Criminal Court Cases in Woodford County
Woodford County District Court hears traffic charges, misdemeanors, show-cause matters, jail-docket matters, and preliminary felony proceedings. A felony can first appear on the Woodford District docket because that court handles the complaint, initial appearance, bond, and probable-cause stage. If a grand jury returns an indictment, the prosecution continues in Woodford County Circuit Court. Woodford Circuit Court then holds the felony plea, trial, disposition, and sentence records.
The Woodford Office of Circuit Court Clerk is the public starting point for both court levels. Sarah Wilhoit Littrell is the clerk named by the judiciary. The office keeps the case-centered file, not the police report or jail booking. No separate Versailles or Midway municipal criminal court database exists under Kentucky's unified Court of Justice. Cases from both cities route through the Woodford County courts.
Woodford Felony Court Cases Use Two Courts
A Woodford search can miss half the story when it treats District and Circuit records as duplicates. They mark different stages. The Woodford District file may contain the citation or complaint, the first bond ruling, and preliminary felony events. The Woodford Circuit file begins after indictment and carries the prosecution through judgment. Ask the Woodford clerk to check both levels when a Woodford County felony search shows an early District entry but no outcome.
The official KRS Chapter 431 index supplies the state criminal-procedure framework. Its official page is also preserved in the project image below.
The statute source helps place a docket event in context, while the signed Woodford County order remains the best proof of what happened in one case.
Woodford County Case Record Searches
CourtNet 2.0 is Kentucky's subscription access system, not a free anonymous public docket search. Public users can call or visit the Woodford clerk at 130 Court Street in Versailles. A Woodford case number is the clearest key. A full name plus the Woodford court level and filing year can help distinguish similar records. The Woodford clerk can also say whether a file is at the Annex, stored off-site, available through CourtNet for the requester's access class, or destroyed under a lawful retention schedule.
- Call 859-873-3711 or visit the clerk and state whether the matter is likely District or Circuit.
- Give the case number when known. Otherwise, provide the name and enough case context to avoid a false match.
- Ask for the docket or case jacket and confirm the filing date, charge, and case status.
- Read the signed disposition or judgment instead of relying on an arrest charge or brief docket code.
- Request a plain or certified copy as needed, and confirm the current copy fee before sending payment.
Because no open anonymous CourtNet field inventory was available, the local request keys below reflect the clerk walkthrough and the case-file categories documented in the research.
| Field Label | Type | Required | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Case number | Text | No | Best key when it is known |
| Party name | Text | No | Add lawful context for common names |
| Court level | District or Circuit | No | Ask for both when tracing a felony |
| Filing year | Year | No | Helps narrow older Woodford County cases |
| Case type | Criminal or traffic | No | Directs staff to the proper docket |
Woodford Court Case Access Has a Gate
CourtNet-based products serve different needs. CourtNet 2.0 requires subscription access. The public may instead use the Woodford clerk's local record process. A separate AOC Criminal Record Report through FastCheck or One-Time Request draws from CourtNet, costs $25, and is marked “Not an Official Court Record.” Its statewide coverage is useful for a broad report, but it does not replace the pleadings, orders, or signed judgment in a Woodford County case file.
The Kentucky Court of Justice expungement page shows another court-record route tied to exact case outcomes.
That process begins with the true Woodford County disposition, so a broad report should be checked against the clerk's signed order.
What a Criminal Case File Contains
A Woodford County case file is organized around one prosecution. It can show the Woodford court and case number, filing date, parties and counsel, each filed charge, and the events that moved the case. Public Woodford portions may include a complaint or citation, an indictment, motions, hearing entries, bond terms, plea papers, orders, judgment, sentence, costs, fines, restitution, and supervision terms. The signed Woodford judgment or dismissal order is more reliable than a roster label when the goal is to learn the final result.
| Case Number & Court | Identifies the Woodford court level, division, and specific file. |
|---|---|
| Charging Document | Shows the complaint, citation, or indictment and the cited Kentucky law. |
| Docket Entries | Lists filed events such as arraignment, motions, plea, trial, and show cause. |
| Hearing Dates | Records scheduled and completed court events, subject to later changes. |
| Disposition & Judgment | States whether a charge ended in conviction, acquittal, dismissal, or another result. |
| Sentence & Conditions | Shows confinement, probation, fines, costs, restitution, or other filed terms. |
Financial entries need the same care as charge entries. Woodford County accepts cash, local check, cashier's check, certified check, money order, and credit or debit card with a fee for court payments. Eligible payments may also use ePay. Cash is required for bond, and payment methods other than a local check may be used for restitution. These rules describe payment channels, not proof that a listed balance is still due. Confirm the current amount and acceptable method with the Woodford clerk before paying.
