District Courts Frequently Asked Questions

If you find you cannot pay your fine, there is the option to perform community service for the balance remaining on your FINE. To sign up for community service, come to our office during normal business hours. There is $25.00 community service fee that must be paid BEFORE you start community service. If you were given a civil penalty as part of your sentence, you MUST pay the fine to take advantage of the civil penalty. If you choose to perform community service, the civil penalty will be vacated. (NOTE: Court Cost MUST be paid and cannot be worked off in community service). If you cannot pay your fine and have a reason you cannot perform community service, you will need to be put on the docket to talk with the Judge.

If you have been ordered to attend classes (ex., anger management, domestic battery, and theft) and need information about when and where to attend, call (501) 371-4725.

Felonies and some misdemeanors are “pass to file” to circuit court due to district court only handling the setting of bonds for felonies and the adjudication of misdemeanors. When a case is “pass to file”, it is in process of being filed in circuit court by the prosecuting attorney’s office. It can take up to one (1)-year for the case to reach circuit court. Once the case has been filed, it will be assigned a new case number, division and Judge in Circuit Court.

A certified disposition is a document, certified by the court, that “breaks down” case(s) by showing the date of incident, case number, charge with the statute number and type (felony or misdemeanor), what happened with the case(s), when, and who represented as counsel (if available) on the case(s).

There is a $15.00 charge, per case.

If your driver’s license was suspended due to failing to appear in court, it can be reinstated only if your case has been resolved or the Judge has ordered it reinstated. After a driver’s license has been reinstated, there will be a reinstatement fee due to driver control. 

If your driver’s license is suspended due to the issuing of a warrant for non-payment of fine/cost, you must pay the warrant "IN FULL" or have the warrant served to get a new court date to resolve your outstanding fine/cost. If you choose to pay off the warrant, a court clerk will reinstate your driver’s license, but you will still be responsible for paying the reinstatement fee to driver control. If you have the warrant served, you will need to request your driver’s license be reinstated on your court date; again, you will have to pay the reinstatement fee to driver control. 

If your driver’s license has been suspended because you plead to or were found guilty of a drug offense; there is mandatory six (6)-month driver’s license suspension per Arkansas Code Ann. Sec. 5-64-1-1 et seq. (one year suspension if you possess a Commercial Driver’s License). If you were given a permit to drive, you must take the order to driver control to have the permit approved. After the suspension is over, you will need to pay your reinstatement fee to Driver Control.

In most cases, yes. These documents are available ONLY to the person to whom the sealed/expunged record belongs. State-issued identification will need to be presented in person to obtain these documents. If you are unable to come in person, call the Clerk’s Office at (501) 371-4739.

You can file a petition to seal with the court after the case has been fully disposed of and any waiting period that may apply to the charge have been met. After copies of the petition to seal have been delivered to the prosecuting attorney's office and police department in the jurisdiction of which the charge exists, a fifty dollar ($50.00) filing fee will be collected and the petition will be filed with the court. There is a waiting period of up to ninety (90) days before the petition is answered. There may be a different type of petition to seal for each charge, depending on how that particular charge was disposed of. Each set of charges requires a separate petition to seal and fifty dollar ($50.00) filing fee. Depending on the type of charge(s) and how it was resolved, there may be a waiting period before a petition to seal may be filed with the court and will not be accepted until the waiting period is over. You may call the court to find out if a waiting period applies to your particular charges. Petitions to seal are either granted or denied by the JUDGE. Access the petitions to seal here.  

The Judge may deny the sealing of a case(s) due to, but not limited to, non-payment of fine/cost or not complying with court orders, such as completing probation or court ordered classes. 

At one time the word "expunged" was used in Arkansas to seal or hide a conviction from the public view. Arkansas changed the terminology from “EXPUNGED” to “SEALED”. They essentially mean the same. As of January 1, 2014, the State of Arkansas removed the word "expunged" from the petitions and orders to seal. These cases are now referred to as "sealed".

No matter the status of a case, all records are available to the courts, law enforcement, and prosecuting attorneys for the purpose of determining punishment or sentencing recommendations and for enhancement of certain crimes.

