Kemper County Circuit Court Overview
In Mississippi, the Circuit Court is the principal court of law. It is the forum for felony criminal prosecutions, for civil lawsuits that exceed the small-claims and chancery thresholds, and for appeals brought up from the County, Justice, and Municipal courts. The state judiciary describes the Circuit Courts as general trial courts that handle both civil and criminal matters with a jury. Kemper County uses this same structure, so the most serious local cases are heard in the Kemper County Circuit Court rather than in a generic district court.
The Kemper County Circuit Court sits apart from the Chancery Court, which is the separate equity court for divorce, custody, estates, guardianships, and land disputes. Circuit Court is law and jury work. Chancery Court is equity and is usually decided by a chancellor without a jury. Kemper County belongs to the 10th Circuit Court District, a multi-county district that groups Kemper with Clarke, Lauderdale, and Wayne counties. Two circuit judges ride that district and hold court in each county on a rotating term schedule.
The courthouse that anchors all of this is in De Kalb, the county seat. Both the Circuit Clerk and the Chancery Clerk keep their files at that location, so a single trip can reach more than one court office.
Kemper County Court Structure
Mississippi has no numbered local district courts in Kemper County. Instead, the trial system is split across three court levels plus the statewide appellate courts. The table below lays out which court or office handles what, who runs it, and where to reach it. Use it to point a record request at the correct desk before traveling to De Kalb.
| Court / Office | Local officials | Address / phone | Jurisdiction and records |
|---|---|---|---|
| Circuit Court | Judges Robert T. "Bo" Bailey and Charles W. Wright Jr. | 123 Main Ave, De Kalb; 601-743-2224 | Felonies, major civil actions, misdemeanors and bastardy listed by the county, appeals from lower courts, dockets and judgments. |
| Circuit Clerk | Shirley Steele Jackson | P.O. Box 130, De Kalb 39328; 601-743-8179 | Circuit and County Court filings, indictments, motions, process, juries, judgments, marriage licenses, professional licenses, voter registration. |
| Chancery Court | Chancellors D. Joseph Kilgore and Kiley Kirk | 123 Main Ave, De Kalb; 601-743-8375 | Divorce, custody, support, adoption, alimony, estates, guardianships, conservatorships, land, contracts, commitments, equity. |
| Chancery Clerk | Sherline D. Watkins | P.O. Box 188, De Kalb 39328; 601-743-8368 | Board minutes, deeds and land records, liens, military discharges, chancery filings, estate and divorce-related records. |
| Justice Court | Judges Mary Gully and Linda Sciple Wright | P.O. Box 661, De Kalb 39328; 601-743-8267 | Small civil claims, citations, protested tickets, lower criminal matters outside cities, subpoenas, process, warrants. |
| Appellate courts | Mississippi Supreme Court and Court of Appeals | courts.ms.gov | Appeals from trial courts; appellate dockets, briefs, orders, and opinions. |
The 10th Circuit Court District
Kemper County does not have its own resident circuit judge. The county is one of four counties in the 10th Circuit Court District, which also covers Clarke, Lauderdale, and Wayne. The two judges who serve the whole district are Robert T. "Bo" Bailey and Charles W. Wright Jr. Each keeps an office in Meridian, the larger seat of the district in Lauderdale County, and each travels to hold Circuit Court terms in Kemper County on the published court calendar.
Because the bench is shared, a Kemper County felony or major civil case may be set during a term week rather than heard on demand. Court terms, the assigned judge, and the daily calendar are tracked by the Circuit Clerk. The contact card below covers the courthouse point of access for the Circuit Court in De Kalb.
Kemper County Circuit Court
123 Main Ave
De Kalb, MS 39328
601-743-2224
Hours: Mon-Fri 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Note: the circuit judges rotate across four counties, so confirm the De Kalb term schedule with the Circuit Clerk before assuming a hearing date.
Circuit Court vs Chancery Court vs Justice Court
The fastest way to land a record request at the wrong office is to confuse the three trial courts. Circuit Court is law and jury work. Chancery Court is equity, decided by a chancellor. Justice Court is the local court for small claims and minor offenses. The comparison below shows how they differ on the points that matter most when you are tracking a case or a file.
| Circuit Court | Chancery Court | Justice Court | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Case types | Felonies, civil actions over $75,000, misdemeanors and bastardy by county, appeals from lower courts | Divorce, custody, adoption, estates, guardianships, land and title, commitments | Small civil claims, traffic citations outside cities, minor misdemeanors, warrants, process |
| Jury | Yes, jury trials | Generally none; juries only in paternity and will contests | No jury |
| Judge or chancellor | Circuit judge | Chancellor | Justice Court judge |
| Records clerk | Circuit Clerk | Chancery Clerk | Justice Court clerk |
How a Kemper County Case Moves Through the System
Most serious cases do not start in the Kemper County Circuit Court. A criminal matter often begins with an arrest and a first appearance in Justice Court or a municipal court, then moves up to Circuit Court once a grand jury returns an indictment. From the Circuit Court, a final judgment can be carried higher to the state appellate courts. The flow below shows the path in plain terms.
Court path: Justice Court or Municipal Court › Kemper County Circuit Court › Mississippi Court of Appeals or Mississippi Supreme Court
Criminal flow: Arrest › First Appearance › Grand Jury and Indictment › Arraignment › Pretrial › Plea or Trial › Sentencing › Appeal
Civil flow: Complaint Filed › Answer › Discovery › Motions › Trial › Judgment › Appeal
Appeals from the Circuit Court do not go back down. They are docketed with the Mississippi appellate system, where the Supreme Court and the Court of Appeals divide cases by assignment and subject. A County, Justice, or Municipal Court ruling, by contrast, is appealed up into the Circuit Court itself, which is why the Circuit Court is both a trial court and an appeals court at the same time.
