Tarrant County Criminal Courts: Where to Go and What to Expect

If you have been arrested for a felony or a non-traffic misdemeanor offense, your case will be heard in one of the 20 criminal courts in downtown Fort Worth. All of the Tarrant County criminal courts at the County and District levels are located inside the Tim Curry Justice Center. The Tim Curry Justice Center is located at 401 W. Belknap Street, Fort Worth, Texas 76102. Below is a list of all of Tarrant County’s criminal courts and their location in the justice center, as well as other useful information that will help ease your anxiety about going to court.

Tarrant County Criminal Courts

Court	Abbreviation	Floor	Judge	Phone
Misdemeanor Courts
County Criminal Court Number One	CCC1	5th Floor	Judge David Cook	817-884-1337
County Criminal Court Number Two	CCC2	6th Floor	Judge Carey Walker	817-884-1338
County Criminal Court Number Three	CCC3	7th Floor	Judge Bob McCoy	817-884-1374
County Criminal Court Number Four	CCC4	5th Floor	Judge Deborah Nekhom	817-884-1426
County Criminal Court Number Five	CCC5	6th Floor	Judge Jamie Cummings	817-884-2726
County Criminal Court Number Six	CCC6	8th Floor	Judge Molly Jones	817-884-2745
County Criminal Court Number Seven	CCC7	8th Floor	Judge Cheril Hardy	817-884-2773
County Criminal Court Number Eight	CCC8	7th Floor	Judge Charles Vanover	817-884-3400
County Criminal Court Number Nine	CCC9	8th Floor	Judge Brent Carr	817-884-3410
County Criminal Court Number Ten	CCC10	7th Floor	Judge Phil Sorrels	817-884-3420
Felony Courts
Criminal District Court Number One	CDC1	5th Floor	Judge Elizabeth Beach	817-884-1351
Criminal District Court Number Two	CDC2	6th Floor	Judge Wayne Salvant	817-884-1347
Criminal District Court Number Three	CDC3	7th Floor	Judge Robb Catalano	817-884-1356
Criminal District Court Number Four	CDC4	8th Floor	Judge Mike Thomas	817-884-1362
213th District Court	213th	8th Floor	Judge Chris Wolfe	817-884-1529
297th District Court	297th	5th Floor	Judge David Hagarman	817-884-1908
371st District Court	371st	8th Floor	Judge Mollee Westfall	817-884-2985
372nd District Court	372nd	6th Floor	Judge Scott Wisch	817-884-2990
396th District Court	396th	6th Floor	Judge George Gallagher	817-884-2768
432nd District Court	432nd	6th Floor	Judge Ruben Gonzalez	817-884-2935

Going to court for the first time can be a nerve-wracking process. Taking a few minutes to familiarize yourself with what to expect in court will help you feel more at ease when your first court date arrives.

If you have never been to court on a criminal case before, outside of a traffic citation, you might imagine that a court setting means that you will be in court in front of a judge, that the State will be prepared to call witnesses against you, and you might even have a trial. Generally, a case will have several settings before it reaches trial. This article will help set expectations on what will happen during the first court setting.

What Time Should I Be in Court?

The last thing you want to do is to get off to a bad start with your judge. You should know that it may be difficult to find parking near the courthouse. The time on your court notice is the time you are expected to be present in the courtroom, not parking or walking into the courthouse.

All of our clients are informed to be in court at least thirty minutes before their court settings. This ensures that even if you run into traffic, delays getting through security, or the elevators are down, you will still get to court on time.

What Happens When I Get to My Courtroom?

When you arrive outside your assigned courtroom, if it is unlocked go inside and check in with the bailiff. However, if you are early, the courtroom will likely be closed and you will need to wait outside. Once you are allowed into the courtroom, the bailiffs will give you instructions as to whether you should check in with them, or have a seat and wait for the judge to formally call the docket. Docket call is the court “taking attendance” to make sure that all the defendants scheduled to be there are present. If the bailiff or judge calls the docket, be sure to answer out loud. You want to make sure that the court knows that you are present; otherwise, a warrant can be issued for your arrest.

