New York ranks offenses by how serious they are:

• Violations are petty offenses, not crimes. The most jail they bring is 15 days (Penal Law § 70.15(4)).
• Misdemeanors are lesser crimes in two grades. The top grade, class A, caps jail at 364 days, and class B caps it at three months (Penal Law § 70.15).
• Felonies are serious crimes punishable by state prison, graded A (gravest) through E.

The law groups city, town and village courts as local criminal courts. Misdemeanor and violation trials happen in them, along with traffic cases and the opening hearings of felony cases. When a grand jury returns an indictment, County Court takes over the felony. The Supreme Court also sits at that Market Street address. Family Court and the Youth Part of County Court handle young people. Every one of these courts belongs to the Ninth Judicial District, along with the courts of Orange, Putnam, Rockland and Westchester.

Most big cases land in a few buildings in the county seat and in Beacon:

• Supreme and County Court, 10 Market Street, Poughkeepsie, NY 12601, 845-431-1710. Open Monday to Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., closed state holidays. Felony trials happen here.
• Family Court, 50 Market Street, Poughkeepsie, NY 12601, 845-431-1850, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
• Poughkeepsie City Court, 62 Civic Center Plaza, Poughkeepsie, NY 12601, 845-483-8200, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. It covers arrests inside the city.
• Beacon City Court, 1 Municipal Plaza, Suite 2, Beacon, NY 12508, 845-431-1900, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. It covers arrests inside Beacon.

The district's Administrative Judge oversees all of these courts from 111 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd, White Plains, NY 10601, 914-824-5140. Call that office with a complaint about how a court is run, not about a single case.

Each of the 20 towns has a town court, and eight villages keep courts too. Justices there hear misdemeanors, violations and traffic tickets from their area, and they arraign people on felonies. These courts have their own street addresses and phones:

• Poughkeepsie Town Court, 17 Tucker Drive, Poughkeepsie, NY 12603, 845-485-3692
• Fishkill Town Court, 807 Route 52, Fishkill, NY 12524, 845-831-7860. Office open weekdays 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., with court on Tuesday and Wednesday mornings at 9:00.
• East Fishkill Town Court, Town Hall, 330 Route 376, Hopewell Junction, NY 12533, 845-226-4229. Court sits Tuesdays at 9:00 a.m. and Wednesdays at 4:00 p.m., and payments are taken until 3:30 p.m.
• Wappinger Town Court, Town Hall, 20 Middlebush Road, Wappingers Falls, NY 12590, 845-297-6070. Office open weekdays 8:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Evening court starts at 5:00 p.m. on Tuesdays, plus some Wednesdays and Thursdays.
• Wappingers Falls Village Court, 2582 South Avenue, Wappingers Falls, NY 12590, 845-297-6777. Office open Monday to Thursday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Criminal cases are called on the first and third Tuesday.
• Dover Town Court, Town Hall, 126 East Duncan Hill Road, Dover Plains, NY 12522, 845-832-9373. Criminal cases with a prosecutor present are heard at 4:00 p.m. on the second Monday and third Tuesday of each month.

The rest of the justice courts, with their phones:

• Amenia Town Court: 845-373-7017
• Beekman Town Court: 845-724-5300, ext. 1
• Clinton Town Court: 845-266-5988
• Hyde Park Town Court: 845-229-1620
• LaGrange Town Court: 845-452-1830, option 2
• Milan Town Court: 845-758-6960
• Millerton Village Court and North East Town Court (same line): 518-789-3300, ext. 604
• Pawling Town Court: 845-855-3516
• Pawling Village Court: 845-855-5602
• Pine Plains Town Court: 518-398-7194
• Pleasant Valley Town Court: 845-635-2856, sessions Tuesdays and Thursdays at 5:30 p.m.
• Red Hook Town Court: 845-758-4611
• Red Hook Village Court: 845-758-4113
• Rhinebeck Town Court: 845-876-3858
• Rhinebeck Village Court: 845-876-4119
• Stanford Town Court: 845-868-2269
• Union Vale Town Court: 845-724-3288
• Millbrook Village Court and Washington Town Court (same line): 845-677-6366
• Fishkill Village Court: 845-897-2103
• Tivoli Village Court: 845-757-3219

To get one of these courts' street address and court nights, search the state's Find a Court page or ring the County Court clerk at 845-431-1710.

A person kept in custody is normally arraigned within roughly a day, since the courts call 24 hours the usual gap. At this hearing:

1. The judge tells the person what they are charged with.
2. A lawyer stands with them. Anyone who can't afford one gets an assigned lawyer (CPL 510.10(2)).
3. The judge picks a securing order: release on the person's word, release with conditions, bail, or, for some felonies, jail with no bail.
4. In a family offense case, a temporary order of protection can be signed on the spot, for instance one barring contact (CPL 530.12).
5. On a felony, the person learns they may testify before the grand jury by giving written notice to the prosecutor (CPL 190.50(5)).

