Randolph County Jail Criminal Court Process

Last updated by Mark Miclette

Search for an Inmate or Active Arrest Warrant in Randolph County

Criminal Court Process for Randolph County Alabama

Randolph County keeps one courthouse, on Main Street South in Wedowee, the county seat. Its Circuit Court hears felonies and its District Court hears state misdemeanors. Roanoke, Wedowee and Wadley hold town courts for local charges. The 5th Judicial Circuit District Attorney, who also serves Chambers, Macon and Tallapoosa, brings state cases here. Sheriff David Cofield runs the Randolph County Jail on Probilt Drive, where an arrested adult sits until bail is posted or the court lets the person go.

Which Randolph court gets the charge. A ticket or misdemeanor written by a Roanoke, Wedowee or Wadley officer inside town limits goes to that town's court. Charges filed by Randolph deputies or state troopers go to District Court in Wedowee. Felonies open in District Court and reach Circuit Court once a Randolph grand jury indicts. Anyone convicted in a town court or District Court has 14 days to appeal to Circuit Court for a new trial, this time with a jury if wanted. Youths under 18 go to juvenile court.

Where Randolph pretrial inmates wait. Every adult arrest in Randolph County, by deputy or town officer, is booked at 340 Probilt Drive. Ask the Sheriff's Office at (256) 357-4545 about the inmate list, holds and bonding.

Randolph courts: Wedowee, Roanoke and Wadley

Call ahead, since the Wedowee clerk's office shuts for lunch from noon to 1:00 p.m.

State courts

  • Circuit Court (felonies, jury trials, appeals), 1 Main St. S., Wedowee, either (256) 357-4551 or (256) 357-4626
  • District Court (misdemeanors, traffic, preliminary hearings), same courthouse; juvenile court (256) 357-2618

Municipal courts

  • Roanoke Municipal Court, Roanoke City Hall, 809 Main St., Roanoke, (334) 863-4129
  • Wedowee Municipal Court: ask Wedowee Town Hall or the Circuit Clerk for its schedule
  • Wadley Municipal Court, through Wadley Town Hall, 265 Highland Cir., Wadley, (256) 395-2261
  • Woodland: ask the Circuit Clerk where a Woodland charge is heard
  • Rock Mills, Graham, Newell and other unincorporated places: District Court in Wedowee

For Randolph defendants without money, the judge names a private attorney. Bond questions for anyone in the Randolph County Jail go to the Sheriff's Office, and our bond page lists the steps.

↑ Up to the Wedowee court menu

Randolph misdemeanors: lost-property theft, disorderly conduct, DUI, marijuana

A Randolph misdemeanor arrestee booked at the Randolph County Jail can leave after posting the set bond in cash, through a bonding agent or with land. Anyone not released goes before a Wedowee judge or magistrate inside 72 hours of arrest (Ala. R. Crim. P. 4.3).

What to expect in a Randolph County misdemeanor case

  • Arraignment in District Court or the town court; enter a plea and ask about an appointed lawyer.
  • A plea deal or a trial before the judge.
  • A 14-day right to appeal a conviction to Circuit Court for a jury trial.

Penalty ceilings for Randolph County misdemeanors

  • Class A (second-degree marijuana possession, third-degree theft of lost property): up to 12 months in the Randolph jail and fines as high as $6,000.
  • Class B: up to 6 months and $3,000. Class C (disorderly conduct): up to 3 months and $500.
  • First DUI: up to 12 months in jail, a $600 to $2,100 fine and a license suspension; a fourth DUI in 10 years becomes a Class C felony.

Facing possible jail? Request a Randolph appointed lawyer from the bench.

↑ Up to the Wedowee court menu

Randolph felonies: drug making, burglary, gun theft, stolen property

Felony arrestees remain at the Randolph County Jail unless they post bail. The first appearance covers release conditions and the affidavit used to decide on appointed counsel.

Felony case path in Randolph County

  1. A District Court preliminary hearing, held when the defense asks for one.
  2. Grand jury review at the Wedowee courthouse; an indictment, or a signed waiver of indictment, puts the case in Circuit Court.
  3. Circuit Court arraignment, discovery and pretrial motions.
  4. A guilty plea under an agreement, or a Wedowee jury trial.

Felony classes and sentences

  • Class B (first-degree theft): 2 to 20 years; fines to $30,000.
  • Class C (gun theft, third-degree burglary, second-degree receiving stolen property): 366 days to 10 years in prison and fines up to $15,000.
  • Class D (drug possession): 366 days to 5 years and fines up to $7,500. Making a controlled substance is far worse, a Class B or Class A felony.

Randolph nonviolent Class C and D sentences are steered by Alabama's presumptive standards toward probation, community corrections or a split Randolph term, unless earlier felonies trigger the Habitual Felony Offender Act. Someone under 21 on the offense date may seek youthful offender status, which seals the Randolph file and limits the sentence to 3 years.

