Criminal Court Records in Stone County
A Stone County criminal court record is the case file the Circuit Clerk opens once a felony charge reaches the trial court. The file is built in layers. It starts with the charging document, then grows with each plea, motion, order, and hearing the case produces. Circuit Clerk Treba Davis keeps the circuit criminal docket, the judgment roll, and the orders that close each case. When a case ends, the record shows how it ended and what the sentence was.
Felony cases are tried in the Stone County Circuit Court, part of Mississippi's Second Circuit District, at 323 East Cavers Avenue in Wiggins. Four judges hear these cases: Lisa P. Dodson, Randi P. Mueller, Christopher L. Schmidt, and Lawrence Bourgeois Jr. Lower charges sit elsewhere. The Stone County Justice Court and the Wiggins Municipal Court handle misdemeanors, county and city traffic, and the first steps of a felony arrest. For a broader look at every record type the courts hold, the Stone County court records page maps each office and what it keeps.
One local rule shapes the whole page. A felony arrest does not create a Circuit Court file. That file does not exist until a grand jury returns an indictment.
How to Search Stone County Criminal Court Records
The main online path runs through Mississippi Electronic Courts, the state's case system known as MEC. The Stone County Circuit Court takes part in MEC, and the Circuit Clerk states that all criminal and civil cases from 2008 to the present are available online. The instruction is specific: open the portal and choose "Stone Circuit" from the court list. A docket report can show the judge assigned to a case. Documents that are not posted online must be requested from the clerk.
- Open MEC at mec.ms.gov or through the judiciary page at courts.ms.gov.
- Choose "Stone Circuit" from the court drop-down list.
- Search by defendant name or by the case (cause) number.
- Open the matching case to read the docket, the events, and the disposition.
- Request a certified copy from the Circuit Clerk at 601-928-5246 for any document not posted online.
Not every charge lands in MEC right away. If a person was arrested on a felony but not yet indicted, the case may still sit with Justice Court at 231 Third Street, with the Wiggins Municipal Court, with the bonding agent, or with the Sheriff's Office. A bonding agent or the sheriff may have a court date before the circuit record is visible. For statewide context, indicted cases appear under Stone Circuit, while sentenced defendants moved into state prison custody are tracked separately through the Department of Corrections.
Stages of a Stone County Criminal Case
A felony case moves in steps, and each step leaves a mark in the record. The path begins outside the Circuit Court. After an arrest, the person gets an initial appearance, usually within 48 hours. Justice Court judges hold jail sessions three times each week to protect the right to that early hearing within three days. The case then waits for the grand jury. Only an indictment moves it into the Circuit Court, where the cause number and the formal case file begin.
Case flow: Charges Filed → Grand Jury Indictment → Arraignment → Pretrial / Motions → Plea or Trial → Disposition → Sentencing
| Stage | What Happens |
|---|---|
| Indictment | The grand jury returns the charge that opens the Circuit Court file and sets the cause number. |
| Arraignment | The charge is read and a plea is entered. Many defendants file a waiver of arraignment, enter a not-guilty plea, and accept a trial setting. |
| Pretrial / Motions | Lawyers file motions and discovery. Cases are often reset by a motion and order for continuance for stated reasons. |
| Plea or Trial | The defendant pleads guilty by petition, or the case goes to a jury for a verdict. |
| Sentencing | The judge imposes the sentence, plus fines, court costs, restitution, and any probation terms. |
Note: A continuance can reset a case for many reasons, such as a judge in trial, a witness unavailable, a lab report pending, or a speedy-trial waiver.
What a Stone County Criminal Court Record Shows
Stone County criminal files carry a recognizable format. The caption reads "IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF STONE COUNTY, MISSISSIPPI" and "STATE OF MISSISSIPPI VERSUS" the defendant. The cause number follows the local pattern that begins with B6601. From there, the file fills with the same kinds of fields case after case. The guilty-plea petition alone records the charge, the rights waived, the sentence the defendant faces, prior felonies, probation or parole status, and acknowledgements for habitual-offender and sex-offender rules.
| Field | What It Shows |
|---|---|
| Cause Number | The case identifier, following the Stone County pattern that starts with B6601. |
| Defendant | The person charged, named after "State of Mississippi versus" in the caption. |
| Charges | The offense from the indictment, with the count and whether it is a felony. |
| Attorneys | Defense counsel, including court-appointed counsel, and the prosecuting district attorney. |
| Plea | The defendant's formal answer, usually guilty or not guilty. |
| Docket Entries | Each event in order: waiver of arraignment, motions, continuances, trial setting, and orders. |
| Disposition | The final result of each charge, such as a conviction, dismissal, or acquittal. |
| Sentence | The punishment imposed, with fines, court costs, restitution, and probation terms. |
Sensitive items are not open to view. Social Security numbers, dates of birth, and minor identities appear on internal forms but are restricted or redacted on the public-facing record.