Someone who got a desk appearance ticket at the station skips the jail stay and simply comes to court on the date written on it. For an arrest late at night, call the jail at 845-486-3900 to learn which court will hear the case and when.

The District Attorney's Justice Courts Unit handles cases in the city, town and village courts. After arraignment, a typical misdemeanor goes like this:

• Evidence sharing. Discovery, the hand-over of evidence, is due 20 days after arraignment for a jailed defendant and 35 days for one who is free (CPL 245.10).
• Ready for trial. Prosecutors get 90 days to announce they are ready on a class A charge, 60 on a class B (CPL 30.30(1)).
• How it ends. Many cases are dismissed or settled with a plea. Others go to trial.

Possible sentences:

• Class A: up to 364 days behind bars, and fines reach $1,000
• Class B: three months at most, and fines reach $500
• Violation: 15 days at most, and fines reach $250 (Penal Law § 80.05)
• Probation: 2 or 3 years on a class A, 1 year on a class B (Penal Law § 65.00)
• Conditional discharge: a year of court rules, with no jail time and no supervising officer (Penal Law § 65.05)

The Clean Slate Act, in force since November 16, 2024, automatically seals a misdemeanor conviction once three years pass from release or sentencing (CPL 160.57). A violation conviction is usually sealed right away (CPL 160.55).

A felony passes through two courts. Here is the path:

1. Felony complaint. The case begins with an arraignment in the local court.
2. Time limit. A jailed person must be freed after 120 hours, or 144 with a weekend or holiday, unless there has been a preliminary hearing or a grand jury vote. Some exceptions apply (CPL 180.80).
3. Grand jury. Citizens weigh the proof and vote on an indictment. The accused can request a chance to speak to them first.
4. County Court. An indictment sends the case to County Court, 10 Market Street, Poughkeepsie, NY 12601, for a second arraignment.
5. Evidence and motions. Prosecutors must be ready within six months (CPL 30.30(1)).
6. Resolution. A plea deal or a trial, followed by sentencing.

The longest possible term is life for class A. It drops to 25 years for B, then 15, 7 and 4 years for C, D and E (Penal Law § 70.00). A judge can instead give a year or less for some class D and E felonies. Felony fines reach $5,000 or double the money the person gained (Penal Law § 80.00). Felony probation lasts three to five years. Through Judicial Diversion (CPL Article 216), some people whose drug use led to a felony can get court-supervised treatment.

A charge listed as a violent felony in Penal Law § 70.02 brings tighter rules:

• Bail or remand. Because these are qualifying offenses, money bail and remand are both on the table.
• Set prison ranges. Sentences are fixed terms followed by post-release supervision. A class E violent felony carries 1.5 to 4 years, class D 2 to 7, class C 3.5 to 15 and class B 5 to 25.
• Examples. First-degree robbery and first-degree burglary are class B. Second-degree assault is class D.
• Youth breaks. Many armed felonies rule out youthful offender status for 16- to 18-year-olds (CPL 720.10).
• Record sealing. A violent felony can't be sealed by application later (CPL 160.59).

Victims in these cases can ask the court for an order of protection. At sentencing, a final order on a felony can last eight years past the sentence (CPL 530.12).

Crimes in the county are prosecuted by the elected District Attorney. The office is at 236 Main Street, Poughkeepsie, NY 12601, 845-486-2300, and its website is the District Attorney's page. Its Justice Courts Unit works in the local courts, and its Special Victims Unit takes sexual assault, family violence, child abuse and elder abuse cases.

The Public Defender represents people who can't pay. Find it at 45 Market Street, Poughkeepsie, NY 12601, 845-486-2280. Hours run 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekdays. Walk-in intake is every day from 9:00 to 11:30 a.m., first come, first served.

• Anyone jailed is presumed eligible. The same goes for a household earning under two and a half times the federal poverty guideline.
• Child support you receive is not counted as your money.
• The judge makes the final call on who qualifies.

Hiring a private defense lawyer instead is always allowed.

WebCrims, the state's criminal case search, covers County Court here. Open WebCrims, key in the opening letters of both names (two minimum), then pick the county.

Its results are limited to open cases with a hearing still ahead. Anything closed, sealed, handled as youthful offender, ended on a violation, or stuck without a date (a warrant case, for one) stays out of it. For those, and for every city, town and village court, phone the court:

• County Court: 845-431-1710
• Poughkeepsie City Court: 845-483-8200
• Beacon City Court: 845-431-1900
• Town and village courts: the state's justice court finder gives each one's number

To see your own state criminal record, book fingerprints through IdentoGo at 877-472-6915. The Division of Criminal Justice Services charges $17.50 and mails the result in about three to four weeks.

