Tarrant County Web site makes court dockets searchable

Via Star Telegram:

FORT WORTH -- Criminal defendants, their families -- or just the public in general -- can now find out what's going on in Tarrant County's criminal courtrooms with the click of a mouse.

Last week, a feature was added to the county's Web site allowing the public to view the dockets, or court settings, in Tarrant County's 19 misdemeanor and felony courts.

The link will allow defendants to find out whether they have a court hearing coming up or just provide basic information to interested parties. The site allows people to search by someone's name or by court and to view court settings 30 days into the future.

"Our general focus is to provide timely information to all interested parties, including the general public," said Clete McAlister, criminal courts administrator. "Timely information is the lubricant that makes the wheels of justice turn faster."

State District Judge Sharen Wilson, an advocate of the new feature, said the idea of allowing the public to search dockets surfaced more than a year ago in an e-government committee led by Tarrant County Commissioner Roy Brooks.

The committee, of which she is a member, presented it to the criminal court judges, who were in favor of it.

"The e-government committee's goal is to make government more accessible to the public," Wilson said. "It [the searchable docket] is a huge step forward. The public ought to be able to get online and find public records -- and it's not going to cost them a dime."

Wilson said many larger urban areas have similar public searches, and she is pleased that Tarrant County now does, too. She said allowing the public or defendants to do search dockets online could cut down on the time spent calling attorneys and courts -- or finding parking at the courthouse.

"The point about e-government is to keep people from having to drive," Wilson said. "I'm gushing about it like it is such a benefit, but it is what we ought to be doing."

How to search criminal court dockets

Go to http://www.tarrantcounty.com/

On the right side of the page, click on the "Courts" icon.

Click on "Criminal Courts" on the left side of the page.

Click on the "Criminal Court Docket Search"

Type in the name or the court you want to look at.

Star-Telegram.com: 11/30/2007 County Web site makes court dockets searchable

Too bad there is no "Courts" icon and there is no way in hell I can figure out how to get to this page they're talking about. I've sent an email asking how to actually get to this page.