefore, defendants and defense counsel should not appear at any setting unless ordered to appear by the court. In person hearings will be kept to a bare minimum. Social Distancing procedures will be in place and the number of people allowed in the court will be limited.  All those waiting to enter the courtroom are required to social distance in the hallway until asked to enter the courtroom.  Masks will be required for all in-person court proceedings.  

Defendants without Attorneys:

You will need to appear in court on your scheduled court date and choose how you wish to move forward with your case. Failure to appear may result in a warrant issued for your arrest and forfeiture of your bond.

If you wish to apply for a court appointed attorney, please contact the court for an application. 

Please do not come to court if you feel unwell or have symptoms of COVID-19. If you feel unwell, please notify the court to have your court setting postponed. 

Defendants with Attorneys:

Please consult with your attorney to see if your appearance in court will be necessary.

Attorneys:

  • To Reset a Case: All resets must be e-filed.   Completed resets need to be e-filed with the Denton County Clerk’s Office by 10:00 AM the day of the court setting. Resets will not be accepted by email unless the Court specifically grants the attorney permission to do so. Failure to e-file a reset timely may result in the Court issuing a warrant for your client’s arrest and forfeiture of their bond.

Blank reset forms and reset dates can be found here.

  • Bond Condition Hearings: If your client is set for a Bond Condition Hearing, you may e-file an Additional Conditions of Bond Order after the defendant has read over and signed off on it.
  • To Plea a Case: 

Attorneys will be required to appear via Zoom for all plea hearings, unless they are able to provide good reason to the Court why they need to appear in person.

Defendants must appear in person at the time of plea for fingerprints.

Zoom invitations will be sent by the Court Administrator via email. Completed plea paperwork will need to be e-filed and accepted with the County Clerk’s Office before the time of the plea. Plea paperwork can be obtained from the prosecutors assigned to this court by email.

Plea hearings will be set in 15 minute intervals and take place Wednesday mornings between 8:30-11:30 AM. You must have a scheduled time to plea. Please contact the Court Administrator, Luke Polich, via email or by telephone at 940-349-2180 to schedule a plea. Once the plea has been scheduled, a Zoom invitation will be sent via email.

Blank plea paperwork can be found here.

  • To set a Case for Trial: Please contact the Court Administrator, Luke Polich, for a Jury Trial Reset form. Defendant, defense counsel and ADA will need to sign this reset. Defense Counsel can sign for Defendant if Counsel has consulted with the Defendant. Trail dates are pre-entered on the Jury Trial Reset form. If the Court needs to reset the Jury Trial date, new notice with the new dates will be sent via mail
  • Motion Hearings: If you file a motion that will require a hearing, please contact the Court Administrator, Luke Polich, via email or by telephone at 940-349-2180 to schedule a Zoom hearing.

Court dates are posted and can be viewed on the Denton County Records Inquiry website.

***IF YOU ARE EXPERIENCING SYMPTOMS OF COVID-19 DO NOT COME TO COURT! PLEASE CONTACT THE COURT ADMINISTRATOR  FOR RESCHEDULE OF COURT DATE***

WARNING:  Do not attempt to contact a judge - by mail, e-mail, phone, or in person - about any pending or potential lawsuit! Doing so may result in serious consequences.

Check the status of your case