Texas sorts criminal work by charge level, as the state's court system pamphlet lays out. For a case from Terrell, the split looks like this:

• District Court: felonies, every one of them. The 63rd and the 83rd both hold court for this county, and a single District Clerk keeps both sets of files.
• County Court: the County Judge presides here over Class A and B misdemeanor cases.
• Justice of the Peace: Class C offenses, which carry a fine and nothing more.
• Court of Criminal Appeals: where Texas criminal appeals finally stop.

Penal Code chapter 12 sets misdemeanor penalties:

• Class C (PC 12.23): fine only, capped at $500.
• Class B (PC 12.22): 180 days in jail at most, a fine that tops out at $2,000, or a mix.
• Class A (PC 12.21): one year in county jail at most, a fine that tops out at $4,000, or a mix.

Hackberry Street is the answer for all of them: 105 E Hackberry St, Sanderson, TX 79848. Phone first before making the drive.

• District Clerk for the 63rd and 83rd District Courts: 432-345-2391. Its mailbox is PO Box 410, Sanderson, TX 79848. Felony files live here.
• County Court and the County Judge: switchboard 432-345-2421. Ask who keeps misdemeanor files.
• Justice of the Peace: 432-345-2341. Mail: PO Box 833, Sanderson, TX 79848.

Neither district judge sits in just one place. The 63rd rides a circuit through Kinney, Terrell and Val Verde. The 83rd's circuit is Pecos, Terrell and Val Verde. Ask the District Clerk which days the felony judge will be in Sanderson before you plan a trip.

No. Sanderson isn't incorporated, and the regional planning commission lists no incorporated city anywhere in the county. With no city, no municipal court exists. A Class C ticket from any corner of the county ends up in the Justice Court at 105 E Hackberry St, Sanderson, TX 79848, 432-345-2341.

Notes on that Justice Court:

• Fines can be paid through its online payment page. The QR code on the judge's instructions, handed out with a citation, works too.
• Commercial driver's license holders can't plea bargain there, lawyer or no lawyer.
• Appealing its judgment takes an appeal bond double the total fine.
• Money tight? The judge can be asked to spread payments out, swap the fine for service hours, or waive it. Service is credited at $150 for every 8 hours.
• Nobody gets jailed over an unpaid fine here without a hearing and a finding that the nonpayment was willful (CCP 45A.252-45A.261).

Inside 48 hours of an arrest, Texas law puts the person in front of a magistrate, either across a table or through a video link (CCP 15.17(a)). In Terrell, both the County Judge and the Justice of the Peace may serve as magistrate (CCP 2A.151). The magistrate's checklist:

• naming the offense charged
• covering the right to a hired lawyer or a free appointed one, and helping with the form to ask for one
• telling the person that silence is allowed and questioning can be stopped
• warning that statements can come back as evidence
• for felonies, pointing out the right to an examining trial
• deciding bail and release conditions

If the magistrate sees no probable cause, that gets put in writing inside 24 hours (CCP 15.17(h)). When the charge carries only a fine, the person can walk out with no bond at all, under an order to come back later (CCP 15.17(b)).

These cases are filed in County Court, usually by a written charge from the prosecutor called an information. Questions about one go to the County Attorney at 119 West Oak Street, Sanderson, TX 79848, 432-345-2914.

1. Arraignment. Charges get read aloud, and the defendant enters a plea such as not guilty. With a defense lawyer, the step can be skipped through a written waiver (CCP 26.01).
2. Plea talks. Once the defense and the County Attorney settle on terms, the judge says on the record whether to accept them. A rejected deal lets the defendant pull back the plea (CCP 26.13).
3. Trial. With no deal, the County Judge or a jury hears the evidence.

Common endings:

• deferred adjudication of up to two years (CCP 42A.103). Finishing it gets the case dismissed (CCP 42A.111). Certain intoxication offenses don't qualify (CCP 42A.102).
• probation, which Texas calls community supervision, usually two years at most for a misdemeanor (CCP 42A.053)
• a fine, county jail time, or some of each, inside the class's limits

How a theft or DWI gets classed depends on things like dollar value or past convictions. Ask the defense lawyer where a given charge lands.

