Frequently Asked Questions

The Miami-Dade County Clerk's Office Criminal Court is comprised of two levels of operations: Circuit Criminal and County Criminal.

County Criminal maintains the records of all misdemeanor arrests, certain civil infractions (boating and animal violations) and municipal ordinance violations and is part of the Traffic/Misdemeanor Division.

Circuit Criminal, conversely, receives and processes all felony affidavits of probable cause, grand jury indictments and arrest warrants. This section conducts two felony bond hearings daily via a video transmission between the courtroom and pre-trial detention center. Special felony drug court bond hearings also occur daily; during these hearings, the defendant is given the opportunity to enter a special drug rehabilitation program instead of going to trial.

The Miami-Dade County Clerk's Office Criminal Court Division works closely with the Administrative Office of the Courts and other criminal justice system agencies struggling to address crime in the community. From the filing of arrest papers, Criminal Division staff is involved in the sometimes complex process of bringing an individual charged with a crime to justice.

Justice is determined in the courtroom and thousands of court appearance notices are mailed each week by employees in our office, to notify individuals of court hearings. Hundreds of subpoenas per month are also issued for witnesses in criminal proceedings.

Accurate and complete records are critical to the criminal justice process and at every proceeding Criminal Court staff is in the courtroom to ensure that all necessary information is properly entered into each case record. Later,  employees in the office carefully review the information for any omissions and/or discrepancies in the record.

Much of the criminal justice process occurs behind-the-scenes. Filing clerks work diligently to make certain that case files are kept current and are available when requested by the public or needed in court. Specially trained evidence staff manage thousands of exhibits maintained in the Miami-Dade County Clerk's Office Criminal Court Division's vault, taking every precaution in handling the sometimes highly sensitive evidence to ensure its security and integrity. Typist staff work expeditiously in preparing judges' oral orders, so that the orders may be executed timely.

In the information and research areas of the office, employees provide assistance to attorneys, defendants, victims, and other members of the public. Among other things, pleadings are accepted, criminal histories are prepared, and court fines and fees are collected. In addition, the staff responds to voluminous daily inquiries received from the public concerning the status and other information about criminal cases.