Sumter County Jail Criminal Court Process

Last updated by Mark Miclette

Search for an Inmate or Active Arrest Warrant in Sumter County

Criminal Court Process for Sumter County Alabama

Livingston is the Sumter County seat, and the courthouse on Franklin Street hears all state cases there: felonies and jury trials in Circuit Court, misdemeanors and traffic in District Court. Livingston and York hold their own city courts. The District Attorney for the 17th Judicial Circuit, which covers Greene, Marengo and Sumter, brings state charges. Sheriff Brian Harris runs the Sumter County Jail at 118 Hospital Drive in Livingston, where Sumter adults remain until bail is paid or the court frees them.

  • Circuit Clerk (Circuit and District Court), Sumter County Courthouse, 115 Franklin St., Livingston, (205) 652-2291
  • District Attorney, 17th Judicial Circuit, Demopolis office (334) 289-2149; Linden office (334) 295-2219
  • Sumter County Sheriff's Office, 118 Hospital Dr., Livingston, (205) 652-2841; Sheriff Brian Harris
  • Sumter County Jail, 118 Hospital Dr., Livingston, through the Sheriff's Office, (205) 652-2841
  • Appointed lawyers: ask the Circuit Clerk, (205) 652-2291
  • Livingston Municipal Court, sessions at the Livingston Community Center, 101 Country Club Rd., court office (205) 652-2505
  • York City Hall and Municipal Court, 607 2nd Ave., York, (205) 392-5231

Which Sumter court takes the case. Livingston and York officers file town charges in their own city courts. Charges from deputies, state troopers and campus police go to Sumter County District Court. A felony starts on a District Court warrant and moves up to Circuit Court once a grand jury indicts. Because District and town courts sit without juries, a conviction there may be appealed within 14 days for a fresh Circuit Court trial. A child under 18 goes to juvenile court.

Where Sumter inmates wait for court. The Sumter County Jail, next to the Sheriff's Office on Hospital Drive, serves as Sumter's lone adult lockup; deputies and both town police forces book there. Some prisoners may be housed in another county's jail, so call (205) 652-2841 to ask where a person is held.

Sumter courts: Livingston courthouse plus Livingston and York

Sumter has several small towns, but only Livingston and York hold municipal courts. Arrests in the other towns and in rural areas go to District Court in Livingston.

State courts

  • Sumter County Circuit Court (felonies, jury trials, appeals), 115 Franklin St., Livingston, (205) 652-2291
  • Sumter County District Court (misdemeanors, traffic, preliminary hearings) and juvenile court, at the same courthouse

Municipal courts and towns

  • Livingston Municipal Court, held at the Livingston Community Center, 101 Country Club Rd.; court office (205) 652-2505
  • York Municipal Court, York City Hall, 607 2nd Ave., (205) 392-5231
  • Cuba, Emelle, Epes, Gainesville and Geiger: no town court listed; ask the Circuit Clerk which court has the case

A Sumter judge names a state-paid lawyer for a defendant without money for one, and town judges do so whenever jail is on the table. For posting bond for someone at the Sumter County Jail, call the Sheriff's Office.

↑ Up to the Livingston court menu

Sumter misdemeanors: disorderly conduct, forged papers, reckless endangerment, marijuana

After booking at the Sumter County Jail, many people charged with a Sumter misdemeanor leave by posting bail using cash, land or a licensed bondsman. A person who stays in the Livingston jail goes before a judge or magistrate inside 72 hours (Rule 4.3).

Steps in a Sumter misdemeanor case

  • A first court date in District Court or a town court, the place to request a lawyer at state cost.
  • A plea, a dismissal after the person meets set conditions, or a trial in front of the judge.
  • A Sumter defendant found guilty may file within 14 days for a fresh jury trial in Circuit Court.

Misdemeanor penalties in Alabama

  • Class A misdemeanors, such as reckless endangerment or marijuana for personal use: a Sumter jail term of 12 months or less and a fine no higher than $6,000.
  • Class B: up to half a year, fine capped at $3,000. Class C, such as disorderly conduct: as long as three months and as much as $500. Violations: no more than 30 days.
  • A first DUI: a year or less, a fine from $600 to $2,100, loss of the license for a period and DUI classes; a Sumter driver's fourth DUI in 10 years is charged as a felony.

↑ Up to the Livingston court menu

Sumter felonies: stolen property, drugs, burglary, car theft

A person facing a Sumter felony stays at the Sumter County Jail until bond is posted. At the first appearance, a judge looks at release terms and names a lawyer for anyone who qualifies.

How a Sumter felony moves

  1. A preliminary hearing in District Court, on request, to test probable cause.
  2. A Sumter grand jury reviews the case; an indictment sends it to Circuit Court.
  3. Arraignment in Circuit Court, then evidence sharing and motions.
  4. The case ends with a plea deal or a verdict from a Livingston jury.

Felony ranges by class

  • Class B, such as stealing a motor vehicle: 2 to 20 years and a fine of $30,000 or less.
  • Class C, for example burglary in the third degree or receiving stolen property worth $1,500 to $2,499: from 366 days to 10 years and a fine of $15,000 or less.
  • Class D, such as having a controlled substance other than marijuana: from 366 days to 5 years and a fine of $7,500 or less.

