Nobles County Jail

Check Nobles County Inmate Search first. If the search shows nothing, call the jail at 507-295-5290. The Sheriff's Office runs the county jail for all of Nobles County. Dispatch is 507-372-8430. The Government Center at 315 10th Street is a separate county building.

It is the Airport Road building that holds the jail and the court. The Sheriff's Office is Suite 100, and the county lists the jail's mail address as Suite 200, at 1530 Airport Road, Worthington, MN 56187. The district court uses the same street address, with PO Box 547. Call the jail to ask which entrance visitors and bail payers should use.

No, they are different. Nobles County takes inmate deposits at a kiosk in the main entrance of the Prairie Justice Center, with cash or a credit card, and online at a website the county names for deposits. Money orders and cashier's checks are accepted at visits or by mail; personal checks are not. A deposit buys phone time and snacks. It does not release anyone.

To learn the bail window, hours and accepted forms of payment, call 507-295-5290 and ask where bail is received, on nights and weekends too, and whether cash must be exact. Court counter staff may know the amount set. Their number is 507-350-3015.

The county lists Sunday 9 to 11 a.m. and 7 to 10 p.m., Tuesday 7 to 10 p.m., and Thursday 9 to 11 a.m. Visits must be scheduled at least four hours ahead, at 507-295-5378 or through the vendor website the county names. A visit does not change bail. Ask about attorney visits separately.

Counter hours are Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Staff answer phones from 4 to 4:30 p.m. The main number is 507-350-3015. Court Administration is part of the Fifth Judicial District. If you want to pay bail and the counter has closed, call the jail instead.

Thirty-six hours, excluding the day of arrest, Sundays and legal holidays. Misdemeanor suspects not seen in that time must be released on a citation. Rule 4.03 requires a judge's probable-cause finding within 48 hours, counting weekends. Ask the court at 507-350-3015 for the first hearing date.

Minnesota has no statewide table of amounts, and courts are told to avoid preset bail lists. The judge looks at the offense, the evidence, ties to the community, employment and record. Cash bail for a misdemeanor cannot exceed twice the highest cash fine. Ask the jail for the number set in your case.

Yes. Rule 6.02 says release can come with supervision by an agreeing person or group, limits on travel or contact, a bond or cash deposit, or other needed conditions. The judge must use the least restrictive option that reasonably assures appearance. A written order goes to the defendant and the jail.

Pick an agent licensed by the Minnesota Department of Commerce and approved by the State Court Administrator. Chapter 60M requires the filed rate and a $100 minimum premium. Agents may not pay jailers, give rebates, or deposit money to an inmate account. Ask for a signed, numbered collateral receipt.

Rule 6.02 allows "other security," and the court can explain how land is handled. Before you sign a deed or mortgage, ask Court Administration at 507-350-3015 how value is proven and where papers are filed. If an agent proposes a quitclaim deed, decline, because chapter 60M forbids it as collateral.

Call the Sheriff at 507-295-5400 the same day and ask where the teen is held, when the hearing is and what the visiting rules are. A minor does not appear in Nobles County Inmate Search.

If the person cannot afford a lawyer, ask the judge at the first appearance or use the online public defender application. An assistant public defender is then assigned by the chief. Call the court at 507-350-3015 to learn which office serves Nobles County.

A hold from probation, another county or another agency can stop a release even after bail is posted. In domestic assault cases the judge may add no-contact terms before release. Ask the jail at 507-295-5290 whether there are other holds, and ask for the answer in plain terms.

Nobles County lists several ways to send money to the jail, and only some are for bail. The lobby kiosk, the online deposit site and money orders payable to the jail all go to an inmate account. Bail is separate. Pay it only where the jail or the court tells you, and keep the receipt. Call 507-295-5290 if a message tells you to pay somewhere else.

Nobles County's criminal cases are heard at the Prairie Justice Center in Worthington, the county seat, by the District Court of Minnesota's Fifth Judicial District. Felony and juvenile prosecutions belong to the Nobles County Attorney, and misdemeanors from inside Worthington, Adrian and the county's other cities are typically handled by city prosecutors. The Nobles County Jail, run by the Sheriff, is located in the same justice center complex.

• Nobles County District Court (Fifth Judicial District), Prairie Justice Center, 1530 Airport Road, P.O. Box 547, Worthington, MN 56187, (507) 350-3015
• Nobles County Attorney's Office, Worthington, (507) 295-5298
• Fifth Judicial District Public Defender (State Board of Public Defense), serving qualifying defendants in Nobles County; Nobles County clients can reach its Worthington office at 1010 2nd Avenue, 2nd Floor, Worthington, MN 56187, (507) 372-7100
• Nobles County Jail (Nobles County Sheriff's Office), Prairie Justice Center, 1530 Airport Road, Worthington, MN 56187

Which court hears your case. Nobles County has a single District Court, and Minnesota has no city or municipal courts, so every criminal charge from the county ends up in Worthington regardless of its level. The type of charge is what decides the prosecutor and the steps. City prosecutors, or private attorneys a city contracts with, generally handle misdemeanors and gross misdemeanors that occur in Worthington or another city; offenses at those levels in the townships are the County Attorney's; and every felony from Nobles County is prosecuted by the County Attorney.

