The circuit court takes nearly every criminal case from the county, felony or misdemeanor. It is a state trial court, and it forms the 27th Judicial District by itself (ORS 3.012). Across Oregon, 36 circuit courts sit in 27 districts. The level of the offense sets the stakes:

• Felonies. A Class C felony, the lowest level, can bring 5 years in prison at most. Class B doubles that to 10, and Class A reaches 20.
• Misdemeanors. The jail cap is 30 days for Class C, half a year for Class B, and 364 days for Class A.
• Violations. These bring a fine. Nobody goes to jail for a violation.

Two smaller courts take minor matters. The county's Justice Court can hear violations and some misdemeanors. Manzanita Municipal Court hears traffic and city ordinance cases from inside that city. Both sit outside the state courts, which means OJD's online search will not list their cases.

• Circuit Court: 201 Laurel Avenue, Tillamook, OR 97141, 503-842-2596 (press 0 for Webex help). The customer window opens Monday through Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Phones are answered from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Letters go to the same street address.
• Justice Court: 503-842-3416. Call for its location and calendar.
• Federal court: 1000 SW Third Avenue, Suite 740, Portland, OR 97204 (Hatfield courthouse), 503-326-8000.

Circuit court hearings happen in person, unless a judge okayed Webex before the court date. Dress with care. Shorts, pajamas, tank tops, crop tops and offensive clothes are not allowed. Take off hats and sunglasses, turn phones off or to silent, and don't record anything.

Programs at this court include DUII Diversion, Pretrial Release, mediation and arbitration.

Manzanita does. Its Municipal Court meets at City Hall, 655 Manzanita Ave, Manzanita, OR 97130. Call 503-812-2514, extension 4. The clerk works Monday through Thursday from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., and court is held Fridays at 1:30 p.m. This court takes most city and state traffic offenses inside city limits, along with city ordinance cases. Fines can be paid online by card, or by a check made out to "Manzanita Municipal Court" and mailed to PO Box 129, Manzanita, OR 97130.

For a ticket or charge from Bay City, Garibaldi, Nehalem, Rockaway Beach, Wheeler or the city of Tillamook, phone that city hall or the circuit court at 503-842-2596 to learn which court has it. Garibaldi's city office is at 107 Sixth St., Garibaldi, OR 97118, 503-322-3327.

The first hearing is the arraignment. If the person sits in jail on a new charge, it usually happens the afternoon of the next business day, provided the District Attorney files charges that day. Oregon sets a firm deadline too: 36 hours in custody, with Saturdays, Sundays and holidays not counted (ORS 135.010).

• The court reads the charges aloud and asks for a plea (ORS 135.020).
• Next comes a warning about rights: a lawyer, and a preliminary hearing (ORS 135.070).
• Release is decided, based on the Release Assistance Officer's report and what both sides say.
• Anyone who wants a court-appointed lawyer turns in the application.

Felony defendants have to be there themselves. For a misdemeanor, the defense lawyer may appear on the person's behalf (ORS 135.030). Family members coming to court should arrive about 15 minutes early.

Lots of misdemeanor cases begin with a citation, a ticket listing a court date, rather than a ride to jail (ORS 133.055). The person must then show up, usually within 30 days, or a warrant can follow (ORS 133.060). The District Attorney files most misdemeanor cases in circuit court.

• DUII. The court has a DUII Diversion program. Ask the defense lawyer whether the person can join it.
• Theft. Under the county release order, most theft cases end in release on a written promise to appear.
• Drug possession. Since September 1, 2024 (HB 4002), this is its own kind of drug misdemeanor, punishable by 180 days in jail at most. The usual path is treatment plus probation, and completing it can get the charge dismissed.

A plea comes at arraignment. If it is not guilty, the case moves to later hearings and, in time, a trial. Jail limits for misdemeanors run from 30 days (Class C) up to 364 days (Class A).