Reading Dispositions and Sentences
The disposition is the heart of a closed case. It states how each charge ended, and it controls how the record reads to anyone who pulls it later. A sentence sits next to a conviction and spells out the penalty. The terms below appear often in Stone County files, so a short definition helps the record make sense.
- Disposition
- The final outcome of a charge or the full case.
- Conviction
- A finding of guilt by plea or by verdict.
- Dismissed
- A charge dropped by the court or the prosecutor before a finding of guilt.
- Non-adjudication
- A withheld judgment where the court holds off on a conviction while the person completes set conditions.
- Sentence
- The punishment imposed, which can include jail, prison, probation, fines, or restitution.
Fines and court costs in a Stone County criminal case can be paid three ways. A person can pay in person at the Circuit Clerk's office, mail a money order with the offender name and case number, or pay online at mycircuitcourtpayment.com, where the card processor adds a convenience fee.
Charges vs. Convictions
Being charged is not the same as being convicted. A criminal court record can show a charge that was later dropped, dismissed, or ended in an acquittal. A charge is an accusation. A conviction is a final finding of guilt. The gap matters, because a file that lists an arrest charge does not prove the case ended in a guilty result. For a closer look at how charges are filed and how they change before trial, the Stone County arrest records and court charges page tracks the charging side in detail.
| Charge | Conviction | |
|---|---|---|
| Stage | Accusation | Verdict or guilty plea |
| Who Decides | Grand jury or prosecutor | Trial judge or jury |
| Burden of Proof | Probable cause | Beyond a reasonable doubt |
| Public Record | Yes | Yes |
Note: A dismissed or acquitted charge still shows in the case file unless a court later orders the record sealed or expunged.
Public Access to Stone County Criminal Court Records
Mississippi treats court records as public unless a statute or court order says otherwise. The Public Records Act sets that default, and it requires that electronic recordkeeping not erode access. Criminal case files in the Circuit Court are open records, which is why MEC posts Stone Circuit cases from 2008 forward. Access still runs through the office that owns the file. When a document is not online, the Circuit Clerk supplies it on request.
Key Statutes:
Miss. Code § 25-61-1 - the Mississippi Public Records Act makes public records open for inspection unless a law restricts them.
Miss. Code § 99-19-71 - sets when eligible misdemeanor and certain felony records may be expunged by petition.
Indigent defendants have a right to counsel in felony cases. Under Miss. Code § 99-15-15, a judge may appoint an attorney after a sworn review of the person's finances. Stone County keeps a small list of approved court-appointed attorneys for that purpose. Prosecution is led by District 2 District Attorney W. Crosby Parker, with Assistant District Attorney Matthew Burrell handling Stone County; the County Prosecuting Attorney, Thomas M. Matthews III, handles grand jury presentations and lower-court matters.
Sealed vs. Expunged Records
Sealing and expunction both limit who can see a record, but they are not the same. A sealed record is hidden from public view yet still exists for limited official use. An expunged record is treated as though it never happened, and the public-facing file is removed. The Stone County Circuit Court notes that a person who completed a non-adjudicated probation sentence may petition to expunge the record, and that certain felony convictions may qualify if statutory requirements are met.
The Mississippi Access to Justice Commission keeps a plain-language guide on criminal record expungement that points users to an eligibility tool. The resource helps a person test whether a charge can be cleared before filing.
After a petition is filed, a judge decides whether the criteria are met, and a granted order tells the clerk and the agencies to remove or restrict the public record. The comparison below sums up the two outcomes.
| Sealed | Expunged | |
|---|---|---|
| Visibility | Hidden from public | Treated as if it never existed |
| Law Enforcement | Limited access | Very limited access |
| Eligibility | Set by court order for protected matters | Non-adjudicated probation completion or qualifying convictions under Miss. Code § 99-19-71 |
Stone County Criminal Records and Background Checks
A casual case lookup and a formal background check are different things. Reading a Stone County criminal file on MEC or at the clerk's counter is a public-records review. A regulated background check used for hiring, housing, or credit must follow the Fair Credit Reporting Act and rely on a licensed screening agency. The two serve different legal purposes, and a court file pulled for personal information is not a compliant employment screen.
Important: This site is not a consumer reporting agency under the FCRA, and its information may not be used for employment, tenant, credit, or insurance decisions.
Restricted Criminal Court Records in Stone County
Some criminal-adjacent records are closed even though most adult cases stay open. Youth court records are confidential by statute, and they cannot be searched the way an adult felony case can. Mississippi law keeps records involving children out of public reach except where a statute or a youth court order allows disclosure. Sealed and expunged files drop out of the public record once an order issues.
- Youth court and juvenile matters, confidential under Miss. Code § 43-21-251 and § 43-21-261.
- Sealed and expunged cases removed or restricted by court order.
- Personal identifiers such as Social Security numbers and dates of birth.
- Sealed search warrants and records tied to an open investigation.
When a record is not online, that does not mean it is closed. Many older or non-digitized files simply need a request to the Circuit Clerk at 601-928-5246, who can confirm what is available and how to obtain a certified copy.