Where pretrial detainees are held. People taken into custody by the Worthington Police Department, Nobles County deputies or the State Patrol are booked at the Nobles County Jail inside the Prairie Justice Center on Airport Road. Those who cannot post bail or are not released by a judge wait there for their hearings, which are held in courtrooms in the same building. The court arranges interpreters for defendants who need one, which is common in Worthington.

Three offense levels are grouped here. A Nobles County petty misdemeanor is a noncriminal violation with a fine capped at $300. A misdemeanor can draw 90 days in jail and a $1,000 fine. A gross misdemeanor tops out at 364 days and $3,000.

Getting out after an arrest in Worthington

Officers frequently cite and release on lower-level charges. If someone is booked, posting bail under the court's schedule usually ends the stay at the Prairie Justice Center within hours. Anyone not released must see a Fifth District judge within 36 hours of arrest, excluding the day of the arrest, Sundays and legal holidays, and a warrantless arrest requires a judicial probable-cause determination within 48 hours.

Arraignment and release conditions

At the arraignment the Nobles County judge informs the defendant of the charge and the right to counsel, appoints the public defender for those who qualify, and sets release terms. The judge may release the person on recognizance or, more often in contested cases, set two bail amounts: a higher figure that comes with no conditions and a lower figure paired with conditions such as no alcohol, random testing or no contact. Minnesota allows bondsmen, so a bail bond is one way to cover either amount.

Moving toward resolution

A pretrial conference comes next. Worthington's city prosecutor or the Nobles County Attorney may offer an amended charge, a continuance for dismissal or a stay of adjudication. If the case is tried, the defendant has a right to a unanimous jury of six.

The public defender in misdemeanor court

For a jailable misdemeanor, a Nobles County defendant who cannot afford counsel can be represented by the Fifth Judicial District Public Defender. The judge reviews income information and makes the appointment at arraignment.

Common charges and their limits

• Theft from a Worthington store or home: a misdemeanor up to $500 in value; a gross misdemeanor from $500 to $1,000.
• Fifth-degree assault in Nobles County: a misdemeanor that becomes a gross misdemeanor with certain prior convictions.
• Trespassing charged in Nobles County: generally a misdemeanor.
• A first-time DWI in Nobles County: fourth-degree DWI is a misdemeanor. Adding one aggravating factor, like a test result of 0.16 or more, a child under 16 in the car, or a refusal to test, turns it into third-degree DWI, a gross misdemeanor. The license is revoked administratively apart from the criminal case, a chemical use assessment is ordered, and more serious cases may involve ignition interlock, plate impoundment or vehicle forfeiture.

Most of these Worthington cases are resolved in one to four months.

Felonies in Nobles County are offenses punishable by more than one year in prison. The Nobles County Attorney files them as complaints, and only life-imprisonment offenses go to a grand jury.

The hearing sequence at the Prairie Justice Center

The first appearance, called Rule 5, must occur within 36 hours for someone held in the Nobles County Jail. The judge reads the complaint, decides on a public defender, and sets bail and conditions, sometimes after a pretrial evaluation by probation. At the Rule 8 hearing the evidence is turned over and future dates are scheduled. The omnibus hearing allows the defense to contest probable cause and to move to suppress unlawfully obtained evidence. Pretrial and settlement conferences come before any trial.

Trial or agreement

Most Nobles County felonies are settled by a plea. If not, a 12-member jury hears the case and must reach a unanimous decision. A demand for a speedy trial requires the trial to begin within 60 days.

Representation

The Fifth Judicial District Public Defender takes Nobles County felony cases for eligible defendants and stays with them through sentencing.

How Nobles County felony sentences are set

A presentence investigation gives the judge background on the defendant. The Minnesota Sentencing Guidelines then match the offense severity to the defendant's criminal history score, producing a presumptive sentence that is either stayed for probation or executed in prison. The judge needs substantial and compelling reasons to depart.

• Felony theft in Worthington and across Nobles County: above $1,000 up to 5 years, above $5,000 up to 10, above $35,000 up to 20.
• Nobles County burglary charges: third degree carries up to 5 years, second degree up to 10, and first degree up to 20.
• Drug sale in the first degree: up to 30 years in prison.
• Second-degree assault with a dangerous weapon in Nobles County: up to 7 years, with a mandatory minimum for a firearm.