Woodford Criminal Dockets Have Set Days
Woodford County publishes a detailed weekly pattern. Woodford District criminal court sits Monday, with traffic at 9 a.m., misdemeanor and felony matters at 11 a.m., show cause at 11:30 a.m., and the Woodford jail docket at 1 p.m. Woodford Circuit Division 1 calls criminal cases at 1 p.m. on the first Wednesday. Woodford Division 2 uses 1 p.m. on the second Wednesday. These times explain when new Woodford docket events may be created, but they do not confirm the hearing date for any named case.
The Eastern District of Kentucky handles a separate federal layer. The official federal court site is the source for that court rather than the Woodford clerk.
Federal criminal dockets belong in PACER and federal court records, not in the Woodford County Circuit or District file.
Criminal Case Stages in Woodford County
A filed Woodford County case begins with a complaint or citation. At Woodford arraignment, the charge is presented and a plea is taken. Pretrial work may include motions, discovery-related filings, bond review, and plea talks. The Woodford matter then ends by dismissal, plea, trial, diversion outcome, or another court order. A conviction proceeds to Woodford sentencing. Felonies add the Woodford District-to-Circuit move when an indictment is returned. Published sources do not support a fixed length for each stage, so the Woodford docket must be checked for the actual case.
Case flow: Charges Filed › Arraignment › Pretrial › Plea or Trial › Disposition › Sentencing
Note: A docket date is a court event, not proof that a hearing occurred exactly as first scheduled.
Woodford Court Case Dispositions
The first charge in an arrest or booking record is an allegation selected at the start of the case. A prosecutor may file a different charge, amend a count, decline it, or dismiss it. The court may acquit, convict, approve a plea, or enter another outcome. That is why the final signed disposition matters most. “Nolle prosequi” means the prosecutor formally chose not to continue a charge. An acquittal is a not-guilty finding. A dismissal can be with or without prejudice, which affects whether refiling is possible.
Kentucky's non-conviction expungement statute addresses qualifying acquittals, dismissals, and failures to indict.
The statute reinforces why a Woodford County court search should identify the precise result and date before any clearing step begins.
Access Rules for Case Records
Public access does not make every item in a Woodford County court file open. Woodford juvenile matters, expunged records, victim and minor information, personal identifiers, and confidential attachments can be sealed, withheld, or redacted. Woodford court records also follow judicial access rules rather than an executive-agency request sent to the sheriff. Ask the Woodford clerk why a record is not available and whether a public portion can be inspected.
Older files may sit off-site. When a public record facility holds one, the clerk can identify the facility and supply locator numbers. If a file was destroyed under retention rules, the clerk can explain that status. The office is open Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. The Annex is accessible, with a free lot reached from Court Street or Rose Hill and two-hour street parking. Call ahead for current copy fees, certified-copy charges, and accommodation needs.
The Kentucky Open Records Act applies to executive agencies, but a Woodford court file follows the judiciary's own access process. The Woodford sheriff will not produce pleadings held by the Woodford clerk. Likewise, the Woodford clerk does not hold a police narrative merely because the incident led to court. Route each Woodford request to the custodian that made the record.
Woodford Expungement Needs the Case File
Woodford expungement turns on the exact Woodford County charge, outcome, and completion date. Woodford acquittals, dismissals, failures to indict, misdemeanor and traffic convictions, and specified Class D felonies follow different Kentucky rules. A Woodford conviction petition may require a $40 eligibility certificate. The petition then returns to the court that held the case, locally through the Woodford Circuit Court Clerk. A certificate does not itself clear the Woodford file.
The official KRS 431.073 felony expungement text is shown in the final court source image.
Use the current statewide form and verify eligibility against the statute. KSP currently reports a four-to-five-month certification delay, so that processing condition should be checked before filing.