Picture three tiers, each with its own courtroom on East Third Street:

• Top tier, felonies. State jail felonies, capital murder and every grade between land in the 32nd District Court. That single district judge rides circuit for Fisher, Mitchell and Nolan counties. Paperwork lives with the District Clerk.
• Middle tier, Class A and B. Misdemeanors that carry jail time get heard at county level: the County Court at Law (named the 1st Multicounty Court at Law in the shared lawyer plan) and the constitutional County Court. Paperwork lives with the County Clerk.
• Bottom tier, Class C. Fine-only offenses land before the Justice of the Peace, or before Sweetwater's municipal court for tickets written by city officers.

The tier also caps the punishment. Penal Code 12.21 through 12.23 put Class C at a fine of no more than $500, Class B at as much as 180 days plus a $2,000 fine, and Class A at as much as a year plus $4,000. Felony terms run far longer. Appeals climb through the court of appeals, and the Court of Criminal Appeals gets any final round.

Learn the suite numbers, because one building holds them all:

• 32nd District Court office: 100 East 3rd Street, Suite 204A, Sweetwater, TX 79556, 325-235-3133.
• District Clerk: 100 East Third Street, Suite 200, Sweetwater, TX 79556, 325-235-2111. Open business hours. This office turns away filings sent by fax or email.
• County Court at Law: 100 East Third Street, Suite 107, Sweetwater, TX 79556, 325-235-2353, mccl@co.nolan.tx.us. Remote appearances by Zoom are possible.
• County Clerk: 100 East Third Street, Suite 108, Sweetwater, TX 79556, 325-235-2462. After 4:30 p.m. nothing gets processed.
• Justice of the Peace: 100 East Third Street, Suite 101, Sweetwater, TX 79556, 325-235-5482, justice.court@co.nolan.tx.us.
• District Attorney: 100 East Third Street, Suite 201, Sweetwater, TX 79556, 325-235-8639.
• Adult probation (the community supervision department for the 32nd District): 100 East 3rd Street, Suite 304, Sweetwater, TX 79556, 325-235-2608.

Sweetwater has one. Its municipal court deals with fine-only cases from inside the city limits, like ordinance violations and Class C traffic tickets. Sessions happen at City Hall, 200 East 4th Street, Sweetwater, TX 79556, on Wednesday afternoons at 4:30. Clerks there accept appearance bonds on city charges and, at the city judge's direction, issue summonses and arrest warrants. The city's main number is 325-236-6313.

Got a ticket from around Roscoe? The court's name is printed on the citation itself. Misplaced it, or the print is smudged? The Justice of the Peace, 100 East Third Street, Suite 101, Sweetwater, TX 79556, 325-235-5482, can look it up. Can't afford a Class C fine? CCP arts. 45A.252-45A.261 let the judge allow installments, community service credited at $150 for every 8 hours, or a waiver. A hearing has to come before any jail time.

The clock for seeing a magistrate, per CCP art. 15.17, runs out 48 hours after arrest. Locally that can be a judge in person or a face on a jail video screen. During those few minutes, the magistrate:

1. states what crime is alleged;
2. cautions that whatever is said can end up in court;
3. lists rights: to hire a lawyer, stay silent, keep that lawyer close during questions and stop an interview whenever they like;
4. notes that a felony suspect may request an examining trial;
5. offers a lawyer at county expense and helps with the paperwork;
6. decides bail.

Two newer safeguards apply. Where the arrest looks baseless, the magistrate puts that no-probable-cause finding on paper within 24 hours, as CCP art. 15.17(h) directs. Signs of mental illness spotted by jail staff start a 12-hour deadline to alert the magistrate under CCP art. 16.22. Nobody is found guilty at this stage. The jail, 325-235-5487, can say how bail came out.

A first DWI, a shoplifting arrest or a fistfight charge is often a Class A or B misdemeanor. Prosecutors open it by filing an information, the misdemeanor kind of charging document. Then the County Court at Law usually moves like this:

1. Arraignment. Defense counsel can waive this step on paper. Otherwise the judge reads the accusation aloud and asks how the defendant pleads (CCP art. 26.01).
2. Pretrial settings. Both sides swap evidence, file motions and test whether a deal makes sense.
3. Plea. The judge tells everyone, before any finding, whether the agreed terms will stand. Should the judge reject them, CCP art. 26.13 lets the defendant pull the plea.
4. Trial. Without a deal, the case goes before a judge or jury.

