Lauderdale County Jail

Setting bond falls to a judge or to one of the court's magistrates. Jailers on Seminary Street simply record what the court ordered. For a state charge, that order lands in the circuit clerk's file at the county courthouse, 200 South Court Street, Florence, AL 35630, 256-760-5728. On a Florence city charge, municipal court magistrates decide, reachable at 256-760-6625.

Rule 4.3 puts clocks on this. When police made the arrest without a warrant and the person stays locked up, probable cause has to be reviewed by a judge within 48 hours. Following a warrant arrest, a person who cannot pay is owed a court appearance inside 72 hours. With domestic violence arrests the rule differs: no release until a judge looks at the file, unless 24 hours go by first.

Ring the detention center at 563 South Seminary Street, Florence, AL 35630, 256-760-5771. Jailers there can read off the amount booked on each charge. Jot every charge and figure on paper, since two cases mean two separate bonds.

For a county case, the signed order is kept by the circuit clerk, 256-760-5728. Courthouse staff will share the case number along with the hearing date tied to that bond. The City of Florence lists a second jail number, 256-760-5773, which helps when the main line rings busy.

Keep the legal name and birthday nearby whenever you call. When the record reads "no bond" or shows nothing, check with the defense lawyer about the judge's order before paying a dime.

Each order spells out which kinds of bond the judge will accept. Families usually see these four:

• Cash covering the full figure, handed to the court.
• Surety, written by a licensed bail company.
• Property, backed by land the signers own.
• Recognizance, meaning the person signs and pledges to appear, when the judge permits it.

Conditions ride along with every bond, like no contact with a victim or staying inside Alabama. Paying never erases those conditions. Our guide to Alabama bail laws explains the statewide rules simply. To learn which options your order lists, call the circuit clerk at 200 South Court Street, Florence, AL 35630, 256-760-5728.

Rule 7.2 hands judges starting ranges. Judges can set more or less once they weigh danger, criminal history and what the family can afford. Ranges by charge level:

• Violation or traffic offense: $300 to $500
• Class C misdemeanor: $300 to $1,000
• Class B misdemeanor: $300 to $3,000
• Class A misdemeanor: $300 to $6,000
• DUI: $1,000 to $7,500
• Class D felony: $1,000 to $10,000
• Class C felony: $2,500 to $15,000
• Class B felony: $5,000 to $30,000
• Class A felony: $10,000 to $60,000
• Drug making or trafficking: $5,000 to $1,500,000

Read the whole chart in the Rule 7.2 bail schedule. Only the figure on your person's order really matters.

State-charge bonds run through the circuit clerk inside the county courthouse at 200 South Court Street, Florence, AL 35630. Clerk windows stay open weekdays, 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., and the main number is 256-760-5728. Florence's courthouse directory also shows a 4th floor clerk line, 256-768-7598, plus a 5th floor line, 256-760-5713.

Bring a money order or cashier's check, which the window reliably takes. Ask by phone first whether cash or a card works that day. When an arrest happens at night or over a weekend, call Seminary Street at 256-760-5771 and ask how a bond can be posted before Court Street reopens. Hang on to each receipt.

Tickets and arrests under city ordinances belong to Florence Municipal Court, 110 West College Street, Florence, AL 35630. That courthouse stands beside the detention center. Its office and magistrates share 256-760-6625, and payments are accepted weekdays between 8:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m.

At its office the city court takes cash, cashier's checks and money orders. Debit or credit cards also work, though a processing fee gets tacked on. Judges hear cases every Tuesday and Thursday at 8:00 a.m., with an extra session at 1:00 p.m. on the third Tuesday each month. Mail for the court goes to P.O. Box 1327, Florence, AL 35630. Have the ticket or case number with you so clerks pull the right file quickly.

The bond figure is only part of what you pay. Alabama charges 3.5% of a bond's face value as a fee. That fee never drops below $100 for a misdemeanor or $150 for a felony. Then a $35 filing charge comes on top.

Hiring a bail company adds its own fee. That money pays for the company's promise to the court, and it stays with the company. Before paying, ask the circuit clerk at 200 South Court Street, Florence, AL 35630, 256-760-5728, to walk through every line on the bill. Mark which dollars are bond and which are fees, so you can tell what might return once the case closes.

Yes, if the judge allows surety. The company guarantees the court that your person will appear, and the family pays it for that guarantee. Seminary Street jailers keep a list of licensed bonding firms, though they never recommend one.

Get three things on paper before signing: the fee, whatever collateral they want (a car title, for example), and your cost if court gets skipped. You can confirm a license with the state's Professional Bail Bonding Board. Save the contract until the case has fully ended. For the firm list, phone the detention center at 563 South Seminary Street, Florence, AL 35630, 256-760-5771.