Kemper County Circuit Court Case Types
The Kemper County Circuit Court page lists the categories of cases the court hears, and the statewide jurisdiction statute backs them up. Under Mississippi Code Section 9-7-81, the Circuit Court has original jurisdiction over actions above the statutory threshold and over matters not placed by law in another court. In Kemper County, that produces the following docket.
- Felony criminal prosecutions, the most serious charges in the county.
- Civil actions over $75,000, the larger money and damage suits.
- Misdemeanors and bastardy matters listed by the county for Circuit Court.
- Appeals from County, Justice, and Municipal courts, both civil and criminal.
- Judgments, executions, and post-judgment enforcement records.
A full Circuit Court file can hold the complaint or indictment, the answer or plea, summonses and subpoenas, motions, orders, the verdict or sentencing order, and the docket entries that track every step. Some personal identifiers may be redacted, and sealed, juvenile, or expunged materials are not part of the public file.
Kemper County Circuit Clerk and MEC Access
The Circuit Clerk is the records keeper for the Kemper County Circuit Court. Shirley Steele Jackson holds that office and her staff file lawsuits, indictments, and motions, issue process, qualify juries, and maintain judgments. Profiles, forms, and certified-copy requests run through the Kemper County Circuit Clerk office at P.O. Box 130 in De Kalb, with a direct line of 601-743-8179. The courthouse counter remains the surest route for older files that never went online.
Mississippi is moving Circuit Court records onto the statewide Mississippi Electronic Courts system. The MEC platform is the official e-filing and case-access gateway, and the 10th Circuit court information page lists Kemper County Circuit Court with an MEC go-live date of April 14, 2025. Full case and document viewing through MEC may require registration or a subscription rather than a fully open public search.
- Identify the court and case type so the request reaches Circuit Court rather than Chancery or Justice Court.
- Check MEC through the official state page and the 10th Circuit court information listing for the Kemper County Circuit Court.
- If the online view is gated or the file predates the go-live date, contact the Circuit Clerk by phone, mail, or at the De Kalb counter.
- Ask the clerk which docket sheet, order, or certified copy is available when a record is restricted or sealed.
Kemper County Appeals From Lower Courts
One of the Kemper County Circuit Court's busiest roles is hearing appeals from the courts beneath it. A party who loses in Justice Court, Municipal Court, or County Court can carry the case up to Circuit Court, where it is reviewed under the Circuit Court's appellate authority. This is why a small traffic or claims matter can still reach the Circuit Court even though it never started there.
Justice Court is the lower court most Kemper County residents meet first. The Mississippi Judiciary Justice Courts page sets out the statewide structure that the county follows for citations, small claims, and minor offenses.
That state page explains how Justice Court matters are decided and why those rulings can be appealed up into the Circuit Court for a fresh look. Local Kemper County Justice Court contacts are P.O. Box 661 in De Kalb with a direct line of 601-743-8267 for citizens checking on a case before it moves higher.
Criminal Cases in Kemper County Circuit Court
The Kemper County Circuit Court is the felony forum for the county. Once a grand jury returns an indictment, the case is set for arraignment, pretrial work, and either a plea or a jury trial, followed by sentencing. Felony prosecutions in the 10th Circuit District are handled by the District Attorney, not by the county or a city.
District Attorney Kassie Coleman leads the 10th Circuit District Attorney office, which serves Lauderdale, Clarke, Kemper, and Wayne counties from P.O. Box 5172 in Meridian, reachable at 601-482-9759. The office prosecutes murder, sex crimes, aggravated assault, robbery, burglary, fraud, drug crimes, felony DUI, and similar charges, and it runs grand jury proceedings and victim assistance. It does not prosecute misdemeanor speeding tickets or civil matters, which stay in Justice Court or municipal court.
Appointed counsel for an indigent defendant is arranged through the court handling the case. Mississippi maintains a state Office of State Public Defender, but no Kemper-specific local defender office was located, so questions about court-appointed lawyers should go to the Circuit Court.
Kemper County Civil Actions and Judgments
On the civil side, the Kemper County Circuit Court hears the larger money disputes. The county lists civil actions over $75,000 among its Circuit Court case types, covering contract claims, personal injury suits, and other damage actions that exceed the lower courts' reach. The Circuit Clerk keeps the record of judgments and executions, so a money judgment entered in Circuit Court and its later enforcement both live in that office. Calendar and hearing detail for these cases appears in the Kemper County court dockets.
The lower Justice Court handles the smaller civil claims, and its dollar limit is worth checking before filing. The county Justice Court page states a claim limit of $2,500, while the current statewide statute, Mississippi Code Section 9-11-9, lists the Justice Court civil limit as $3,500. Anyone deciding where a smaller suit belongs should confirm the current figure directly with the court.
Federal Court Is Separate
The Kemper County Circuit Court is a state court, and it does not handle federal cases. Kemper County sits in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi, Northern Division, with court for that division held in Jackson. Federal crimes, federal civil-rights claims, federal-question suits, and qualifying diversity cases are filed there, not at the De Kalb courthouse.
The U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi publishes its divisional county listings and case information online, and appeals from that court go to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. Bankruptcy is handled by a separate federal bankruptcy court, and a defendant moved into federal custody will not appear on the county jail roster. Keeping the state Circuit Court and the federal court straight saves a wasted trip when a case is clearly federal in nature.