Cherokee County Detention Center Criminal Court Process
Criminal Court Process for Cherokee County Alabama
Centre is the county seat of Cherokee County, a rural county on Weiss Lake, and its courthouse on East Main Street is where Circuit Court tries felonies and District Court takes state misdemeanors. A handful of towns, chiefly Centre and Cedar Bluff, run their own municipal courts. Prosecution is handled by the District Attorney for the 9th Judicial Circuit, an office based in Fort Payne that also covers DeKalb County. Arrested adults are taken to the Cherokee County Detention Center on Cedar Bluff Road in Centre, where bonds can be posted at most hours of the day. Before calling any clerk's office, confirm the booking on Cherokee County Inmate Search.
- Cherokee County Circuit Clerk, Cherokee County Courthouse, 373 E. Main St., Suite 102, Centre, (256) 927-3637
- 9th Circuit District Attorney (serving Cherokee and DeKalb), Suite 505, 300 Grand Avenue South, Fort Payne, (256) 845-8550
- Cherokee County Sheriff's Office, 110 Cedar Bluff Rd., Centre, (256) 927-3365
- Cherokee County Detention Center, 110 Cedar Bluff Rd., Centre, (256) 927-6435
- Indigent defense: court-appointed or contract counsel paid through the Office of Indigent Defense Services, (334) 242-7059
- Leesburg Police Department, 215 Industrial Blvd., Leesburg, (256) 526-8888
- Cherokee County Probate Court, 260 Cedar Bluff Rd., Suite 101, Centre, (256) 927-3363
Which court hears your case. Most arrests in Cherokee County are made by sheriff's deputies or state troopers, and their misdemeanor cases go to Cherokee County District Court in Centre. Officers in Centre and Cedar Bluff can file city charges in their town courts instead. All felonies start in District Court with a first appearance and, if requested, a preliminary hearing, and then go to Circuit Court once indicted. A misdemeanor conviction in district or municipal court, where no jury sits, can be appealed within 14 days for a new trial in Circuit Court with a jury.
Jail for people awaiting trial. The Sheriff's detention center at 110 Cedar Bluff Road holds every adult arrested in Cherokee; town police book their prisoners there. It accepts cash bonds (paid at the Circuit Clerk or by card through the court's online cash bond service), property bonds with two signers who own unmortgaged property worth the bond, and bonds written by companies licensed in Cherokee County. A prisoner held on a zero bond can leave only on a judge's order or after paying fines at the clerk's office.
1. Local courts in Cherokee County (circuit, district, town courts and juvenile)
State courts
- Circuit Court and District Court, Cherokee County Courthouse, 373 E. Main St., Centre, (256) 927-3637
- Juvenile court (a judge sitting in juvenile session), with filings through the Circuit Clerk, (256) 927-3637
Town courts
- Centre Municipal Court, Municipal Judicial Building, 999 W. Main St., (256) 927-2419; initial appearances the first Friday of each month
- Cedar Bluff Municipal Court, through Town Hall, (256) 779-6121
- Leesburg: charges written by Leesburg police typically go to District Court in Centre; ask the Circuit Clerk to confirm. Town Hall, (256) 526-8890.
- Gaylesville and Sand Rock: the Sheriff patrols, and cases go to District Court.
The 9th Circuit lacks a public defender office, so state-paid private or contract attorneys get appointed. Anyone held in the Cherokee County Detention Center on a town charge posts that town's bail.
2. Misdemeanor (for example, boating under the influence on Weiss Lake, third-degree criminal mischief, public intoxication, fourth-degree theft)
Misdemeanor arrestees are booked at the Centre jail and usually go home after posting the scheduled bail; for a Class A misdemeanor the statewide range is $300 to $6,000. Domestic violence arrests require a judge or magistrate to set conditions first, a hold of up to 24 hours. People who stay in custody must have a probable-cause review within 48 hours if arrested without a warrant, and must see a judge within 72 hours on a warrant arrest.
