How to Search Winston County Court Records
Court records in Winston County are not kept in one search box. The county is small, and its files sit across four court levels and two main clerks. The first job in any search is to name the court and the record type. Circuit Court holds felony cases, civil lawsuits, and appeals from the lower courts. Chancery Court holds divorce, probate, guardianship, and land matters. Justice Court handles small claims, evictions, and most state and county traffic tickets. Louisville Municipal Court handles city ordinance and city traffic cases. Once the court is clear, the right channel follows.
Before starting, gather a few details. A full name, a case or citation number, and a rough filing year all speed up a search. Certified copies cost more than plain viewing, so decide early whether a stamped copy is needed.
- Decide which court holds the record: Circuit, Chancery, Justice, or Municipal.
- Open the county online record access link from the Winston County website and follow the on-screen search options.
- For Circuit and Chancery cases filed in recent years, use Mississippi Electronic Courts through a PAMEC public account.
- For a traffic citation, search the Justice Court payment portal by citation number.
- If a record is older or not online, call the clerk that holds it and ask about an in-person, mail, or certified-copy request.
Newer cases are the easiest to reach. Winston County Chancery Court joined Mississippi Electronic Courts in 2017, and Circuit Court joined in 2021. Filings from those dates forward usually sit in the statewide system, while older books still live with the clerk. The Justice Court citation portal is a citation-by-citation lookup, not a name search, so it works only when the ticket number is in hand.
The Justice Court online portal at nCourt asks for a single key, the citation number printed on the ticket.
| Field | Type | Required | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Citation | Text | Yes | Include any letter, such as 123456A. If it starts with 0 and fails, try it without the leading zero. |
| Search button | Button | Yes | Moves from citation search to terms, payment, and receipt. |
| Phone payment | Phone | No | Pay by phone at 1-800-701-8560 during posted hours. |
| No record found | Notice | N/A | Allow five days from the ticket date, and try adding a space after the first number. |
Note: A paid traffic citation is not the same as a full court file, so request the case record from the clerk when a complete history is needed.
Which Winston County Office Holds Your Record
Two county clerks keep court records in Winston County, and they do not hold the same files. The Circuit Clerk, Gwenita Mays, keeps Circuit Court records: felony cases, civil suits at law, judgments, and marriage licenses. The Chancery Clerk, Rusty Foster, keeps Chancery Court records: divorce, probate, guardianship, land instruments, and the Board of Supervisors minutes. Sending a request to the wrong office is the most common delay.
The official Winston County Circuit Clerk page sets out the office staff, court duties, and posted fees.
That office files lawsuits, indictments, and motions, maintains the docket books, issues marriage licenses, and supports elections and jury service. The table below shows where each kind of Winston County court record begins.
| Record type | Court or office | Where to start |
|---|---|---|
| Felony, civil at law, judgments | Circuit Court / Circuit Clerk | Circuit Clerk, 662-773-3581 |
| Divorce, probate, guardianship, land | Chancery Court / Chancery Clerk | Chancery Clerk, 662-773-3631 |
| Small claims, evictions, county traffic | Justice Court | Justice Court, 662-773-6016 |
| City ordinance, city traffic, misdemeanor | Louisville Municipal Court | Municipal Court Clerk, 662-773-2500 |
The Winston County Judicial System
Mississippi does not use a county District Court as its main trial court. Winston County's trial work is divided by subject instead. Two appellate courts sit above the trial level. The Mississippi Supreme Court is the court of last resort, and the Mississippi Court of Appeals hears many cases first on review.
Winston County sits in two numbered trial districts. Circuit Court belongs to the Fifth Circuit Court District, which also covers Attala, Carroll, Choctaw, Grenada, Montgomery, and Webster counties. Chancery Court belongs to the Sixth Chancery Court District, which covers Attala, Carroll, Choctaw, Kemper, Neshoba, and Winston. A felony appeal and a divorce decree therefore follow two different district workflows.
