Jefferson Davis County Circuit Court Overview
The Circuit Court is the court of general jurisdiction in Mississippi. It holds original jurisdiction over civil and criminal matters that are not assigned exclusively to another court, and the county notes that most Circuit Court cases are heard by juries. On the criminal side it tries felonies, the most serious offenses. On the civil side it hears larger lawsuits and damage claims.
Jefferson Davis County sits in the 15th Circuit Court District, a regional district that also covers Lamar, Lawrence, Marion, and Pearl River counties. The court is listed at 1025 3rd Street in Prentiss, with the Circuit Clerk's mail going to P.O. Box 1090. The Circuit Court also hears appeals from the Justice Court and the Municipal Court, and its own decisions can be appealed into the state appellate system.
Courts in Jefferson Davis County
The county runs several courts, each handling a different kind of case. The Circuit Court is one part of that structure, and knowing which court holds a record prevents wasted requests. The table lists the main courts, what each handles, and how to reach them in Prentiss.
| Court | Type | Address | Phone |
|---|---|---|---|
| 15th Circuit Court | General trial, law | 1025 3rd Street, Prentiss, MS 39474 | 601-792-4231 |
| 13th Chancery Court | Equity, family, probate | 2426 Pearl Avenue, Prentiss, MS 39474 | 601-792-4204 |
| Justice Court | Limited, traffic, misdemeanor | 2335 Columbia Avenue, Prentiss, MS 39474 | 601-792-5129 |
| Prentiss Municipal Court | City ordinance and traffic | 911 3rd Street, Prentiss, MS 39474 | 601-792-5196 |
| Youth Court | Juvenile, confidential | 1027 3rd Street, Prentiss, MS 39474 | 601-792-2065 |
The Circuit Court and the Circuit Clerk share the 3rd Street courthouse address, while the other courts sit nearby on Pearl Avenue, Columbia Avenue, and at City Hall.
Circuit Court vs Chancery Court vs Justice Court
Mississippi splits trial work across separate courts rather than one combined county court. The Circuit Court takes the law cases and felonies, the Chancery Court takes equity and family matters, and the Justice Court takes the smallest and most local matters. The comparison shows how the three differ in what they handle, the cases they hear, and who presides.
| Circuit Court | Chancery Court | Justice Court | |
|---|---|---|---|
| What they handle | Felonies, civil jury trials, appeals from lower courts | Equity, family, land, estates | Small claims, county misdemeanors, traffic |
| Case types | Criminal prosecutions, larger lawsuits | Divorce, custody, adoption, probate, deeds disputes | DUIs, ordinance violations, felony initial appearances |
| Judges | Harrell, Lumpkin, Touchstone | Shoemake, Martin | Youngblood, Graves |
The Municipal Court adds a fourth venue for matters inside Prentiss city limits, and the Youth Court handles confidential juvenile cases that are not open to a public search.
How a Case Moves Through the System
A felony case rarely starts in the Circuit Court. It usually begins with an arrest and an early hearing in the Justice Court before it ever reaches a Circuit Court judge. The path below traces the appeal route from the lower courts up through the state's highest court.
Case path: Justice or Municipal Court › Circuit Court › Mississippi Court of Appeals › Mississippi Supreme Court
For felonies the steps are more specific. Justice Court hears all felony cases first for an initial appearance and the filing of an affidavit, and its judges hold sessions at the jail three times each week so that each arrested person receives an initial appearance within three days of arrest. If the charge moves forward, it reaches the Circuit Court through indictment or another charging step.
Felony flow: Arrest › Justice Court initial appearance › Indictment › Circuit Court arraignment › Pretrial › Trial › Sentencing › Appeal
Felony prosecution belongs to the district attorney. Hal Kittrell serves as the 15th Circuit District Attorney for the five-county district, and his office decides which charges proceed to the grand jury and on to the Circuit Court. The full criminal file, charges, and sentence are kept in the Jefferson Davis County court records held by the Circuit Clerk.