- Arraignment in Cherokee County District Court or a town court, where you can request appointed counsel.
- Pleas, pretrial diversion and bench trials resolve most cases in a few months.
- In Cherokee County a Class A misdemeanor can bring 12 months and a $6,000 fine; lesser classes cap at six months (Class B) or three months (Class C).
- Boating or driving under the influence, first offense: up to one year and a $600 to $2,100 fine, with license consequences for DUI.
3. Felony (for example, unlawful possession of methamphetamine, third-degree burglary, theft of a vehicle, felony DUI)
Felony suspects remain at the Cherokee County Detention Center until bond is paid or a judge signs a release. The first appearance is short: the charge is read, release terms get set, and counsel may be appointed.
- Preliminary hearing in District Court, available if demanded within 30 days of arrest and before any indictment.
- Grand jury in Centre; an indictment transfers the case to Circuit Court, or the defendant may waive indictment to plead.
- Circuit Court arraignment, discovery and motions; six months to a year is common.
- Plea agreement or a jury trial in Centre.
Cherokee County felony sentences: theft of any vehicle is first-degree theft, a Class B felony (2 to 20 years); third-degree burglary and felony DUI are Class C (366 days up to 10 years); meth possession is Class D (366 days up to 5 years). Presumptive sentencing standards often favor probation or community corrections for nonviolent C and D felonies, and repeat offenders face the Habitual Felony Offender Act. If the defendant was under 21 when the crime occurred, youthful offender status can seal the case and limit punishment to three years.
4. Violent felony (murder, first-degree assault, first-degree kidnapping or second-degree domestic violence, among others)
Violent felony defendants are held at the Cherokee County Detention Center, often for months. The 9th Circuit District Attorney can ask for an Aniah's Law hearing, and a judge can then deny bail for murder, first-degree kidnapping, first-degree domestic violence and other listed crimes, a list voters expanded in May 2026 to include attempted murder. Domestic violence charges also bring the 24-hour hold.
- Murder and first-degree kidnapping: Class A, 10 to 99 years or life, at least 20 years with a firearm or deadly weapon.
- First-degree assault and second-degree domestic violence: Class B, 2 to 20 years.
- Capital murder: life without parole or death.
Serious violent cases commonly take a year or more; qualified appointed counsel is provided at state expense when the defendant cannot pay.
5. Juveniles (under 18) arrested in Cherokee County
Cherokee County youth cases go to juvenile court in Centre after screening by juvenile probation. Cherokee runs no youth jail; a child who must be locked up usually goes to a contracted regional center, such as the Coosa Valley Regional Juvenile Detention Center in Anniston; probation staff can say where a child was taken. There is no bail in juvenile court. Detained youth are entitled to a hearing inside 72 hours under Ala. Code §12-15-207.
- Informal adjustment or a state-funded diversion program.
- Probation following a delinquency finding.
- Commitment to the Department of Youth Services in serious cases.
Sixteen- and 17-year-olds charged with capital offenses, Class A felonies, felonies involving a deadly weapon or that kill or seriously hurt someone, or drug trafficking are automatically prosecuted as adults (§12-15-204) and jailed at the Cherokee County Detention Center. After a hearing, a judge can move a youth age 14 or up to adult court (§12-15-203). If parents can't pay for counsel, juvenile court assigns one.
6. Federal cases (U.S. District Court) from Cherokee County
Cherokee County moved into the Eastern Division of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Alabama when Congress dissolved the Gadsden division in December 2024. Federal court for the county now sits in Anniston, 1100 Gurnee Ave., (256) 741-1533, with the clerk's office in Birmingham. Cases become federal for crimes such as gun possession by a felon or large drug conspiracies, and for offenses inside Little River Canyon National Preserve, which reaches into the county's northern edge.