Case flow: Justice Court or Municipal Court › Circuit Court › Mississippi Court of Appeals › Mississippi Supreme Court
| Court | Jurisdiction | Case Types |
|---|---|---|
| Mississippi Supreme Court | Highest state court | Final appeals statewide |
| Mississippi Court of Appeals | Intermediate appeals | Assigned civil and criminal appeals |
| Circuit Court | General trial court | Felonies, civil suits, lower-court appeals |
| Chancery Court | Equity court | Divorce, probate, guardianship, land |
| Justice Court | Limited civil and traffic | Claims up to $3,500, evictions, citations |
| Municipal Court | City court | Ordinances, city traffic, misdemeanors |
Winston County Courthouse and Annex
The Winston County Courthouse anchors downtown Louisville at the corner of West Main Street and Court Avenue. The Winston County Annex stands directly behind it and holds the Sheriff's Office, Emergency Management, and the Board of Supervisors boardroom. The Justice Court clerk's office sits in the courthouse basement. The Chancery Clerk works a short walk away on South Court Avenue.
The Winston County government home page describes the courthouse and annex layout and links the county offices that keep court records.
Record access is split across the campus, so it helps to treat the block as one stop with several doors. Circuit Clerk and Justice Court business ties to the courthouse. Chancery Clerk business is on South Court Avenue. Sheriff's records and jail routing begin at the annex unless the question concerns the regional facility north of town.
Winston County Courthouse
16540 West Main Street
Louisville, MS 39339
662-773-3581
Sheriff's Office (Annex)
136 South Court Avenue
Louisville, MS 39339
662-773-5881
Types of Court Records Available in Winston County
Winston County court records cover the full range of trial business. The category depends on which court opened the case and which clerk keeps the file.
Circuit Court produces both civil and criminal files. Civil files include complaints, answers, motions, judgments, and garnishments. Criminal files include indictments, arraignment entries, pleas, sentencing orders, and appeals. Chancery Court produces divorce, custody, probate, guardianship, conservatorship, and land records. Justice Court and Municipal Court produce traffic and misdemeanor records.
- Criminal records - felony cases and sentencing handled by Circuit Court and the Circuit Clerk.
- Civil records - lawsuits at law, judgments, and executions filed with the Circuit Clerk.
- Family and divorce records - divorce, custody, and support matters heard in Chancery Court.
- Probate records - wills, estates, guardianships, and conservatorships in Chancery Court.
- Traffic records - citations and fines handled by Justice Court and Louisville Municipal Court.
What Winston County Court Records Show
A court record bundles many fields into one file. The exact layout depends on the court and the case type, but most files share a common core that a searcher can expect to see.
| Field | What It Shows |
|---|---|
| Case Number | The unique court ID assigned to the file |
| Filing Date | When the case opened with the clerk |
| Parties | Plaintiff, defendant, petitioner, or respondent |
| Charges / Cause | The crime charged or the civil claim raised |
| Disposition | The outcome, such as conviction, dismissal, or judgment |
| Sentence / Judgment | The penalty or relief the court ordered |
Criminal files carry more detail than the table shows. They may list the charging instrument, bond, plea, nolle prosequi, probation, and restitution. Chancery files track estate and guardianship steps, such as inventories, accountings, guardian plans, and well-being reports.
Public Access Laws for Winston County Court Records
Most Winston County court records are open to the public under the Mississippi Public Records Act. The law presumes access unless a specific exemption applies. When a record cannot be released, the public body must explain why and point to the rule it relies on.
Access still runs through the office that owns the file. There is no single county search box for every court. For a record that is not online, the cleanest path is a focused request that names the court, the parties, the case number if known, and the rough filing date.
Key Statutes:
Miss. Code § 25-61-1 - the Public Records Act's policy that public bodies must give access to records unless a specific exemption applies.
Miss. Code § 25-61-5 - offices must allow inspection and copying and explain in writing when a record cannot be produced in time.
Miss. Code § 99-19-71 - eligible dismissed, dropped, acquitted, and certain convicted cases may be removed from public access by petition.
Miss. Code § 43-21-251 - youth court records and their contents are confidential except as the law allows.
Records That Are Restricted or Confidential
Some Winston County records stay closed even though most court files are open. Youth Court records are confidential by law, and the Chancery Clerk serves as Youth Court Clerk. Adoption files are not routine public records. Drug, alcohol, and mental commitment files carry health-sensitive details and stay restricted.