Alabama's presumptive standards may send nonviolent Sumter Class C and D offenders to supervision outside prison, like probation. Past felony convictions raise a Sumter sentence under the Habitual Felony Offender Act. A Sumter defendant younger than 21 on the offense date can seek youthful offender treatment; the record stays private and any sentence is capped at three years for that Sumter youth.

↑ Up to the Livingston court menu

Sumter violent felonies: murder, manslaughter, robbery, kidnapping

Anyone charged with a violent Sumter felony is booked into the Sumter County Jail and may be housed elsewhere for safety. Aniah's Law lets the 17th Circuit District Attorney ask a Sumter judge, following a hearing, to withhold bail in listed cases such as murder or robbery and kidnapping in the first degree, and Amendment 1, which voters passed on May 19, 2026, widened the law covering attempted murder and shots fired at an occupied Sumter home, building or vehicle.

Possible Sumter sentences

  • Class A felonies, such as murder, first-degree robbery and first-degree kidnapping: 10 to 99 years or life and a fine as high as $60,000, with longer minimums when a gun is used.
  • Manslaughter is a Class B felony: 2 to 20 years.
  • Capital murder: the death penalty or life with no parole.

Lawyers appointed for the most serious Sumter charges must meet state experience rules. Jail calls are recorded, so do not talk about the case on the phone.

↑ Up to the Livingston court menu

Sumter youths under 18

Sumter juvenile court meets at the Livingston courthouse after juvenile probation handles intake. Sumter runs no youth detention center; ask juvenile probation through the Circuit Clerk, (205) 652-2291, where a held child is placed. Children do not post adult bail. A held child must get a detention hearing within 72 hours (Ala. Code §12-15-207).

What a Sumter juvenile court can order

  • Informal adjustment, which closes the case with no delinquency finding once the child meets the conditions.
  • Probation with school and counseling rules.
  • A placement with the Alabama Department of Youth Services for the most serious or repeated cases.

Sumter teens charged as adults

Under Ala. Code §12-15-204, a Sumter 16- or 17-year-old facing a capital charge, a Class A felony, an armed felony, a felony leaving someone dead or badly hurt, or drug trafficking faces trial as an adult and may be held at the Sumter County Jail. For a child 14 or older, the District Attorney can also ask for a transfer hearing under §12-15-203. A Sumter child always gets a lawyer, free of charge to a family that cannot pay.

↑ Up to the Livingston court menu

Sumter federal charges in Tuscaloosa

Sumter County is in the Western Division of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Alabama, so Sumter federal matters go to Tuscaloosa, 2005 University Boulevard, (205) 561-1670. Federal charges from Sumter can include drug trafficking along Interstates 20 and 59, guns held by people with felony records, program fraud, and crimes on federal land such as Corps of Engineers property on the Tombigbee.

  • U.S. Marshals Service, 1729 5th Avenue North, Room 240, Birmingham, (205) 829-6611

How a Sumter federal case moves

A federal arrest from Sumter leads first to a U.S. magistrate judge. There is no bail schedule; after a detention hearing under the Bail Reform Act, the magistrate either sets federal release terms or keeps the defendant in custody. The U.S. Marshals decide which jail holds a federal prisoner before sentencing. Once a sentence is handed down, search the Federal Bureau of Prisons inmate locator.

↑ Up to the Livingston court menu

Franklin Street, Hospital Drive and town court numbers

Sumter state cases are heard at the Livingston courthouse, and town cases at the Livingston and York courts:

Our Sumter County bail guide explains posting in Livingston, and the Alabama Rule 7.2 bail schedule (https://judicial.alabama.gov/docs/library/rules/cr7_2.pdf) lists each range.

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Sumter County federal charges

The U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Alabama hears Sumter federal cases in Tuscaloosa:

  • Clerk: the federal courthouse in Tuscaloosa, 2005 University Boulevard, Tuscaloosa, AL 35401, 205-561-1670
  • U.S. Marshals: U.S. Marshals Service, 1729 5th Avenue North, Room 240, Birmingham, AL 35203, 205-829-6611

A Tuscaloosa magistrate judge rules on pretrial release for a Sumter defendant, and the Marshals choose the jail.

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Locating a Sumter County prisoner

Our Sumter County inmate page has more.

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ICE detainers at the Livingston jail

An ICE detainer lets the Sumter jail keep a person for two working days at most beyond the time Livingston would free 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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Sumter County warrant and docket lookups

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This Sumter County court page is general help, not legal advice. For your own Sumter charge, talk with a defense attorney licensed in Alabama, and for appointed counsel ask the Circuit Clerk at (205) 652-2291; for bond or inmate questions, call the Sheriff's Office at (205) 652-2841.

Sumter hearings can be reset; phone the clerk at 205-652-2291 or the town court before you drive to Livingston, and call the Sheriff's Office at 205-652-2841 to check that the person is still held.

Courts

LIVINGSTON MUNICIPAL COURT
201 CHURCH ST
LIVINGSTON AL, 35470
205-652-9773

Search for an Inmate or Active Arrest Warrant in Sumter 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.