- U.S. Attorney, Northern District of Alabama (main office, Birmingham), (205) 244-2001
- Federal Public Defender, Northern District of Alabama (Birmingham), (205) 208-7170; CJA panel lawyers cover conflicts
A federal defendant first appears before a magistrate judge, and release turns on conditions rather than a cash bail amount, decided at a detention hearing under the Bail Reform Act. Prosecutors must indict within 30 days; the Speedy Trial Act sets a 70-day trial clock with frequent exclusions. Federal guidelines drive sentencing, parole doesn't exist, and inmates complete about 85% in the Bureau of Prisons, then supervised release. Appellate review happens at the Eleventh Circuit, which sits in Atlanta. A Marshals detainee may appear on a contract county jail's roster. For someone already in federal prison, use the Federal Bureau of Prisons inmate locator.
7. Cherokee County court locations and phone numbers
The state courts and the jail are all in Centre:
- Circuit and District Court clerk: 373 East Main Street, Suite 102, Centre, AL 35960, 256-927-3637
- Probate Court: 260 Cedar Bluff Road, Suite 101, Centre, 256-927-3363
- Centre Municipal Court: 999 West Main Street, Centre, 256-927-2419
- Cedar Bluff Municipal Court: Town Hall, 256-779-6121
- Cherokee County Detention Center: 110 Cedar Bluff Road, Centre, AL 35960, 256-927-6435
- Sheriff's Office: 256-927-3365; dispatch 256-927-3939
Our Cherokee bail guide covers bonds, and the Alabama Rule 7.2 bail schedule (https://judicial.alabama.gov/docs/library/rules/cr7_2.pdf) sets the ranges.
8. Federal court for Cherokee County
Cherokee is part of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Alabama:
- Courthouse: the federal courthouse in Anniston, 1100 Gurnee Avenue, Anniston, AL 36201, 256-741-1533
- U.S. Marshals: U.S. Marshals Service, 1729 5th Avenue North, Room 240, Birmingham, AL 35203, 205-829-6611
A magistrate decides on detention. The Marshals pick the jail.
9. Finding someone held from Cherokee
- Jail roster: Cherokee County Inmate Search
- Alabama prisons: Alabama Department of Corrections Inmate Search (https://www.doc.alabama.gov/inmate/inmate-search/)
- Federal prisons: Federal Bureau of Prisons Inmate Locator (https://www.bop.gov/inmateloc/); pretrial, 205-829-6611
- VINE: VINELink (https://vinelink.vineapps.com/). Pick Alabama, then a name, to learn custody status and the facility and to set alerts.
Read our Cherokee inmate page for roster tips.
10. Immigration holds in Cherokee County
An ICE detainer can ask Centre to keep a person up to two extra business days past local release.
- Field office: ICE New Orleans Field Office, 181 James Drive W, St. Rose, LA 70087, 504-318-2360
- Short-stay jails in Alabama: Baldwin County Correctional Center in Bay Minette, Etowah County Jail in Gadsden and Pickens County Detention Center in Carrollton
- Locator: ICE Online Detainee Locator System (https://locator.ice.gov/odls/)
11. How is a Cherokee County warrant looked up?
Deputies in Centre serve these warrants and pick up at 256-927-3365 at any hour. For other counties, the ALEA wanted list is open to anyone. Docket history is on Alacourt Access, costing $9.99 per person. Surrenders scheduled by a lawyer happen at the Detention Center, 110 Cedar Bluff Road, Centre, AL 35960, 256-927-6435, with bond sorted out. Visit the clerk's office, 373 East Main Street, Suite 102, Centre, AL 35960, reachable at 256-927-3637 for rescheduling. Our inmate search shows who is in custody.
This overview of Cherokee criminal courts is for general understanding; laws and local practice shift, and none of it is legal advice. Any real charge deserves a talk with an Alabama defense attorney. Ask for an appointed attorney during the first hearing, or ring the Cherokee County Circuit Clerk at (256) 927-3637 (state indigent defense office: (334) 242-7059); for jail questions, call the detention center at (256) 927-6435.
Before any Centre hearing, phone the clerk to confirm the date and room, 256-927-3637, and custody with the jail, 256-927-6435.