Sealed and expunged cases behave differently in a search. A sealed case may show a limited docket or nothing at all. An expunged case is removed from public access by court order. To view a sealed record, a person usually needs statutory authority or a judge's order, filed in the court that handled the case. Public files may also redact Social Security numbers, financial-account numbers, birth dates, and minor names.
Specialty Courts in Winston County
Winston County's specialty work centers on Louisville Municipal Court. Its public navigation lists a DUI Court alongside the regular misdemeanor and traffic docket. The municipal judge may also hold initial appearances, bond hearings, and preliminary hearings inside the city.
The municipal court runs a community release work program. People who cannot pay a fine may be assigned daily work until the balance is cleared. The Circuit and Chancery court system also tracks a pretrial intervention status, shown in electronic dockets as a pending flag, which lets some defendants complete supervision in place of a standard prosecution.
Note: Official eligibility and length details for the Louisville DUI Court were not posted online, so confirm current program rules with the municipal court clerk.
Winston County Sheriff and Jail
The Winston County Sheriff's Office, led by Sheriff Mike Perkins, works from the annex at 136 South Court Avenue in Louisville. The office handles arrests, warrants, and incident reports. For emergencies, the number is 911.
The Winston County Sheriff page lists agency contacts and links to statewide inmate and registry lookups.
Those links point to state systems because the county does not publish a live local jail roster online. Most people in local custody are held at the Winston-Choctaw County Regional Correctional Facility north of town. It opened in 1999 and holds up to 380 state and county inmates. For sentenced state inmates, the MDOC inmate search works by name or MDOC ID number.
The full roster details and custody-notification options appear in the Winston County inmate records resource, and active-warrant routing is covered in warrant records.
Marriage, Divorce, and Probate Records in Winston County
Marriage and divorce records split between the two clerks. Marriage licenses are a Circuit Clerk service. Divorce decrees are Chancery Court records kept by the Chancery Clerk. The state health department holds vital indexes but does not keep divorce decrees.
The Winston County Chancery Clerk page describes the office as custodian of public records and clerk of the Chancery Court.
That office keeps divorce, probate, guardianship, and land records for the county. Probate is also a Chancery Court function. Estates, wills, guardianships, conservatorships, and trusts all move through that court. Certified probate copies come from the Chancery Clerk, not the Circuit Clerk. Detailed steps appear in the marriage and divorce records and probate records resources.
- Testator
- A person who leaves a valid will at death.
- Executor
- The person named in a will to settle the estate.
- Conservator
- A person the court appoints to manage an incapacitated adult's finances.
Winston County Court Records Fees
Winston County court fees depend on the office and the service. The Circuit Clerk posts a short fee list for its most common requests. Justice Court posts separate filing fees for civil matters.
The Winston County Justice Court page lists its jurisdiction, filing fees, and payment options.
It also names the local judges, constables, and the court clerk who process those filings. The fee table below combines the posted Circuit Clerk charges with the Justice Court filing fees.
| Item | Amount |
|---|---|
| Marriage license | $37.00 |
| Certified marriage license | $17.00 |
| Abstracts | $3.00 |
| Certified judgment | $3.00 |
| Record search | $10.00 |
| Justice Court civil filing (eviction, replevin, complaint) | $85.00 |
| Justice Court garnishment filing | $71.00 |
Chancery Clerk copy fees were not posted in the county's online sources, so call that office for probate, divorce, and certified-copy costs. Electronic court access through PAMEC may carry its own account and per-page charges, which the state system sets.
How to Interpret Winston County Court Records
Court files use shorthand that can confuse first-time readers. Mississippi Electronic Courts marks cases with status flags, such as Bench Warrant Issued, Capias Pending, Nolle Pros Pending, and Plea Pending. A flag shows where a case stands, not a final result.
A charge is not a conviction. A person charged has only been accused, while a conviction is a court finding of guilt. Disposition is the word for the outcome, whether that is a guilty plea, a dismissal, or a judgment. Reading these terms correctly keeps a record search accurate.