Outcomes span a wide range. On a Class B the ceiling is 180 days behind bars and a $2,000 fine. On a Class A it is 12 months and $4,000 (Penal Code 12.21, 12.22). Many people get deferred adjudication, capped at two years on misdemeanors; finishing it means the case is dismissed (CCP arts. 42A.103, 42A.111). Regular misdemeanor probation also stops at two years (CCP art. 42A.053).

Want to watch? The County Court at Law streams on its YouTube channel. Staff take questions at 325-235-2353.

Felony cases climb a longer ladder in the 32nd District Court:

1. First appearance. A magistrate sets bail inside the 48-hour window.
2. Examining trial. Before any indictment arrives, CCP art. 16.01 lets the defense request this probable-cause hearing.
3. Grand jury. Jurors meet in private, and CCP art. 20A.301 says at least nine must agree to indict.
4. Arraignment and pretrial. The indictment is read and motions are argued in Sweetwater.
5. Outcome. The case closes through a plea deal or a verdict, with sentencing after any conviction.

Sentencing ranges by grade, from Penal Code sections 12.32 to 12.35:

• Lowest grade, state jail felony: half a year to a pair of years at a state jail unit.
• Third degree: a 2-year minimum, a 10-year maximum.
• Second degree: the same 2-year minimum, but up to 20.
• First degree: a five-year floor, a 99-year ceiling, or life.

Every felony grade allows a fine reaching $10,000. Penal Code 12.42 lets earlier felony records raise the punishment bracket. On the flip side, Penal Code 12.44 sometimes lets the judge punish a state jail case at the Class A misdemeanor level. Deferred adjudication on a felony can last as long as 10 years under CCP art. 42A.103. For the next court date, call the District Clerk at 325-235-2111.

They are, starting with release. A constitutional amendment approved November 4, 2025 lets prosecutors request a no-bail hearing for charges including murder, aggravated robbery or aggravated sexual assault, under Tex. Const. art. I, §11d. CCP art. 17.03 also rules out personal bonds on a long list of violent charges. When a bail on a listed violent offense looks too low to the state, it may appeal (CCP art. 44.01).

Sentences climb too. Capital murder carries two outcomes, death or life without parole, and Penal Code 12.31 leaves only life for a defendant under 18 on the offense date. Deferred adjudication is off the table for most murder defendants under CCP art. 42A.102.

Lawyering changes as well. In a death-penalty prosecution, defense work shifts to a Lubbock-based office, the capital-case regional public defender, at 806-696-3740. Families on either side of a violent case can call the District Attorney's office at 325-235-8639.

The prosecution side. Felonies are prosecuted by the District Attorney, 100 East Third Street, Suite 201, Sweetwater, TX 79556, 325-235-8639. A County Attorney's office exists too. On a misdemeanor, the County Court at Law (325-235-2353) can tell you which office is handling it.

The defense side. Everyday appointments go to private attorneys, since no public defender office takes regular cases here. Fisher, Mitchell and Nolan follow one three-county appointment plan:

• The jailed person fills out a request on a form handed over by a magistrate, jail staff or court clerk.
• That request travels to the court inside 24 hours, and the court rules within three days.
• Felony appointments come from the 32nd District Court, misdemeanor ones from the county courts.
• Names come off approved lists in rotation.

After being named, the attorney has until close of business the following workday to try making contact, per CCP art. 26.04(j). Asking for a lawyer can never be met with threats of jail (CCP art. 26.04(r)). Statewide questions about appointments go to the Texas Indigent Defense Commission, 209 West 14th Street, Room 202, Austin, TX 78701, 512-936-6994.

Several tools each show a slice:

• County Clerk records. Its Online Records Search covers judicial records indexed from 2000 forward.
• re:SearchTX. Texas courts run this free site, which needs an account. It lists charges, case numbers and judgments, though not hearing times (re:SearchTX FAQ).
• Courtroom video. Watch the County Court at Law on YouTube, and read its standing orders.
• Court-date alerts. Register on Texas IVSS-Counties or dial 866-268-8959 to hear about new or moved settings.

The quickest answer still comes by phone. Try the District Clerk (325-235-2111) for felony settings and the County Clerk (325-235-2462) for misdemeanor ones. Callers should give a full legal name, the date of birth and, when known, a cause number.

