Dubois County Criminal Case Files
Dubois County criminal court records are maintained through the local trial court system and the Clerk of the Courts. The court file begins when a criminal accusation is filed with the court, then grows as hearings, motions, orders, pleas, dispositions, and sentencing entries are added. It is not the same thing as the arrest record or jail roster. The arrest and custody side belongs with law enforcement and the Security Center, while the criminal case file belongs with the court.
The Prosecuting Attorney represents the State of Indiana and prosecutes violations of state law. The official Dubois County Prosecuting Attorney page names Beth E. Schroeder as Prosecuting Attorney. The Prosecutor FAQ states that the office does not investigate crimes. Police agencies investigate and send reports to the Prosecutor for review and possible charges. For a closer look at that charge-filing step, use Dubois County arrest records and court charges.
The Dubois County Prosecuting Attorney page is the local source for the office that represents the State in criminal prosecutions.
That office role explains why police reports and court charges are related but not identical records.
Dubois Criminal Records by Court
Dubois County has two courts of record: Dubois Circuit Court and Dubois Superior Court. Indiana does not use a county-level district court for Dubois County. Criminal matters are assigned between Circuit Court and Superior Court under local rule LR19-AR1-2. That means the court name in a criminal record is not a minor detail. It tells where the case is pending, where hearings occur, and which court maintains the active docket.
Criminal assignment examples from the local rules are specific. Circuit Court categories include homicide, mischief, burglary, trespass, forgery, battery, kidnapping, sex crimes, robbery, misconduct, perjury, crimes against public administration, Article 46 offenses, interference with governmental operations, weapons, and violence. Superior Court categories include arson, theft, home improvement fraud, drug cases, alcohol cases, public health and order offenses, public decency, prostitution, gambling, racketeering, loan sharking, gang control, stalking, obscenity, pornography, and conservation violations.
| Court | Criminal Record Role | Contact |
|---|---|---|
| Dubois Circuit Court | Assigned criminal categories plus exclusive probate and juvenile jurisdiction. | (812) 481-7020 |
| Dubois Superior Court | Assigned criminal categories, all traffic and small claims, and drug court administration. | (812) 481-7070 |
| Clerk of the Courts | Official trial-court record keeping, copies, certifications, costs, and case-copy routing. | (812) 481-7035 |
Both courts are at One Courthouse Square in Jasper. County pages list general county office hours as Monday-Friday, 8:00 AM-4:00 PM. Court users entering the courthouse should also account for county security rules at the east entrance.
Dubois Criminal Case Flow
A Dubois County criminal court record changes as the case moves through the court. The exact path depends on the charge, the court assignment, plea negotiations, diversion, trial settings, and post-judgment issues. The standard case flow is best read as a sequence of court events, not as proof that every case reaches trial or sentencing.
Case flow: Police report to Prosecutor > Charges filed > Initial hearing or arraignment > Bond and counsel entries > Pretrial motions and discovery > Plea, dismissal, diversion, or trial > Disposition > Sentencing, probation, Community Corrections, or post-conviction filings.
Initial hearings and arraignments can address rights, charges, counsel, bond, and scheduling. Pretrial entries may include discovery notices, motions, continuances, and orders. A disposition may show dismissal, plea, verdict, or other outcome. Sentencing entries may show jail, probation, fines, costs, Community Corrections, or other court-ordered terms when public.
Community Corrections is locally relevant. The Dubois County Community Corrections Center supervises and houses people sentenced to Work Release in a 170-bed residential facility and provides Home Detention and Pretrial Release supervision. Its evidence-based programming page states that treatment programs are offered at no cost to individuals under supervision.
The Dubois County Community Corrections Center page supplies the local supervision and work-release context for some criminal court records.
Those programs can appear in criminal records as pretrial, sentencing, home detention, work release, or fee-related entries.
Search Dubois Criminal Court Records
Use Indiana MyCase to search public Dubois County criminal court records online. MyCase can be searched by case number, party, attorney, court, case type, status, and filing date. A party search may use last name, first name, middle name, or date of birth to narrow results, but date of birth is excluded from public case details. A criminal case-number search may be the most precise path when the cause number is known.