- Defendant
- The person sued or criminally charged.
- Disposition
- The final outcome of a case.
- Nolle prosequi
- A prosecutor's decision not to pursue a charge.
- Capias
- A court order directing an arrest, often after a missed court date.
Note: Online entries can lag behind the courtroom, so confirm any detail with the clerk that holds the file before relying on it.
Local Winston County Court Officials
Winston County's courts run with a small, named staff. The Circuit Clerk is Gwenita Mays, with Deputy Clerk Sarah Hughes and Chief Deputy Clerk Barbara Gladney. The Chancery Clerk is Rusty Foster. Justice Court seats two judges, Robert Beck for the West Post and Mike Fuller for the East Post, with County Prosecutor Zachary Madison. Louisville Municipal Court is led by Judge David Wilson, with Court Clerk Kayla Rogers.
Census QuickFacts for Winston County records a population of 17,714 in the 2020 Census.
A county this size keeps many records office-driven, so phone calls and in-person visits remain a normal part of any Winston County court records search. The named clerks and judges are the people who actually pull files, certify copies, and answer questions about a case.
History of Winston County Courts
Winston County traces to the era after the Treaty of Dancing Rabbit Creek in 1830. The land was surveyed and the county established in 1834. The county took its name from Louis Winston, a noted Mississippi lawyer. Louisville was established in 1836, and officials honored him by adding "ville" to "Louis."
The City of Louisville history page records the treaty, the county's founding, and the first log courthouse.
National Register material notes that the present Winston County Courthouse was built in 1964, replacing an earlier building. This local history matters for searches because many results confuse Winston County, Mississippi with Winston County, Alabama. The Mississippi courthouse sits in Louisville, not in Double Springs. The Chancery Clerk also links a pre-1920 record index from the state archives, which helps with older land, marriage, and probate research.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where do I start a Winston County court records search?
Start by naming the court. Felony and civil-at-law cases belong to Circuit Court and the Circuit Clerk. Divorce, probate, and land matters belong to Chancery Court and the Chancery Clerk. Traffic and small claims belong to Justice Court, and city tickets belong to Louisville Municipal Court. Once the court is clear, contact that clerk or open the right online channel.
Is there one website for all Winston County court records?
No. Records are split by court and clerk, so no single county box returns every file. The county links an online record access portal mainly for Chancery and public records. Recent Circuit and Chancery cases run through Mississippi Electronic Courts. Justice Court citations use a separate payment portal, and older records still require a direct clerk request.
How do I get a certified copy of a court record?
Ask the clerk that holds the file. Circuit Court copies come from the Circuit Clerk, and Chancery Court copies come from the Chancery Clerk. Name the case, the parties, and the rough date, and say that a certified copy is needed. The Circuit Clerk posts a record search fee of $10.00, and certified items carry their own posted charges.
Are divorce records filed with the Circuit Clerk?
No. Divorce is a Chancery Court matter in Mississippi, so divorce decrees are kept by the Chancery Clerk. Marriage licenses are different and are issued by the Circuit Clerk. The state health department can search county divorce indexes to find the county, book, and page, but the certified decree itself comes from the Chancery Clerk.
How much is a marriage license in Winston County?
The Circuit Clerk posts a marriage license fee of $37.00. A certified marriage license copy is $17.00. The office issues the license, files the statistical record with the State Board of Health, and keeps the marriage record. Call the Circuit Clerk at 662-773-3581 to confirm ID and any prior-marriage paperwork before applying.
Does Winston County post an online warrant list or jail roster?
No public online active-warrant list or live local jail roster was found on the county's official pages. Warrant questions go to the Sheriff's Office or the court that issued the warrant. For inmates, the Sheriff page links the statewide MDOC inmate search and the VINE notification system rather than a local roster, so phone and in-person checks still matter.
Why do some cases appear online while others do not?
Timing is the reason. Winston County Chancery Court went live on Mississippi Electronic Courts in 2017, and Circuit Court went live in 2021. Cases filed from those dates forward usually sit in the statewide system. Older cases stay in the clerk's paper and book records, which means a phone call or office visit to pull them.