A property bond needs a judge's approval. All owners listed on the deed must sign. Bring the deed along with a recent land value, either from the tax assessor's office or a paid appraisal, so the court knows the land covers the amount.

Expect this route to move slower than cash, since clerks review the paperwork. Land lying in another county may not be accepted, so ask ahead. The circuit clerk at 200 South Court Street, Florence, AL 35630, 256-760-5728, can list the forms needed. Should the person skip court, that land could be lost, so each signer must understand the risk before putting a name down.

Capital charges, such as capital murder, can leave a person held without any bond. Aniah's Law also lets a judge refuse bond for violent crimes it names; murder, kidnapping, first-degree rape and first-degree robbery are all on its list. A hearing comes before that ruling, where the defense gets to push for release.

Voters widened the list on May 19, 2026. That change covers attempted murder. It also reaches anyone who shoots toward a home, a building, or a car while people are inside. Prosecutors for the 11th Judicial Circuit request these hearings; their office answers at 256-764-6351, with mail sent to Post Office Box 914, Florence, AL 35631. Separately, an outside warrant from Tennessee or another county can keep someone behind bars even after the bond clears.

Lowering bond takes a judge. Neither the sheriff nor jail staff has that power. Usually the defense files a motion, and both sides argue it in court. Rule 7.4 allows the amount or conditions to change when there is good cause.

Relatives can pitch in by gathering proof of the person's job, home, children and health, plus a plan for reaching court. Under that same rule, a circuit judge must revisit release terms for anyone held beyond 90 days before trial. Such a review guarantees nothing. To locate the case file, contact the circuit clerk at 200 South Court Street, Florence, AL 35630, 256-760-5728.

During the first hearing, the accused can explain to the judge that a paid lawyer is not affordable. A sworn sheet asks about income, bills and family. When the judge approves, a lawyer gets appointed at little or no cost. Relatives raising bond money does not prove the person could pay a lawyer, and Rule 6.3 allows a fresh look if finances change.

Requests may also go through the circuit clerk at 200 South Court Street, Florence, AL 35630, 256-760-5728. Alabama's Office of Indigent Defense Services oversees appointed counsel from 100 North Union Street, Suite 680, Montgomery, AL 36104, 334-242-7059. Request counsel before entering any plea, and leave case details off recorded jail calls.

Town charges get bonded through the town's own court. Ask the arresting department which court holds the case. These courts hear their towns' cases:

• Killen Municipal Court, 319 J.C. Mauldin Highway, Killen, AL 35645, 256-757-1246
• Rogersville Municipal Court, 36 Wheeler Street, Rogersville, AL 35652, 256-247-5446
• Lexington Municipal Court, 11060 Highway 101, Lexington, AL 35648, 256-229-5221

St. Florian, Anderson and Waterloo charges are mostly filed in county District Court. For those, reach the circuit clerk at 200 South Court Street, Florence, AL 35630, 256-760-5728. Deputies and state troopers file there as well. Adults arrested in every one of these towns still sleep at the Seminary Street jail.

Expect a wait. First the court accepts the bond. Next, jail staff look for other holds, pull stored property and finish discharge paperwork. A few hours is common, and busy nights stretch longer.

Another charge, a probation hold or an outside warrant blocks release until that piece clears too. Once you have paid, check on progress by calling the detention center at 563 South Seminary Street, Florence, AL 35630, 256-760-5771. Carry a photo ID and line up a ride home. Ignore anyone who phones promising a faster release for extra cash.

Skipping court can backfire badly. The judge may order a warrant, and forfeiture of the bond can follow, so posted cash or pledged land might be gone. Under Rule 7.6, notice goes out first, and the person may respond in writing or in court; only after that can the judge order the bond kept.

After a missed date, contact a lawyer immediately. Phone the circuit clerk that same day at 200 South Court Street, Florence, AL 35630, 256-760-5728. Hearing dates appear on the county court website. Anyone who signed with a bondsman should call that company too, since it may already be searching. Walking in with counsel is far better than deputies showing up at the door.

Cash bonds held by the court normally return after the case wraps up. Rule 7.6(e) lets the judge discharge a bond once nobody needs it anymore. Unpaid court costs, fines or restitution may get subtracted, leaving a smaller check.

Money paid to a bail company is gone for good, and the state bond fee is not refundable either. Save each receipt, and tell the clerk if the payer moves. For refund questions, reach the circuit clerk at 200 South Court Street, Florence, AL 35630, 256-760-5728, holding the case number.