Warrants are carried out by Sheriff's deputies anywhere in the county and by local police inside their own city, town or village. Phone the Sheriff's Office, 108 Parker Avenue, Poughkeepsie, NY 12601, 845-486-3800, or the court handling the case. Statewide fugitives appear on the New York State Police Wanted and Missing list. WebCrims skips any case with an open warrant. A judge usually must give 48 hours' notice before a bench warrant for a missed date, so the person can come in first (CPL 510.50). Clearing one starts with a lawyer. Go with that lawyer to the issuing court, or call the court to get a new date. County Court, which handles felony warrants, is at 10 Market Street, Poughkeepsie, NY 12601, 845-431-1710.

Federal crimes from here belong to the Southern District of New York. A court rule sends cases from the district's northern counties, this one included, to White Plains. That is where the person is usually arraigned and where bail is argued. The courthouse is at 300 Quarropas Street, White Plains, NY 10601, and the clerk answers at 914-390-4100 on weekdays, 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. The district also sits at the U.S. Courthouse, 355 Main Street, Poughkeepsie, NY 12601, and the same clerk line covers it.

• At the first court date, a federal magistrate weighs detention or release in a hearing (18 U.S.C. 3142).
• Federal Defenders of New York, 81 Main Street, Suite 124, White Plains, NY 10601, 914-428-7124, represents people who can't pay.
• The U.S. Marshals Service moves and holds federal defendants. Its district office is at 500 Pearl Street, Suite 400, New York, NY 10007, 646-563-9800.
• Federal court data say over 90% of defendants end their case with a guilty plea.

Case files can be read on PACER for 10 cents per page, up to $3 per document. After sentencing, find the person with the Federal Bureau of Prisons inmate locator.

The state charges keep moving no matter what ICE does. A detainer matters at the moment of release. Here is the usual sequence:

1. Immigration officers lodge Form I-247A against the person at the jail.
2. It asks for a hold of up to 48 hours after they would otherwise be released, so officers can come for them (8 CFR 287.7(d)).
3. The case then belongs to ICE's New York City Field Office, 26 Federal Plaza, Suite 9-110, New York, NY 10278 (9th floor), 212-436-9315.
4. Detainees may be moved to ICE's own center in Batavia, the Buffalo (Batavia) Service Processing Center, 4250 Federal Drive, Batavia, NY 14020, 585-344-6500.
5. The ICE Online Detainee Locator shows where they are.

State law limits local help. In 2018, an appeals court ruled in People ex rel. Wells v DeMarco: nothing in state law lets local officers carry out civil immigration arrests. Since August 25, 2026, Executive Law § 170-k has left every 287(g) agreement void, though judicial warrants and court orders still count. For a court case, Civil Rights Law § 28 matters most. It protects parties, witnesses and their family members from civil arrest on the way to court, at court and on the way home, except under a judge's warrant or order. Before any plea, make sure the defense lawyer knows the person's immigration status.

Felony prison terms go to the state Department of Corrections and Community Supervision (DOCCS). Shorter sentences of a year or less are usually served in the county jail on North Hamilton Street. After a state sentence, the county certifies readiness, which gives DOCCS a ten-business-day deadline to take custody. A reception center then runs medical, mental health and program checks before choosing a prison.

• Search the DOCCS incarcerated lookup by name or DIN, the state number.
• DOCCS answers family questions at 518-457-5000 during business hours.
• See our New York state prisons guide for visiting and mail.

Raise the Age reached 16-year-olds in October 2018 and 17-year-olds in October 2019. Most teen cases now stay out of adult court:

• Felony, age 16 or 17: starts in County Court's Youth Part. A nonviolent felony goes to Family Court unless the prosecutor shows "extraordinary circumstances" within 30 days (CPL 722.23).
• Misdemeanor, age 16 or 17: handled by probation intake, away from adult court.
• Ages 12 to 17, other cases: Family Court handles juvenile delinquency (Family Court Act § 301.2).
• Ages 13 to 15, gravest crimes: a short list, such as murder, can make the teen a juvenile offender (CPL 1.20(42)).
• Ages 16 to 18: a judge may grant youthful offender status, which replaces a conviction (CPL 720.10).

Teens are questioned only in special rooms or at home with a parent's OK, and the questioning is recorded. Family Court is at 50 Market Street, Poughkeepsie, NY 12601, 845-431-1850. For youth detention and intake questions, call probation at 845-486-2600.

The District Attorney's Special Victims Unit works with victims of sexual assault, family violence, child abuse and elder abuse. Reach the office at 236 Main Street, Poughkeepsie, NY 12601, 845-486-2300.

• Family Services runs a 24-hour rape crisis and crime victims hotline, 845-452-7272, and a 24-hour domestic violence hotline, 845-485-5550. Its office is at 29 North Hamilton Street, Poughkeepsie, NY 12601.
• The Child Advocacy Center, 35 Van Wagner Road, Poughkeepsie, NY 12603, 845-454-0595, helps children.
• The state Office of Victim Services can pay some medical, counseling and funeral costs. Call 800-247-8035.
• For custody alerts from any county jail or state prison, call VINE at 888-846-3469 or sign up on VINELink.
• Judges can issue orders of protection that tell the accused to stay away (CPL 530.12).