1. Magistrate: warnings and bail, inside two days.
2. Examining trial: if asked for before indictment, a magistrate checks probable cause and can change bail (CCP 16.01).
3. Grand jury: a panel of twelve meets behind closed doors. Without nine yes votes from the panel, there's no indictment (CCP 20A.301).
4. Arraignment before the 63rd or the 83rd.
5. Motions and offers, then a trial if nobody makes a deal.
6. Sentencing.

Felony time limits by level:

• State jail felony (PC 12.35): 2 years tops, 180 days minimum, at a state jail unit.
• Third degree (PC 12.34): 10 years tops, 2 minimum, in prison.
• Second degree (PC 12.33): 20 years tops, 2 minimum.
• First degree (PC 12.32): life or 99 years tops, 5 minimum.

On top of the time, a felony fine can reach $10,000. Prior felony convictions raise the stakes by moving the range up (PC 12.42). For a state jail felony, a judge is allowed to hand down Class A misdemeanor punishment instead (PC 12.44). In felony cases, deferred adjudication has a 10-year ceiling (CCP 42A.103). The District Clerk, 432-345-2391, has the next court date.

It does, starting with bail.

• CCP 17.03 names many violent offenses where a personal bond can't be granted.
• Proposition 3, which voters approved in November 2025, put Tex. Const. art. I, §11d in place. It makes a judge deny bail on certain listed charges. These include murder, capital murder, aggravated robbery and aggravated sexual assault. That happens once a hearing convinces the judge the person would likely run or put others in danger.
• When bail on one of those listed charges looks too small, prosecutors can appeal it. An appeals court then has 20 days to decide, and the accused waits in jail (CCP 44.01).
• A magistrate can bar someone charged with family violence from contacting the victim. The order runs up to 91 days, or 121 days if the facts include a weapon or a bad injury (CCP 17.292).
• For capital murder, the law allows just two sentences, death, or prison for life with parole never possible. A defendant who was under 18 when the crime happened faces life instead (PC 12.31).

Parts of Texas run specialty dockets for drug cases, veterans or mental health. The state keeps a specialty court list, so look there for one that might serve this part of Texas.

Felonies. The county lists a District Attorney with mail at PO Box 1405, Del Rio, TX 78841-1405, phone 830-775-0505, and a local address at the courthouse, 105 E Hackberry St, Sanderson, TX 79848. The 83rd District Attorney, 400 S. Nelson Street, Fort Stockton, TX 79735, 432-336-3322, may handle cases filed in the 83rd. Ask the District Clerk which office has a particular felony.

Misdemeanors. The County Attorney is at 119 West Oak Street, Sanderson, TX 79848, 432-345-2914. Ask that office whether pretrial diversion could fit the case.

Defense. Under the county's appointment plans, the public defender takes each case unless a judge sees good cause to pick a different lawyer. For Terrell, that means the Alpine-based Far West Texas Regional Public Defender's Office. Its address is 203 North 7th St., Alpine, TX 79830, and its phone is 432-837-4120. A lawyer can be requested from the magistrate at the first hearing. The County Court rules on misdemeanor requests, and the 63rd or 83rd rules on felony ones. The Texas Indigent Defense Commission oversees appointment systems: 209 West 14th Street, Room 202, Austin, TX 78701, 512-936-6994.

The clerk of whichever court holds the case is the source:

• felony: District Clerk, 432-345-2391
• Class A or B: courthouse switchboard, 432-345-2421
• Class C: Justice Court, 432-345-2341

Before calling, jot down the person's legal name, birthday and any case number you have. Statewide, re:SearchTX lets anyone who registers for free view case indexes and some filings, such as an indictment, information or judgment. It won't show hearing dates, but the clerk will. The DPS conviction search looks up convictions for a fee. For a message when a setting is made or changed, register with Texas IVSS-Counties or dial 866-268-8959.

Deputies from the Sheriff's Office, 105 E Hackberry St, Sanderson, TX 79848, carry out warrants all over the county. Phone 432-345-2525 and ask if one is open. Clerks can check as well, since Texas keeps warrant records with local offices. Try the District Clerk, 432-345-2391, about a felony, or the Justice Court, 432-345-2341, about an unpaid ticket. Check the DPS Texas 10 Most Wanted too, a statewide fugitive roundup. Clearing one safely starts by hiring or being assigned a defense lawyer. The two of you may turn up together at whichever court issued it. Another option is for the lawyer to phone that court about bond or a reset date.