Federal court ignores Alabama's bail chart. These cases are heard in Florence by the Northwestern Division of north Alabama's federal trial court, John McKinley Federal Building, 210 North Seminary Street, Room 202, Florence, AL 35630, 256-760-8415. Nobody staffs that office full time, so clerk questions go to Birmingham at 205-278-1700. Here is the usual order:

1. Agents arrest the person, sometimes collecting them from the Seminary Street jail.
2. Day one in court means a hearing with a federal magistrate judge.
3. Work, housing and record get reviewed by a pretrial officer.
4. Prosecutors may push for detention until trial.
5. People who are let go sign written conditions, usually without posting cash.

Until sentencing, custody belongs to the U.S. Marshals: 1729 5th Avenue North, Room 240, Birmingham, AL 35203, 205-829-6611.

Yes. Neither a state bond nor a city bond cancels an ICE detainer. On Form I-247A, immigration agents ask the Seminary Street jail to keep someone up to 48 hours after they would otherwise be released, giving agents time to arrive. Saturdays, Sundays and holidays count toward that limit. Local bond still has to be paid.

Once ICE has custody, enter the A-number and the person's birth country into the ICE detainee locator. For the Shoals area, ICE points families to its New Orleans Field Office, 181 James Drive W, St. Rose, LA 70087, 504-318-2360. Ask an immigration lawyer to read the actual papers, because a criminal bond and an immigration bond stay separate.

Kids under 18 normally skip adult bond entirely, since juvenile court takes their cases. Juvenile Probation screens each arrest and decides home or detention; call 256-760-5850 with the child's name and birth date.

Youths who cannot go home are placed at the Tennessee Valley Juvenile Detention Center, 2216 Missouri Street, Tuscumbia, AL 35674, 256-381-3520. That regional center sits across the river in Colbert County. Within 72 hours a juvenile judge holds a detention hearing and may send the child home with a parent, sometimes with an ankle monitor. When a capital crime or another very serious felony is charged against a 16 or 17 year old, the case goes to adult court instead, so ask counsel which court controls the case.

Crooks phone or text worried families while posing as deputies, attorneys or bondsmen. They claim your person walks free the minute you pay. Legitimate bonds here are never settled with gift cards, wires or app transfers to strangers.

When a call like that comes, end it. Dial the detention center yourself at 563 South Seminary Street, Florence, AL 35630, 256-760-5771, to confirm the booking and hear the real bond amount. Pay only at the circuit clerk's window, the city court office, or through a bail company you picked and checked. To report a suspected scam, contact Florence police at 702 South Seminary Street, Florence, AL 35630, 256-760-6500.

Three levels of court split the work in this county:

• District Court handles state misdemeanors and traffic tickets, plus the early stage of each felony.
• Circuit Court holds felony trials and takes appeals coming up from lower courts.
• Municipal courts sit in Florence, Killen, Rogersville and Lexington for charges under city ordinances.

Both state courts use the courthouse at 200 South Court Street, Florence, AL 35630, and one circuit clerk serves them at 256-760-5728. The county makes up the 11th Judicial Circuit alone, so its judges and prosecutors hear only local cases. One district judge doubles as juvenile judge for delinquency matters.

Files for Circuit and District Court are kept by one circuit clerk, inside the courthouse at 200 South Court Street, Florence, AL 35630. Windows open weekdays, 8:00 a.m. until 5:00 p.m. Dial 256-760-5728 for the main desk. The county phone list also shows a 4th floor clerk line at 256-768-7598 and a 5th floor line at 256-760-5713.

Records there are divided into sections such as criminal, traffic, juvenile and warrants. Letters go to P.O. Box 776, Florence, AL 35631. When visiting, carry your hearing notice plus the case number. Staff can pull files and dates for you, though clerks are not allowed to give legal advice.

Whatever court belongs to the city whose law was broken keeps that case, and it also sets bond there:

• Florence Municipal Court, 110 West College Street, Florence, AL 35630, 256-760-6625. Sessions run Tuesdays and Thursdays at 8:00 a.m., plus 1:00 p.m. on each month's third Tuesday.
• Killen Municipal Court, 319 J.C. Mauldin Highway, Killen, AL 35645, 256-757-1246
• Rogersville Municipal Court, 36 Wheeler Street, Rogersville, AL 35652, 256-247-5446
• Lexington Municipal Court, 11060 Highway 101, Lexington, AL 35648, 256-229-5221

Tickets from St. Florian, Anderson or Waterloo mostly go to county District Court, with the date printed on the ticket. Deputies and troopers file there too. City judges, like state judges, appoint counsel when a poor defendant faces possible jail time.