Outcomes include dismissal, a stay of imposition (which reduces the record to a misdemeanor after successful probation), probation with local jail time, or a prison sentence served roughly two-thirds inside and one-third on supervised release. Expect four months to a year.

Nobles County violent felony cases take the same path through Rule 5, Rule 8 and the omnibus hearing, with the County Attorney prosecuting. Bail is usually high, and many defendants stay in the Prairie Justice Center jail for the life of the case. A first-degree murder charge needs a grand jury indictment.

Sentencing exposure

• First-degree murder in Nobles County: life imprisonment; life without parole for premeditated murder and some other forms, otherwise eligibility for parole after 30 years. Minnesota has not had the death penalty since 1911.
• Second-degree murder: up to 40 years; third-degree murder: up to 25 years.
• First-degree criminal sexual conduct: up to 30 years, presumptive 144 months on a first offense.
• First-degree aggravated robbery: up to 20 years.

Rights of victims and the defense

Minnesota Statutes chapter 611A gives Nobles County victims the right to be informed of hearings, to attend, and to make a statement at sentencing. Eligible defendants are represented by the Fifth Judicial District Public Defender. Because of forensic testing and motion practice, violent felony cases usually take one to two years and can take longer.

Offenses by young people under 18 are heard by the juvenile division of the Nobles County District Court in Worthington. The County Attorney decides whether to file a delinquency petition. A youth held in custody must receive a detention hearing within 36 hours, excluding weekends and holidays, and is typically taken to the nearest licensed center with an open bed, such as Prairie Lakes Youth Programs in Willmar, rather than the adult jail in Worthington.

A first offense in Nobles County is often handled through diversion, such as restitution or a community program, without a formal petition. For serious offenses, prosecutors may request Extended Jurisdiction Juvenile (EJJ) prosecution for a 14- to 17-year-old, which keeps the case in juvenile court but attaches a stayed adult sentence, or certification to adult court for a youth 14 or older. Certification is presumed for 16- and 17-year-olds charged with offenses that carry a presumptive prison term or that involved a firearm, and 16- and 17-year-olds charged with first-degree murder are prosecuted as adults. Juveniles are entitled to a lawyer, including a public defender if eligible. Juvenile records are generally kept confidential, though some felony records of youth 16 and older may be public.

Worthington sits on Interstate 90 a short drive from both Iowa and South Dakota, and some Nobles County arrests become federal prosecutions rather than cases at the Prairie Justice Center. Nobles County is part of the District of Minnesota and is assigned to the Fourth Division, whose courthouse is the Diana E. Murphy U.S. Courthouse, 300 S. 4th Street, Minneapolis, MN 55415. Jurors are drawn from the Fourth Division, and initial hearings are often held in Minneapolis or St. Paul.

What makes it federal

Cases investigated by the FBI, DEA, ATF, Homeland Security Investigations, the IRS or U.S. Postal Inspectors are the ones most likely to be filed federally. Drug trafficking along the interstate or in large quantities, a felon possessing a firearm, fraud, child exploitation, bank robbery and immigration offenses are typical. Worthington police or Nobles County deputies may make the arrest and see federal prosecutors adopt the case, and state and federal charges for the same acts are both permitted.

Federal contacts

Prosecutor: U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Minnesota, U.S. Courthouse, 300 S. 4th Street, Suite 600, Minneapolis, MN 55415, (612) 664-5600, and 316 N. Robert Street, Suite 404, St. Paul, MN 55101, (651) 848-1950.

Defense: Office of the Federal Defender, 107 U.S. Courthouse, 300 S. 4th Street, Minneapolis, MN 55415, (612) 664-5858, with CJA panel attorneys appointed on conflicts.

Custody: U.S. Marshals Service in Minneapolis, (612) 664-5900.

The road through federal court

The defendant first appears before a U.S. magistrate judge, who explains the charges and arranges appointed counsel. A detention hearing generally follows within three court days if prosecutors want the person kept in custody; release under the Bail Reform Act comes with conditions supervised by U.S. Probation and Pretrial Services, and the federal system does not use bondsmen. If charges began by complaint, the grand jury must indict within 30 days of arrest, absent a preliminary hearing, before arraignment. The Speedy Trial Act aims for trial inside 70 days, though continuances are usual and most defendants end up pleading guilty; at trial, a 12-person jury must be unanimous. A presentence report is prepared before sentencing, which comes roughly three months after conviction and applies the advisory Guidelines and any mandatory minimum. There is no parole, so at least about 85% of a prison term is served in the Bureau of Prisons, followed by supervised release. Appeals are taken to the Eighth Circuit.

Locating someone

Pretrial federal detainees are kept in county jails that contract with the Marshals around Minnesota, and occasionally out of state, so a Nobles County arrestee could be moved away from Worthington. The Minneapolis Marshals office can tell family members where; after sentencing, the Bureau of Prisons inmate locator applies. Prosecuting minors federally is rare.