• Adams County District Court and Clerk of Court: Adams County Courthouse, 500 9th Street, Corning, IA 50841; 641-322-4711. Felonies, misdemeanors, traffic tickets, juvenile matters and protective orders are all handled here.
• The defendant, if held, stays at the Adams County Jail, 901 Davis Ave., Corning, IA 50841, 641-322-4444.

A magistrate takes simple misdemeanors, most traffic tickets and city ordinance cases, and also handles many first appearances. A district associate judge hears indictable misdemeanors. Felony trials go to a district judge. Because judges in the Fifth District serve several counties, certain kinds of hearings are set on fixed days in Corning.

The Adams County Attorney files and tries state charges from the county. The office is up on the third floor of the courthouse, 500 Ninth Street, Corning, IA 50841, and can be reached at 641-322-4008 or ACAttorney@AdamsCounty.Iowa.Gov. It is open Monday through Thursday from 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. and Friday from 8 a.m. to noon. Prosecutors cannot give legal advice to people charged with a crime.

1. Initial appearance, where the charge is read and release is set.
2. The county attorney files a trial information, or a grand jury returns an indictment.
3. Arraignment. Many defendants file a written plea instead of appearing.
4. Discovery, motions and plea talks.
5. A plea, a bench trial or a jury trial.
6. Sentencing, often after a presentence report.

Search Iowa Courts Online by name or case number, choosing Adams as the county. The free search shows charges, hearing dates, bond and the lawyer of record. Some records, such as most juvenile files, are not public.

Warrants from the courthouse at 500 9th Street go to the Adams County Sheriff, who is the only police agency in the county; reach the office at 641-322-4444. The sheriff doesn't put out a list of names, and Iowa offers no statewide warrant search that a family in Corning could use. Iowa Courts Online will show whether a case is open and what was filed. If the warrant is for a hearing that was missed, call the Clerk of District Court at 641-322-4711 and ask whether the judge will set a new date.

If you can't, say so at the first appearance; the judge will hand you a sworn financial form. Once approved, the case is assigned to the State Public Defender or to a private lawyer under contract with that office. The appointed lawyer's name is filed in the case and appears on Iowa Courts Online.

Youth cases are heard in the juvenile part of the district court in Corning. Intake and supervision run through Juvenile Court Services at 211 b North Elm, Creston, IA 50801, 641-782-2519, which also serves nearby counties. Most juvenile records stay closed to the public. If a judge orders secure detention, the young person goes to the Central Iowa Juvenile Detention Center, 2317 Rick Collins Way, Eldora, IA 50627, 641-858-3852, well north of Corning.

For most cases, a notice of appeal must be filed with the clerk within 30 days of judgment. A simple misdemeanor conviction is first appealed to a district judge in the county. The Iowa Judicial Branch website explains the Supreme Court and Court of Appeals process.

Adams County is in the Southern District of Iowa. The main federal courthouse is at 111 Locust Street, Des Moines, IA 50309, 515-284-6248. Federal cases do not appear on Iowa Courts Online; use PACER or the BOP locator after sentencing.

No. The Adams County case moves forward, and Iowa law requires the jail to honor the detainer once the state case allows release. The defense lawyer should be told about any hold, since a plea can carry immigration consequences. Bond steps are on our Adams County bail page.

Hearings for Adams County are set by the district scheduling office, 515-561-5819. The clerk's own line is 641-322-4711, and filings can go by fax to 641-322-4523.