1. Arraignment in circuit court, where release gets decided.
2. Charging. The state moves forward one of two ways: grand jurors vote an indictment, or the case goes to a preliminary hearing before a judge. For someone in custody, that hearing comes within five judicial days (ORS 135.070). The judge checks for probable cause, a solid reason to believe this person committed a crime (ORS 135.175).
3. Pretrial work. Lawyers swap evidence, argue motions and may agree to a plea deal.
4. Trial. A jury hears the case unless the person picks a judge alone. Every juror must agree before a guilty verdict (Ramos v. Louisiana, 2020).
5. Sentencing. Oregon's sentencing grid weighs how serious the crime was against the person's past record.

Prison caps depend on class. Class C means 5 years at most, B means 10, and A means 20. Prison time is served with the Oregon Department of Corrections.

• Measure 11. Voters passed it in 1994. Many serious crimes against people now carry a fixed floor on prison time. Good conduct inside doesn't shorten it. Murder, for one, carries 25 years.
• A judge decides release. Under the county order, nobody charged with a violent felony, a Class A felony, a sex offense or domestic violence goes home before a judge rules.
• Release may be denied. That can happen in murder, aggravated murder and treason cases with strong proof, or in a violent felony after a hearing about danger (ORS 135.240).
• Keep away. The accused may not contact the victim in these cases. That rule covers domestic violence, sex offenses and bias crimes. It applies inside the jail and to messages passed by relatives (ORS 135.247, 135.250).
• Victims speak. A victim may talk at a release hearing or at sentencing (Or. Const. art. I, § 42).

Voters here pick the District Attorney, and that office brings state criminal cases to court (ORS 8.610). The DA's Office is at 201 Laurel Ave., Tillamook, OR 97141, 503-842-3410.

Someone who can't afford a lawyer fills out the Court Appointed Attorney Application at arraignment and gives it to the circuit court window, 201 Laurel Avenue, Tillamook, OR 97141, 503-842-2596. Expect a $20 application fee, which can be waived. The lawyers are paid through the Oregon Public Defense Commission (OPDC). Renamed in January 2024, it became an executive-branch agency in 2025.

Oregon has a shortage of defense lawyers. Suppose a person in jail is still unassigned seven days past the first hearing. A federal order in the Betschart case then generally requires release on conditions, though the charges remain. Hiring privately instead? Ask for a name from the state bar's lawyer matching service, 503-684-3763.

• OJD Records and Calendar Search: free to use, no login. Search a name for basic case facts. Court papers are not included, and juvenile cases are kept out.
• Circuit court calendars: the daily list of hearings.
• OJCIN OnLine: a subscription with the court's official register of actions.
• Public computers at the courthouse, 201 Laurel Avenue, Tillamook, OR 97141, which anyone may use for free.

Skip calling the jail about dates; the Sheriff's Office sends those questions to the court. Phone the circuit court at 503-842-2596. A clerk will share what the file shows, but won't tell you what to do. Look at the calendar again on the hearing day. When the website is offline, the phone line and courthouse computers still work. Justice Court cases are at 503-842-3416, and Manzanita cases at 503-812-2514.

County deputies handle warrant arrests outside town limits, and city police do so inside them. For a warrant check, phone the Sheriff's Records Division at 503-842-2561 on a weekday. For statewide wanted lists, see the Oregon DOC Most Wanted page (tips 877-831-0389), the Marshals Service's 15 Most Wanted and FBI Portland. Filed cases appear in the OJD case search. Clearing one starts with a lawyer. On that lawyer's advice, surrender at the Justice Center, 5995 Long Prairie Rd., Tillamook, OR 97141, or request a fresh date from the court that signed it. The circuit court sits at 201 Laurel Avenue, Tillamook, OR 97141, 503-842-2596.

Any federal crime from this stretch of coast belongs to the Portland Division of the U.S. District Court for the District of Oregon. Clerk: 1000 SW Third Avenue, Suite 740, Portland, OR 97204 (Hatfield courthouse), 503-326-8000.