Deputies at the Sheriff's Office, 211 Avenger Field Road, Sweetwater, TX 79556, 325-235-5471, carry out county warrants. The county constable and Sweetwater police handle some. Statewide, the Texas 10 Most Wanted fugitive list comes from DPS. For a local check, phone the Sheriff's Office or ask a clerk in person. Resolving one usually begins with hiring or requesting a lawyer, who can set up a surrender before the issuing judge or move that court for a new date. Paper on a felony warrant lives in the District Clerk's office, 100 East Third Street, Suite 200, Sweetwater, TX 79556, 325-235-2111.

East to Abilene. U.S. charges arising in this county go before federal judges at 341 Pine Street, Room 2008, Abilene, TX 79601, a division of Texas's Northern District. Clerk's line: 325-677-6311.

A federal case runs on its own track:

1. A first appearance where a U.S. magistrate judge explains the charge.
2. Under 18 U.S.C. 3142, a hearing to decide custody or release while the case is pending.
3. Indictment, motions and plea talks.
4. A plea or trial, with a U.S. district judge handing down the sentence.

Deputy U.S. marshals keep custody of pretrial federal prisoners and pick where they are housed. Their Abilene staff work at 341 Pine Street, Room 207, Abilene, TX 79601, 325-672-2147. For free federal counsel, contact the Federal Public Defender in Lubbock, 1205 Texas Avenue, Room 507, Lubbock, TX 79401, 806-472-7236. Once the judge imposes prison time, look the person up in the BOP inmate locator to learn the facility.

Yes, mostly at the end. The pattern:

1. An ICE officer lodges a detainer request, Form I-247A, with jailers on Avenger Field Road.
2. Once the Texas case no longer justifies custody, Sweetwater jailers can keep that person for up to 48 hours after they would otherwise be released (8 CFR 287.7(d)).
3. Federal officers pick the person up for an immigration facility.
4. Relatives search the ICE Online Detainee Locator.

Inside the courtroom, a non-citizen must hear a warning from the judge, both aloud and in writing, under CCP art. 26.13, that admitting guilt or pleading no contest could get them deported. Outside it, Texas jails honor detainers unless someone documents lawful presence; that is CCP art. 2A.060. A separate law, Gov't Code 752.053, outlaws city or county policies that hinder immigration enforcement. Counties that operate jails also face S.B. 8 (2025), which sets December 1, 2026 as the date to seek 287(g) agreements. For this Sheriff's status, call 325-235-5471. Any plea deal deserves an immigration check by the defense lawyer first.

State jail convictions mean time in one of Texas's state jail units. Longer terms, for first-, second- or third-degree crimes, go to TDCJ prisons (Penal Code 12.32-12.35). Between sentencing and transfer, the person stays at Avenger Field Road. TDCJ then runs them through intake, sorting by health, security level and program needs, before assigning a unit.

Track the move with the TDCJ inmate lookup. Type in the surname plus one initial, or else one of the two ID numbers (TDCJ or SID). The data refreshes each working day. Unit visits, mail and commissary money get their own rundown on our Texas state prisons page.

Youth court in Texas handles acts done by a child who had turned 10 but not yet 17. Once 17, a person faces regular criminal court, per Family Code 51.02. Under Family Code 51.04, a juvenile board names the court that hears youth cases, and these three neighboring counties keep a joint plan for appointing lawyers to youth.

How it differs from adult court:

• Officers must notify the parents right away (Family Code 52.02).
• Inside two working days, a detention hearing is held. The youth gets a lawyer before it. Then the judge rules on keeping or freeing them, under Family Code 54.01.
• Moving a teen's case up to adult district court takes a hearing. Family Code 54.02 sets the youngest age at 14 for capital and first-degree cases, and 15 for the other felony grades.

Youth from here who need secure detention go outside the county. The Taylor County Juvenile Justice Center in Abilene is a state-registered option: 889 South 25th Street, Abilene, TX 79602, 325-691-7462. The Sheriff's Office at 325-235-5471 can connect families with juvenile probation.

The list of victim rights sits in CCP art. 56A.051. It covers having safety counted in the bail decision, word of each hearing, case updates and an impact statement. Within 10 days of an indictment or information, the prosecutor owes victims a written notice about the case (CCP art. 56A.451).

A victim assistance coordinator works in the District Attorney's office. Ask for that person at 325-235-8639.

More support:

• Compensation. Through the Attorney General, crime victims can seek as much as $50,000 toward lost wages, counseling and medical bills. Apply through the online application or phone 800-983-9933.
• Custody notices. Texas IVSS-Counties calls or emails registered victims when an offender is booked in, let go or transferred. It is free, private and staffed around the clock at 866-268-8959.