Federal charges from Terrell are heard in Del Rio, one division of the Western District of Texas. Find its clerk at the U.S. Courthouse, 111 East Broadway, Room L100, Del Rio, TX 78840, 830-703-2054.

1. First up, a U.S. magistrate judge decides on detention. The judge weighs whether any release terms can assure court appearances and community safety (18 U.S.C. 3142).
2. Pretrial, a federal detainee belongs to the U.S. Marshals Service. The agency's Del Rio office is at 111 East Broadway, Room 159, Del Rio, TX 78840, 830-703-2075. County jails with contracts often house them.
3. Federal prosecutors for the district are based at 601 NW Loop 410, Suite 600, San Antonio, TX 78216, 210-384-7100.
4. If hiring counsel isn't possible, help may come from the Federal Public Defender, whose Del Rio office is at 2205 Veterans Boulevard, Suite A-2, Del Rio, TX 78840, 830-703-2040.
5. Once there's a federal sentence, check the Federal Bureau of Prisons inmate locator.

No. Terrell's court keeps the charge moving. The detainer changes only when, and to whom, the person is let go.

1. Immigration officers deliver a Form I-247A request to the Terrell jail or wherever the person is held.
2. Federal rules then allow a hold of up to 48 hours after they would otherwise be released (8 CFR 287.7(d)).
3. CCP 2A.060 makes Texas jails comply with that request, except when the person shows papers proving citizenship or legal status. Under GC 752.053, from 2017's S.B. 4, a county can't put limits on enforcing immigration law.
4. S.B. 8, passed in 2025, puts each jail-running county on a clock. December 1, 2026 is when that request to ICE for a 287(g) partnership comes due. For Terrell's status, call the Sheriff at 432-345-2525.
5. Once ICE has custody, the person can be found through the ICE Online Detainee Locator.

Every non-citizen hears a warning from the judge, before pleading, that a conviction could mean deportation (CCP 26.13(a)(4)). Talk through immigration risks with the defense lawyer before agreeing to a deal.

Those sentenced for a state jail felony don't go to prison. Their time runs in a TDCJ state jail unit. Third degree and above? Those sentences (PC 12.31-12.35) mean prison, inside a TDCJ unit somewhere in the state, TDCJ meaning the state's criminal justice department. Until TDCJ picks them up, the person waits in county custody. Then an intake unit sorts out classification, and the person is moved to a unit that fits.

Searching TDCJ's records? Its online inmate lookup accepts a name, an SID or a TDCJ number. Expect the data to lag by 24 hours or more, with updates only on working days. For every unit, see the entries on our Texas prisons page.

Was the Terrell youngster somewhere from 10 to 16 when it happened? Then the case is a juvenile one. Turn 17 before the act, and FC 51.02(2) makes it adult court. A county's juvenile board chooses its juvenile court (FC 51.04(b)), and Kinney, Terrell and Val Verde share one board plan filed with the state.

• Once a child is in custody, officers must tell a parent quickly. The child is taken to an approved processing office or a detention center (FC 52.02).
• A judge must review the child's detention fast. That hearing happens inside two working days. A lawyer named by the court stands with the child (FC 54.01).
• A transfer hearing can send some teens to adult court (FC 54.02). At 14, that's possible for a capital or first-degree felony. At 15, any felony can qualify.

A child who has to be held could end up at a registered center like the Val Verde County Juvenile Detention Center, 200 Griner, Del Rio, TX 78840, 830-774-7553. The Sheriff's Office knows where a Terrell child actually went. Reach it at 105 E Hackberry St, Sanderson, TX 79848, 432-345-2525.

CCP 56A.051 gives rights to crime victims, and to close family when a victim has died. They include having safety considered when bail is set, hearing about court settings if they ask, getting case updates and giving a victim impact statement.

• Money for costs. Hospital bills, therapy and missed paychecks may qualify for as much as $50,000. That money comes from Crime Victims' Compensation, which the Texas Attorney General's office runs. Call 800-983-9933 or apply online.
• Release alerts. Texas IVSS-Counties sends free notices that stay confidential, around the clock, in Spanish or English. The phone line is 866-268-8959.
• Questions about the case. Contact the prosecutor's office handling it, such as the County Attorney, 119 West Oak Street, Sanderson, TX 79848, 432-345-2914.