MyCase does not replace the Clerk. Some documents are not online, older cases may not be available online, and official court records of proceedings must be requested from the court maintaining the record. In Dubois County, certified copies and older files route through the Clerk of the Courts. The Clerk paperwork page also lists a Public Record Request Form.
| Criminal Record Field | What It Shows |
|---|---|
| Case Number | Indiana uniform cause number identifying county, court, filing period, case type, and sequence. |
| Court | Dubois Circuit Court or Dubois Superior Court. |
| State / Defendant Caption | The public criminal case caption and defendant name. |
| Charge Information | Filed accusation, statute or charge description, level, and status when public. |
| Initial Hearing / Arraignment | Entries tied to rights, plea, counsel, bond, and scheduling. |
| Motions and Orders | Requests filed by parties and rulings or directives entered by the judge. |
| Disposition | Dismissal, plea, verdict, diversion result, or other final charge or case outcome. |
| Sentence | Jail, probation, fines, costs, Community Corrections, or other public sentencing terms. |
| Documents | Downloadable public documents or entries that require Clerk, party, or attorney access. |
Dubois Charges vs Convictions
Criminal court records often show charges before they show outcomes. A charge is an accusation filed in court. It is not proof that the defendant was convicted. A conviction requires a guilty plea, guilty verdict, or other judgment of guilt. A dismissed charge, amended charge, or diverted matter should not be read the same way as a conviction.
This distinction is important in Dubois County because police investigate, the Prosecutor reviews reports, and the court records the filed case events. One arrest can produce no charge, one charge, or several charges. One case can end with some charges dismissed and another charge resolved by plea or verdict.
| Charge | Conviction | |
|---|---|---|
| Meaning | Formal accusation filed in court. | Judgment or plea that the defendant is guilty. |
| Case Stage | Early or pending case stage. | Disposition or sentencing stage. |
| Record Reading | Check current status and later docket entries. | Check sentence, fines, probation, and post-judgment entries. |
| Public Access | May be public unless sealed, juvenile, expunged, or otherwise restricted. | May be public unless sealed, expunged, or restricted by rule. |
The Prosecutor staff page notes that the office includes prosecuting attorneys, administrative staff, an investigator, and a victim advocate.
The size and structure of that office helps explain how police reports move into formal court charges and case records.
Read Dubois Criminal Dispositions
Disposition is the outcome or status resolution of a case or charge. In Dubois County criminal court records, a disposition can relate to the full case or to a single charge within the case. A reader should check each charge line and the later docket entries before treating a case as resolved. The record may show a dismissed count, a reduced charge, a guilty plea, a trial verdict, a diversion outcome, or sentencing terms.
Sentencing entries may include fines, court costs, probation, jail, work release, home detention, community corrections, or other terms. The Clerk FAQ also notes that bond money is returned only if the defendant has been sentenced on that case and has no other fees due with the Clerk, Probation, or Community Corrections. That is a useful local clue when a criminal record includes bond and cost entries.
- Plea
- The defendant's response to a criminal charge.
- Disposition
- The final outcome or status resolution of a case or charge.
- Sentence
- The penalty or terms imposed after conviction.
- Probation
- Court-ordered supervision instead of or after incarceration.
Sealed Dubois Criminal Records
Indiana law and court rules restrict some criminal court records. Juvenile matters are not ordinary adult criminal records, and Dubois Circuit Court has exclusive juvenile jurisdiction. Sealed or expunged criminal records follow IC 35-38-9. Once an eligible record is sealed or expunged, public access may change and MyCase visibility may be limited.
Expungement in Indiana does not always mean physical destruction. It may limit public access or mark records as expunged while retaining them for court or law-enforcement purposes. Non-conviction records, such as dismissed, acquitted, or vacated matters, follow a different petition path from conviction expungement. For conviction records, eligibility depends on offense level, elapsed time, completion of sentence, payment of obligations, and statutory exclusions.
| Sealed | Expunged | |
|---|---|---|
| Public View | Hidden or limited from public access. | Access limited or record marked under Indiana expungement law. |
| Record Status | Record still exists under restricted access. | Often retained for court or law-enforcement purposes. |
| How It Happens | By court rule, statute, or order. | By petition under IC 35-38-9 when eligible. |
| Dubois Action | Check the court and Clerk process. | File in the court tied to the arrest, charge, or conviction. |
Indiana Code Title 35 is the source area for criminal procedure and expungement law.
Expungement questions should be separated from ordinary record-copy requests because they require a court petition path.
Public Access to Dubois Criminal Records
Public access to Dubois County criminal court records starts with MyCase for public non-confidential case information and some documents. If a record is not in MyCase, is too old, needs certification, or is excluded from remote access, the practical next step is the Clerk of the Courts at One Courthouse Square. Indiana Administrative Rule 9 and Access to Court Records Rule 9 explain why courthouse access and online access can differ.
Background checks require care. A public criminal court search is not the same as an FCRA-compliant consumer report. Case records may be incomplete, may omit sealed or expunged data, and may show charges that were dismissed or amended. For employment, credit, housing, insurance, or other regulated uses, a legally compliant screening process is required.
The Prosecutor FAQ page supplies local guidance about investigations, pending cases, and diversion references.
The FAQ also confirms that crimes should be reported to the police agency with jurisdiction, not directly investigated by the Prosecutor.
Important: Public criminal case searches should not be used as consumer reports for FCRA-regulated decisions.
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