The highest possible punishment decides:

• Felony (state jail up to capital): the 286th, shared with Cochran County; District Clerk files.
• Class A or B (a first DWI is one example): the County Judge's court; County Clerk files.
• Class C: a JP, or the city court if a city officer wrote it.

Criminal appeals from these courts can end up at the Court of Criminal Appeals, which has the final say on Texas criminal law.

Most hearings happen at the courthouse, 802 Houston Street, Levelland, TX 79336, switchboard 806-894-6856. Hours differ by office, so call before a trip.

• District Clerk (286th felonies): Suite 316, 806-894-8527. Settings are on the District Court calendar.
• County Clerk (County Court misdemeanors): 806-894-3185; call to confirm where the office is. Settings are on the County Court dockets page.
• Justice of the Peace (Class C), one phone for every precinct, 806-894-4104:
  • Precinct 5: 624 Avenue H, Suite 205, Levelland, TX 79336
  • Precinct 4: 313 Main, Anton, TX 79313
  • Precinct 2: 209 E. Richardson Street, Sundown, TX 79372
  • Precinct 1: mailing address P.O. Box 203, Ropesville, TX 79358

The county lists no Precinct 3. JP tickets can be paid through the county's online citation payment link.

City courts exist in every incorporated Texas town. Their work is fine-only Class C cases from inside town limits, which the JP courts can hear too, and no jail sentence comes out of them.

A ticket from a city police officer is a city matter. For the city court's location and hours, call City Hall (mail: P.O. Box 1010, Levelland, TX 79336), whose main line is 806-894-0113.

Got a ticket from Anton, Ropesville, Smyer, Sundown or a county road? Look at the ticket; the court and date are printed on it. If that doesn't settle it, the justice courts at 806-894-4104 can look it up.

Within 48 hours of arrest, often over video from the jail, your loved one sees a magistrate. That can be a JP, the County Judge or the 286th's judge. Under CCP §15.17, the magistrate:

• reads out the charge;
• explains five rights: to stay quiet, to hire counsel, to request appointed counsel, to have counsel there when questioned, and to halt an interview;
• hands over the free-lawyer request and helps complete it;
• decides bail and its conditions.

On a felony, the accused can also request an examining trial, a hearing on probable cause held before any indictment (CCP §16.01). The jail at 806-894-9334 knows when magistration is set.

Misdemeanor cases start in County Court on an "information," the prosecutor's written charge. An arraignment follows (a lawyer may waive it), then motion settings, plea talks and, failing a deal, a trial. What Hockley defendants face, by Penal Code chapter 12:

• Class C: $500 fine at most; no jail.
• Class B: up to $2,000, up to 180 days in the Avenue H jail, or both.
• Class A: up to $4,000, up to a year on Avenue H, or both.

Plenty of cases close with community supervision (probation) of up to two years, or with deferred adjudication, which leads to dismissal once every term is met. The judge has to announce in open court whether a plea bargain will be accepted. Should the County Judge turn the deal down, your loved one can back out of that plea (CCP §26.13). The county has a County Attorney's Office; the jail at 806-894-9334 can give its contact details.

1. Arrest, booking and magistration on Avenue H.
2. An examining trial, if the defense asks.
3. Grand jury. Nine jurors or more must agree to indict, and the session is secret.
4. Arraignment in the 286th; then motions and bargaining.
5. Plea of guilty, or jury trial; then punishment.

Penal Code chapter 12 punishments, felony side:

• State jail felony: between half a year and two years, in a state jail unit, not on Avenue H.
• Third degree: 2 to 10 years in TDCJ.
• Second degree: 2 to 20 years in TDCJ.
• First degree: five to 99 years in TDCJ, or a life term.
• Capital: a death sentence, or life with no chance of parole.

Any non-capital felony can add a fine reaching $10,000. Felony deferred adjudication can run 10 years. Check settings on the 286th's calendar or with the District Clerk at 806-894-8527.

Release gets harder first. Since Proposition 3 won at the ballot box in November 2025, a prosecutor may ask for no bail at all on listed crimes, murder and trafficking among them. A long list of violent charges also blocks a personal bond.

In family violence cases, magistration can produce an emergency protective order (CCP §17.292). It typically lasts 61 to 91 days. Serious injury or a deadly weapon stretches it to 91 to 121. Violating it can cost the accused their bond.

Most murder charges, plus some repeat sex crimes, rule out deferred adjudication. Penal Code §12.42 lets a prior felony bump the range higher. The 286th District Attorney decides how these cases are pursued.

Felony prosecutor: the 286th District Attorney, 802 Houston Street, Suite 212, Levelland, TX 79336, 806-894-3130, which also prosecutes Cochran County felonies.