That being stated, the Arkansas Attorney General released opinion #2003-057 stating some agencies have the right to obtain sealed/expunged records. To read the Attorney General’s full opinion, go to: https://arkansasag.gov/arkansass-lawyer/opinions-department/attorney-general-opinions-search/

Court documents associated with Little Rock District Criminal Court are not accessible online. These documents may be obtained in person, by fax, or through the mail (fees may apply). Information that will be available is the ability to see the status of a case, make payments online and much more.

When appealing a case, it must be done within thirty (30) days of the sentencing date (including weekends). If you were represented by a Public Defender, you will need to contact them at (501) 371-6120. If you were represented by a private attorney, please contact your attorney. If you represented yourself (Pro Se), please call the court at (501) 371-4739 for more information.

There are three (3) types of bonds in Little Rock District Criminal Court; recognizance (aka “OR”) surety and cash. A surety bond requires the posting of 10% of the bond set by the court with a bonding company (bonding fees may apply). A cash bond is posted directly with the court and has to be in full unless a percentage has been authorized by the court.  A Recognizance bond only requires the person to show up for their court date. Any of these types of bonds can be revoked under certain circumstances.

Official Background Checks are conducted by: 

Arkansas State Police
#1 State Police Plaza
Little Rock, AR  72209
(501) 618- 8000

Public Defender’s Office
201 South Broadway Street, 2^nd Floor
Little Rock, AR  72201
(501) 340-6120 

The Judge CANNOT and WILL NOT discuss your case with you outside of court. You may contact your attorney or public defender, if one was appointed to you, to ask that your case be placed on the docket. You may also call (501) 371-4739 to speak with a clerk and discuss other options.

Monday – Friday: 8:00 AM - 4:00 PM

Observed Holidays:

• New Year’s Day
• Martin Luther King, Jr. Day
• Presidents Day
• Memorial Day
• Independence Day
• Labor Day
• Veterans Day
• Thanksgiving Day
• Christmas Day

Little Rock District Court (Criminal) has court Monday through Friday except for observed City holidays. The building opens to the public at 8:00 AM and the courtroom doors open at 8:30 AM.

Call the clerk’s office at (501) 371-4739 to discuss your options. (NOTE: There are some court dates that are mandatory and CANNOT be changed)

If you believe you may have a warrant, you can go to the Little Rock Police Department located at 700 West Markham Street in Little Rock to have the warrant served. 

If your warrant is for failure to pay your fine, these warrants may be paid off in full and the warrant will be recalled. If the warrant cannot be paid in full, it will have to be served to get a court date. 

Yes, in most cases you can. If the person for whom you are making a payment is on probation, they may have to check in with their probation officer. To find out, please call the probation office at (501) 371-4725. Having the person's case number(s) will speed up the procedure.

We accept cash, checks, cashier's check, money order, and credit/debit cards.

Payments can be accepted through the mail, in person, on online at https://pay.courts.arkansas.gov/pay/

If you mail a payment, please provide your case number(s) or payment plan number associated with your case(s). Make check or money order payable to "City of Little Rock". DO NOT SEND CASH IN THE MAIL. If you choose to make a payment online and do not know your payment plan number, call the court at (501) 371-4739. All monthly payments are due on or before the last day of every month. To make a payment online follow the link above.   (REMEMBER: THERE IS A $10.00 INSTALLMENT FEE ADDED TO YOUR UNPAID BALANCE EACH MONTH THAT IS NOT CREDITED TOWARD YOUR BALANCE.)

Mail payment to:

Little Rock District Court, Criminal Division
Attn: Criminal Court Clerk
600 West Markham Street
Little Rock, AR  72201

Fines, cost, restitution, and fees are due in full at the time of sentencing. However, if a time payment is granted by the Judge, a ten dollar ($10.00) judicial fee will be charged the 1st day of every month for as long as there is an outstanding balance. (NOTE: This fee will continue to accrue every month even if a warrant for failing to pay is issued.) 

Little Rock District Court Criminal Division records its sessions anytime court is held. You can obtain an "audio" transcript from the clerk's office during normal business. The cost is $15.00 and the court will need a 24-48 hour notice. The court does not transcribe to paper, a third party may be needed to transcribe, which is the responsibility of the person(s) obtaining the transcript.