↑ Up to the Wedowee court menu

Randolph violent felonies: murder, robbery, arson, strangulation

A violent arrest in Randolph County means a stay at the Randolph County Jail, and release is far from automatic. Under Aniah's Law a Wedowee judge, after a hearing, may refuse bail in Randolph cases of murder, arson or robbery in the first degree, and other covered charges, and Amendment 1, passed by voters on May 19, 2026, brought attempted murder and shots into an occupied car or house under the same rule.

Penalty ranges

  • Class A felonies (murder, first-degree robbery, first-degree arson): 10 to 99 years or life and up to $60,000, with firearm minimums.
  • Domestic violence by strangulation or suffocation: a Class B felony, 2 to 20 years.
  • Capital murder: death or life without parole.

Randolph courts assign a qualified lawyer when the accused cannot afford one, whatever the charge.

↑ Up to the Wedowee court menu

Randolph youths under 18

A Randolph juvenile case goes before the district judge sitting as juvenile judge, and a probation officer decides whether a parent takes the Randolph youth home, the case is settled informally, or a petition is filed; Juvenile Court answers at (256) 357-2618. Randolph runs no youth lockup, and a detained child goes to an out-of-county center, and the court can say which one. Adult bail does not apply to juveniles, and the detention hearing comes within 72 hours (Ala. Code §12-15-207).

Possible results

  • Informal adjustment or diversion with no formal finding.
  • A commitment order placing the child with the Alabama Department of Youth Services.

Teens tried as adults

Ala. Code §12-15-204 places 16- and 17-year-olds in adult court automatically for capital offenses, Class A felonies, felonies with a deadly weapon or dangerous instrument, felonies causing death or serious physical injury, and drug trafficking; such a teen may be jailed at the Randolph County Jail. Prosecutors can also ask a judge to transfer a youth 14 or older after a hearing under §12-15-203. A Randolph child whose family lacks money gets a court-named lawyer.

↑ Up to the Wedowee court menu

Randolph federal charges in Opelika

Under 28 U.S.C. §81, Randolph County belongs to the Eastern Division of the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Alabama, whose courthouse is at 701 Avenue A in Opelika; the clerk answers at (334) 954-3600. Federal charges here involve guns, drug distribution or fraud.

How federal cases proceed

A Randolph federal defendant first sees a U.S. magistrate judge, then has a Bail Reform Act detention hearing where the judge sets conditions or orders the person held with no bail. Guidelines set the range, and the term is served in the Bureau of Prisons with no federal parole. A defendant without money gets a federal defender or CJA lawyer. The U.S. Marshals for the Middle District answer at (334) 922-6960; sentenced prisoners show up in the Federal Bureau of Prisons inmate locator.

↑ Up to the Wedowee court menu

Main Street South, Probilt Drive and town court numbers

Randolph state cases go to the Wedowee courthouse, while town charges stay in town courts:

Read our Randolph County bail guide for paying in Wedowee; the Alabama Rule 7.2 bail schedule (https://judicial.alabama.gov/docs/library/rules/cr7_2.pdf) gives each range.

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Randolph County federal charges

Federal cases from Randolph go to the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Alabama:

  • Clerk: the federal courthouse in Opelika, 701 Avenue A, Opelika, AL 36801 (open for trials; clerk work is in Montgomery), 334-954-3600
  • U.S. Marshals: U.S. Marshals Service, 1 Church Street, Suite A-100, Montgomery, AL 36104, 334-922-6960

A federal magistrate judge decides whether a Randolph defendant is released, and the Marshals choose the jail.

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Locating a Randolph County prisoner

Our Randolph County inmate page has more.

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ICE detainers in Wedowee

With an ICE detainer, the Probilt Drive jail may keep someone two business days beyond the moment Randolph County would release them.

  • Field office: ICE New Orleans Field Office, 181 James Drive W, St. Rose, LA 70087, 504-318-2360
  • Alabama short-stay jails: 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/)

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Randolph County warrant and docket lookups

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This Randolph County court summary is background only, not legal advice, and Wedowee offices and numbers may change. An Alabama-licensed defense lawyer can advise on your case. Call the Circuit Clerk at (256) 357-4551 about appointed lawyers, and the Sheriff's Office at (256) 357-4545 about the jail and bonds.

Randolph hearings can be reset, so call the clerk at 256-357-4551 or the town court before driving to Wedowee, and check with the jail at 256-357-4545 that the person is still there.

Search for an Inmate or Active Arrest Warrant in Randolph County

Human-verified information Manually curated

Every detail on this page is checked by hand, not scraped. This unofficial directory helps friends and family of incarcerated individuals find critical information — inmate lists, locations, bail resources, visitation hours, rules, and text, phone, email, and mail services — for jails, detention centers, and prisons across the United States.