The average docket can last two to three hours, depending on the volume of cases set. The bulk of your time in court may be spent waiting. When your attorney arrives, he or she will speak to the prosecutor on your behalf. There are generally two to four prosecutors and 50-100 defense attorneys waiting to speak to them. It’s also important to note that there is a hierarchy to the court system. Attorneys must appear in any felony courts first, and then make any misdemeanor appearances they have. The discussion will include the circumstances and evidence involved in your case, the likelihood of a plea offer and any other special issues such as eligibility for a diversion program. Many of these discussions also take place before court. Once your attorney has a sense of the State’s position on your case, he or she will discuss your options. You will have three options for how to proceed with your case. Option one is to accept the plea offer being extended to you; option two is to reject the offer and move toward a trial; option three is to ask for another court date so that either side can gather more information.

It’s important to know that the number of times a case can be rescheduled depends on the reason it is being reset, and also the individual judge’s discretion as to how quickly they expect cases to be resolved.

Being informed and having realistic expectations will help make the process of handling your case less stressful. If you arrive on time, are prepared to be patient, and maintain good communication with your attorney, you will have taken significant steps toward having a productive day in court.

Click here for more information on what to expect when you go to court.

If you have been arrested for a criminal offense in Tarrant County and need a criminal defense attorney, call Varghese Summersett PLLC at (817) 203-2220.

Tarrant County Misdemeanor Courts

Judge David Cook
Criminal Misdemeanor Cases
5^th Floor
Court Coordinator – 817-884-1337
Docket

Judge Carey Walker
Criminal Misdemeanor Cases
6^th Floor
Court Coordinator – 817-884-1338
Docket

Judge Bob McCoy
Criminal Misdemeanor Cases
7^th Floor
Court Coordinator 817-884-1374
Docket

Judge Deborah Nekhom
Criminal Misdemeanor Cases
5^th Floor
Court Coordinator 817-884-1426
Docket

Judge Jamie Cummings
Criminal Misdemeanor Cases
6th Floor
Court Coordinator 817-884-2726
Docket

Judge Cheril Hardy
Criminal Misdemeanor Cases
8^th Floor
Court Coordinator 817-884-2773
Docket

Judge Charles “Chuck” Vanover
Criminal Misdemeanor Cases
7^th Floor
Court Coordinator 817-884-3400
Docket

Judge Brent Carr
Criminal Misdemeanor Cases
8^th Floor
Court Coordinator 817-884-3410
Docket

Judge Phil Sorrells
Criminal Misdemeanor Cases
^7th Floor
Court Coordinator 817-884-3420
Docket

Tarrant County Felony Courts

Judge Elizabeth Beach
Criminal Felony Cases
5^th Floor
Court Coordinator 817-884-1351
Docket

Judge Wayne Salvant
Criminal Felony Cases
6^thFloor
Court Coordinator 817-884-1347
Docket

Judge Robb Catalano
Criminal Felony Cases
7^th Floor
Court Coordinator 817-884-1356
Docket

Judge Mike Thomas
Criminal Felony Cases
8^th Floor
Court Coordinator 817-884-1362
Docket

Judge Chris Wolfe
Criminal Felony Cases
8th Floor
Court Coordinator 817-884-1529
Docket

Judge David Hagerman
Criminal Felony Cases
5^th Floor
Court Coordinator 817-884-1908
Docket

Judge Mollee Westfall
Criminal Felony Cases
8th Floor
Court Coordinator 817-884-2985
Docket

Judge Scott Wisch
Criminal Felony Cases
6^th Floor
Court Coordinator 817-884-2990
Docket

Judge George Gallagher
Criminal Felony Cases
6^th Floor
Court Coordinator 817-884-2768
Docket

Judge Ruben Gonzalez
Criminal Felony Cases
6^th Floor
Court Coordinator 817-884-2935
Docket