During the first appearance the judge confirms identity and reads out the accusation. The person hears about the right to remain quiet, and the judge discusses getting counsel and sets release conditions. Guilt is never decided at this stage. Someone facing a felony complaint also hears how to request a preliminary hearing.

Deadlines come from Rule 4.3. If officers made the arrest without any warrant and the person remains locked up, they are owed a probable cause decision inside 48 hours. Following a warrant arrest, anyone who cannot make bond should reach a judge within 72 hours. Domestic violence arrests carry their own rule: the person waits for a judge's review, unless 24 hours run out first.

Plenty of people bond out during booking, using cash, property or a bail company at the state chart amount. Next comes arraignment, either before a city judge or in District Court. When jail is a real possibility, judges assign counsel through Alabama's indigent defense program. Endings vary: dismissal, diversion, fines with court costs, probation, or a suspended sentence.

Maximum misdemeanor penalties in Alabama:

• Class A: a year in jail and $6,000, covering crimes like fourth-degree theft or third-degree assault
• Class B: 6 months and $3,000
• Class C: 3 months and $500
• Violation: 30 days and $200

For a first DUI conviction, expect a fine from $600 to $2,100 along with ALEA license action.

City courts and District Court never seat juries. One judge listens to the evidence and rules, which lawyers call a bench trial.

Anyone wanting twelve local citizens to decide may appeal to Circuit Court once the bench trial ends. That appeal must be filed inside 14 days after conviction. Circuit Court starts over completely, trying the charge fresh as though the earlier trial had not happened. Lawyers call this a de novo trial. Ask counsel about the risks beforehand, since a second trial might bring a different sentence. Filing questions go to the circuit clerk at 200 South Court Street, Florence, AL 35630, 256-760-5728.

Felony cases open with booking on Seminary Street and an initial appearance in District Court. There a judge reviews bail, may require drug screens or an ankle monitor, and asks whether appointed counsel is needed. Most cases then move in this order:

1. Preliminary hearing: when the defense requests one, a district judge weighs probable cause.
2. Grand jury: panels here gather several times each year. A true bill moves the file upstairs to Circuit Court. Some defendants plead on an information and skip indictment.
3. Arraignment in Circuit Court, followed by discovery, motions and bargaining with the 11th Circuit prosecutors.
4. Plea or jury trial: plea deals settle the bulk of felonies here.
5. Sentencing under Alabama's presumptive standards, which for many nonviolent drug and property crimes lean toward probation or Community Corrections.

Felonies in Alabama fall into four classes, each with a prison range:

• Class D: a year and 1 day on the low end, capped at 5 years
• Class C: a year and 1 day on the low end, capped at 10 years
• Class B: 2 years minimum, 20 maximum
• Class A: 10 years minimum, topping out at 99 years or life

Prior felonies push those ranges higher through the Habitual Felony Offender Act. Anyone who was 20 or younger when the crime took place can ask the judge for youthful offender treatment. Granted, it seals the file and limits the term to 3 years. Appointed counsel remains through sentencing. These ranges do not predict any one outcome, so ask the lawyer what fits your person's case.

Serious violent charges tend to keep a person on Seminary Street longer. Aniah's Law lets the 11th Circuit district attorney ask a Florence judge to deny bail completely for murder, first-degree robbery, first-degree rape, kidnapping and several other crimes, after a required hearing. Voters on May 19, 2026 added attempted murder, along with firing a gun into a house or vehicle where people were inside. When bond is granted, it often lands well above the chart and comes with no-contact orders.

Grand juries almost always review these cases, and appointed lawyers need approval for that level of charge. Robbery in the first degree counts as Class A; with a firearm or deadly weapon, its minimum climbs to 20 years. Capital murder allows only life without parole or death. Our guide to Alabama bail laws explains release rules.

Prosecution of state charges belongs to the District Attorney for the 11th Judicial Circuit. With the county serving as its own circuit, that office takes only local cases. Mail reaches it at Post Office Box 914, Florence, AL 35631, and its phone is 256-764-6351.

Prosecutors speak for the state, never for the accused or relatives. So families should keep case facts away from that office and share them only with defense counsel. Plea offers in felony cases come from these prosecutors, and a defense lawyer should explain any offer before the person agrees. A Florence or town charge is heard in that city's own court, so ask the city court about those cases.

At the first appearance, say out loud that paying a lawyer is impossible. The judge then hands over a sworn form covering income, property, debts and dependents. Rule 6.3 weighs those finances and allows a second look when circumstances shift. Whether relatives posted bond does not settle eligibility.