• Federal prosecutors: U.S. Attorney's Office, 1000 SW Third Ave, Suite 600, Portland, OR 97204, 503-727-1000.
• Pretrial Services, 1000 Southwest Third Avenue, Suite 440, Portland, OR 97204, 503-326-8500, writes a report before the detention hearing. At that hearing a judge settles custody until trial (18 U.S.C. 3142).
• The U.S. Marshals keep federal prisoners and bring them to court: 1000 SW 3rd Avenue, Room 401, Portland, OR 97204, 503-326-2209. People may be housed at FCI Sheridan, 27072 Ballston Road, Sheridan, OR 97378, 503-843-4442, or a contract county jail.
• Once sentenced, the person can be traced through the Federal Bureau of Prisons inmate locator.

The circuit court case doesn't pause for ICE. A detainer comes into play only at the moment of release.

1. ICE may send Form I-247A, a detainer request. It seeks a hold of up to 48 hours after they would otherwise be released (8 CFR 287.7(d)).
2. Oregon's sanctuary law generally bars county jails from holding someone on an ICE detainer alone (ORS 181A.820-181A.829; HB 3265, 2021). Local officers may not act on an immigration paper that lacks a judge's signature.
3. Jails may not pass release dates or personal details to ICE for immigration enforcement.
4. Courthouses get extra protection. Civil immigration arrests there are allowed only with a judge's warrant or order (HB 3265).
5. ICE's Portland office, under the Seattle Field Office: 4310 S Macadam Ave, Suite 300, Portland, OR 97239, 503-326-4165.
6. The ICE Online Detainee Locator shows people ICE is holding.

Prison terms are served with the Oregon Department of Corrections. The first stop for everyone is intake at Coffee Creek Correctional Facility, 24499 SW Grahams Ferry Road, Wilsonville, OR 97070. Intake lasts about 30 days. No personal visits happen during intake, but calls and letters are allowed. Letters must carry the person's State ID (SID) number.

• Use the Oregon Offender Search to locate a state prisoner.
• Each prison is described on the Oregon state prisons section of our site.
• The Department of Corrections answers at 503-945-9090, and intake at 503-570-2259.

The state also runs a work camp in the county, South Fork Forest Camp, 48300 Wilson River Hwy, Tillamook, OR 97141. Ask the main DOC line about anyone there.

Cases for ages 12 to 17 go through the county Juvenile Department. Phone 503-842-3417 for the young person's location and hearing time. Youth stay in a juvenile facility, apart from adult prisoners. Their cases are heard in circuit court and stay out of public online records.

• Since SB 1008 (2019), a Measure 11 case against a youth aged 15 to 17 begins in juvenile court. Moving it to the adult side takes a waiver hearing first.
• Youth committed to the state go to the Oregon Youth Authority. Its Tillamook Youth Correctional Facility is at 6700 Officer Row, Tillamook, OR 97141, 503-842-2565. Camp Tillamook, a youth transition camp, is at 6820 Barracks Circle, Tillamook, OR 97141, 503-842-4243.

The District Attorney's Victims Assistance program guides victims through each stage. Call 503-842-1241 on weekdays, 8:30 a.m. to noon or 1:00 to 4:00 p.m. The office is at 201 Laurel Ave., Tillamook, OR 97141.

• Oregon's Constitution lists victims' rights. Among them: being present at key hearings, a say in release, and payback for losses (Or. Const. art. I, § 42; Or. Const. art. I, § 43). A few rights start automatically, while others need a request.
• Sign up with VISOR for an alert if the person gets out or changes facilities. Its line, 855-691-6246, is open around the clock.
• The Oregon Department of Justice handles Crime Victims' Compensation. Hospital costs, therapy and missed paychecks from a violent crime can qualify. The office is at 1162 Court St. NE, Salem, OR 97301, 800-503-7983.