The 15th Circuit Court District
The 15th Circuit Court District groups five counties under one bench. Jefferson Davis County shares the district with Lamar, Lawrence, Marion, and Pearl River counties, and the judges rotate among the county seats to hold court. This regional setup is common in rural Mississippi, where a single county does not generate enough caseload for a full-time resident bench.
Three judges serve the district: the Honorable Prentiss G. Harrell, the Honorable Richelle Lumpkin, and the Honorable Brad Touchstone. Local rules for the district direct it to use Mississippi Electronic Courts for assigning cases, while each county's Circuit Clerk keeps a separate appearance docket and the other records the court requires. Local news has reported that Jefferson Davis County will move into new circuit and chancery districts beginning in 2027, so the district lines reflect the current setup rather than a permanent one.
History of the Jefferson Davis County Courthouse
The Jefferson Davis County Courthouse was built in 1907 and remains the principal architectural landmark of the county. It stands downtown at the corner of 3rd Street and Columbia Avenue in Prentiss, a two and a half story Classical Revival building of orange brick with stone trim. It was entered on the National Register of Historic Places in 1994.
The plan is unusual. A rectangular front meets a semicircular center, and that semicircular portion holds the second-floor courtroom, the main interior space of the building. The courtroom was roughly fan-shaped and two stories high, framed by Corinthian pilasters and a pediment, with the judge's bench raised on a dais. The building was designed by W.S. Hull of Jackson, who designed at least ten courthouses across Mississippi, Louisiana, and Alabama. A two-story jail was added at the southwest corner around 1985, sited and detailed so that it blended with the historic courthouse rather than detracting from it.
Circuit Court Records and Online Access
Circuit Court case records route through Mississippi Electronic Courts and its public access portal, known as PAMEC. There is no separate county-branded search site, so the statewide system is the main online path. PAMEC requires a free account login before case data can be viewed, and the same account works across Mississippi's circuit and chancery courts.
When a record predates electronic filing, or when a file does not appear online, the fallback is a direct request to the Circuit Clerk by phone, mail, or in person. Court calendars and hearing dates can also be tracked through the Jefferson Davis County court dockets. The Circuit Clerk in Prentiss remains the office that certifies Circuit Court documents and pulls older case files by hand.
Federal Courts for Jefferson Davis County
Some cases are not state matters at all. Jefferson Davis County falls within the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi, the federal trial court for this part of the state. A local arrest by the sheriff or a Justice Court charge will not become a federal case unless a federal agency or the U.S. Attorney takes jurisdiction, so federal files sit entirely apart from the county courts.
The federal district court publishes its own resources and contact details for the public.
The U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi homepage is the starting point for federal civil and criminal matters tied to the county.
That homepage links to clerk's office locations, electronic filing, and the divisional structure that decides where a case is heard.
Within the Southern District, each county is assigned to a division. The divisional listing places Jefferson Davis County in the Eastern Division, which sits at Hattiesburg.
The court's divisional county listing confirms that Jefferson Davis County cases belong to the Eastern Division at Hattiesburg.
Knowing the division matters because federal hearings and filings for the county are handled through the Hattiesburg courthouse rather than another division.
Bankruptcy is a separate federal track. The U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Mississippi handles those cases and explains how to reach its records.
The bankruptcy court PACER information page sets out how to register for and use the federal records system for bankruptcy filings.
Federal appeals from the district go to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, the next level up in the federal system.
Federal Case Lookup Through PACER
Federal court records are searched through PACER, the Public Access to Court Electronic Records system. PACER is a paid service that reaches district, bankruptcy, and appellate courts nationwide, and each court has its own listing in the PACER lookup. The two listings below are the ones tied to Jefferson Davis County's federal courts.
The district court listing is the entry point for federal civil and criminal case data for the Southern District of Mississippi.
The PACER listing for the Mississippi Southern District Court shows the court's electronic filing system and contact details.
A separate listing covers the bankruptcy court, since bankruptcy cases run on their own electronic docket.
The PACER listing for the Mississippi Southern Bankruptcy Court points to the bankruptcy court's records system for the district.
Note: federal records are distinct from county Circuit Court files, so a PACER search will not show state felony or civil cases handled in Prentiss.