Misdemeanor prosecutor: the jail at 806-894-9334 can give contact details for the County Attorney's Office.

Free defense: say yes when the magistrate offers counsel. The form has to reach the appointing judge inside a day. A county under 250,000 people, like this one, has until three working days after receipt to name a lawyer (CCP §1.051). Judges look at income, debts and dependents; making bail doesn't settle it. Pick Hockley in the indigent defense plan finder. Questions on a felony appointment can go to the District Clerk, 806-894-8527.

• Felony files: the District Clerk's page links a records search, and the 286th calendar lists settings.
• Misdemeanors: see the County Court dockets.
• JP tickets: call 806-894-4104 with the citation number.

Across Texas, re:SearchTX shows charges, indictments and judgments after a free account sign-up, but no hearing dates. For a fee, the Texas DPS conviction name search reports convictions and deferred adjudications. A felony question with no answer online? The District Clerk is at 806-894-8527.

Sheriff's deputies, constables and, in town, Levelland officers serve warrants here. To check, phone the Sheriff's Office at 806-894-3126; for a city warrant, Levelland police at 806-894-6164. Charges on the jail roster carry warrant numbers, and Texas DPS keeps a Ten Most Wanted fugitives list. Clearing it takes a surrender at the issuing court, best with a lawyer present, or a call there about rescheduling. The District Clerk handles felony warrants: 802 Houston Street, Suite 316, Levelland, TX 79336, 806-894-8527.

Federal crimes from the county go to Lubbock, home of the Northern District's Lubbock Division: George H. Mahon Federal Building, 1205 Texas Avenue, Room 209, Lubbock, TX 79401, clerk 806-472-1900.

• Release or detention gets decided at a federal detention hearing (18 U.S.C. 3142).
• The U.S. Marshals, 1205 Texas Avenue, Room C-126, Lubbock, TX 79401, 806-472-7655, keep pretrial custody and know which jail.
• Federal Public Defender: 1205 Texas Avenue, Room 507, Lubbock, TX 79401, 806-472-7236. Federal prosecutors' Lubbock branch line: 806-472-7351.
• Court papers sit on PACER, which charges per page. After a prison sentence, try the Federal Bureau of Prisons inmate locator.

1. The detainer arrives on ICE Form I-247A.
2. Even after bond is paid, the jail can keep the person up to 48 hours after they would otherwise be released (8 CFR 287.7(d)).
3. Texas jails must honor detainers, except where U.S. citizenship or lawful status is proven (CCP §2A.060).
4. A 2017 Texas statute, found at Gov't Code §752.053, stops sheriffs, cities and counties from blocking immigration enforcement by policy. Every county running a jail has a deadline, December 1, 2026, for joining ICE's 287(g) program under SB 8. For the Sheriff's status, call 806-894-3126.
5. A non-citizen hears a deportation warning from the judge, spoken and written, ahead of entering a plea of guilty or no contest (CCP §26.13). Get immigration advice before any plea.
6. Once ICE has custody, use the ICE Online Detainee Locator.

State jail sentences are done in a state jail unit. Prison sentences for third degree felonies and up go to TDCJ (Texas Department of Criminal Justice), starting with an intake unit. Following a 286th sentence, many people wait on Avenue H until TDCJ moves them.

The TDCJ inmate search covers people inside now; it updates on working days. Our state prisons in Texas listing has details on units. People given community supervision report to adult probation, 806-894-9621, mailing address 1212 Houston, Box 3, Levelland, TX 79336.

Age on the day of the offense is what counts. Children from 10 through 16 go to juvenile court; a 17-year-old is an adult in Texas criminal law. Officers must contact a parent quickly. Detained children see a judge within two working days, and get a lawyer first. Under Family Code §54.02, some serious felony cases against kids 14 and older can move to adult court after a hearing.

Juvenile Probation, 613 Ave G, Levelland, TX 79336, 806-894-4128, is the first call. Lubbock's registered center, the Lubbock County Juvenile Justice Center, 2025 N Akron Ave, Lubbock, TX 79415, 806-775-1800, may be where the child went; ask probation.

Victims' rights, under CCP §56A.051, start at bail: the magistrate must consider your safety. On request, you get notice of hearings, can wait apart from the accused at court, and describe the harm in a written statement the judge reads before sentencing. On a felony, tell the 286th District Attorney at 806-894-3130 you want notices.

• Help with bills: the Attorney General's victims' compensation fund covers crime costs like a hospital bill, therapy or missed paychecks, up to $50,000. Phone 800-983-9933.
• Custody alerts: register free on Texas IVSS-Counties, or dial 866-268-8959 at any hour, in Spanish or English. Registration stays confidential from the prisoner.