The circuit clerk at 200 South Court Street, Florence, AL 35630, 256-760-5728, also takes requests. For the whole state, appointed counsel is managed by Alabama's Office of Indigent Defense Services, 100 North Union Street, Suite 680, Montgomery, AL 36104, 334-242-7059. Only the judge makes an appointment; phoning that state office will not. Get counsel in place before pleading or waiving any hearing.

Phone the circuit clerk at 200 South Court Street, Florence, AL 35630, 256-760-5728, keeping the legal name, birthday and case number close by. Request details on the next setting: day, hour, courtroom and hearing type. Settings shift, so check again the afternoon before.

Online options exist too. Clerk hours and contacts appear on the county court website. State case records are on Alacourt Access, where a single case found by name search costs $9.99. Paper files can be read free at the clerk's counter. Florence city cases go through the municipal court at 110 West College Street, Florence, AL 35630, 256-760-6625, instead.

Sheriff's deputies carry out county warrants from the courthouse at 200 South Court Street, Florence, AL 35630. Call its warrant line at 256-760-5756, or the main office at 256-760-5757. Florence police check city warrants on 256-760-6500.

Looking up a name on Alacourt Access may reveal a linked case, yet that lookup never clears anything. After a missed court date, ring the circuit clerk at 256-760-5728. Plan a surrender with a lawyer, and bring photo ID. Arriving with counsel and a bond arranged goes much smoother than a surprise arrest on a Florence job site or front porch.

Federal charges from here land in the Northwestern Division of north Alabama's federal district court, whose courthouse sits in Florence: John McKinley Federal Building, 210 North Seminary Street, Room 202, Florence, AL 35630, 256-760-8415. Because staff are not there full time, clerk questions go to Birmingham at 205-278-1700.

A magistrate judge sees the defendant first, and prosecutors may seek detention rather than bail under the Bail Reform Act. Within 30 days an indictment is due, while a 70-day trial clock runs under the Speedy Trial Act, with many exclusions. Because the Marshals rent beds on Seminary Street, a federal prisoner can appear on the county list. Their office is at 1729 5th Avenue North, Room 240, Birmingham, AL 35203, 205-829-6611. Once a prison term begins, check the BOP inmate locator.

Immigration holds and criminal charges travel on separate tracks. Using Form I-247A, immigration officers request a warning before release and for a hold up to 48 hours after they would otherwise be released, so agents can collect the person. Meanwhile the state case continues, and local bond is still owed.

Being named in a detainer is not the same as being convicted of anything. Before any plea deal, a defense lawyer should weigh what it might do to immigration status. Families in this area can reach the New Orleans Field Office at 181 James Drive W, St. Rose, LA 70087, 504-318-2360. To search for someone already in ICE custody, enter the A-number and birth country on the ICE detainee locator.

Delinquency cases go before juvenile court behind closed doors. Intake staff at Juvenile Probation, 256-760-5850, choose whether to file a petition, settle things informally, or send the child home or to detention.

Youths the judge will not send home stay at the Tennessee Valley Juvenile Detention Center, 2216 Missouri Street, Tuscumbia, AL 35674, 256-381-3520, a regional site across the river in Colbert County. Within 72 hours a juvenile judge holds a detention hearing, and money bond is rare for juveniles. Outcomes include informal handling, probation or commitment to the state's Department of Youth Services. A 16 or 17 year old skips juvenile court entirely for three groups of charges: capital crimes, Class A felonies and trafficking; or any felony where a deadly weapon played a part, a person was killed, or someone got gravely hurt. For other charges, prosecutors may seek a transfer hearing once a child turns 14.

More than a year to serve usually points to state prison. Often the person waits weeks on Seminary Street before the Department of Corrections sends a transport van. Intake comes first: staff screen security level, physical and mental health and gang ties, then choose a permanent prison.

Families can try the ADOC inmate search by name, though the six-digit AIS number works best. Youthful offender cases stay hidden from that search. Our Alabama prison directory helps once the prison is known. For people serving federal time, try the federal inmate locator.

Each release order requires showing up for court, staying out of new trouble, reporting a change of address, and asking before any trip outside Alabama. Judges sometimes add terms such as a curfew, a set home address or staying away from a victim. Store the written order alongside the case papers, and give the lawyer a copy.

Beginning October 1, 2026, the amended Rule 7.3 requires an email and a cell number for court notices, except when the person has neither or release terms bar using one. Report changes promptly. Text reminders can fail, and a missed one does not excuse missing court, so put each date on a paper calendar. Unsure of a setting? Ask the circuit clerk at 200 South Court Street, Florence, AL 35630, 256-760-5728.