Mississippi County Court Records

Mississippi County court records are legal documents containing information about court proceedings and decisions of Mississippi County courts. Access to these documents is important in legal matters as they help provide accountability and serve as a historical resource to guide future case judgments.

Mississippi court records are also important to citizens as they provide insight into their judicial system's inner workings and inform them of the legal consequences of certain actions. The Mississippi County Circuit Clerk's office is the custodian of court records in the county. The contents found in a court record typically include the following:

• Case details (Case number and type)
• Transcripts of proceedings
• Warrant information
• Judgements
• Summons
• Orders
• Liens
• Jury information.

Are Court Records Public in Mississippi County?

Yes. Mississippi County Court records are public under the Arkansas Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). The law specifies that record custodians should make all public records such as court records open for state citizens to inspect and copy thereby allowing transparency and accountability in the judicial process.

Regardless of court records being public, some information in them or some records may be restricted from unauthorized access to protect an individual's privacy or the integrity of the case. These restricted records include the following:

• Juvenile records
• Sealed or expunged records
• Attorney Client privileged information
• Confidential settlements
• Jury deliberations
• Personal information of the accused that could lead to identity theft (e.g social security number)
• Sensitive information (e.g., medical records).

Mississippi County Court Records Search

The options for conducting a Mississippi County Court Records Search are as follows:

• Local, state, and federal online resources
• An in-person visit to the record custodian’s office (Circuit Clerk's Office)
• An in-person visit to the courthouse to use public access terminals
• Contacting the record custodian by phone, email, or fax.

Mississippi County Courts

Mississippi County belongs to the Arkansas Circuit Court system. The circuit court has general jurisdiction for civil, criminal, probate, domestic relations, and juvenile cases. The county also has district courts that handle less serious criminal offenses and civil cases involving small amounts of money.

The courts in Mississippi County and their contact information is as follows:

Mississippi County Courthouse (Osceola):
200 West Hale Avenue
Osceola, AR 72370
Phone: (870) 563-6471

Mississippi County Courthouse (Blytheville):
200 West Walnut Street
Blytheville, AR 72315
Phone: (870) 762-2332

Mississippi County Criminal and Civil Records

Mississippi County criminal records are documents of criminal cases where an individual was prosecuted for breaking the law while civil records are documents about proceedings on disputes between individuals and entities. These records can be accessed through the following avenues:

• Mississippi County Circuit Clerk's Office: The Circuit Clerk doubles as the ex-officio recorder for the county. So they manage civil and criminal records for the county. Requesters need to provide key details about the case such as the case number, and names of the parties involved to facilitate a search, and fees may apply to obtain certified copies of the record.
• Online Resources: The Mississippi County Circuit Court Records Search Tool (Administrative Office CourtConnect) allows individuals to search all Arkansas Judiciary court records either by case or by participants. To search by cases, individuals should know the case ID or citation number while for participant search, the Full name of a party to the case should be known. The tool also allows for a more advanced search for parties using information like organization name, case description, driver’s license, and date of birth of the party.

Mississippi County Marriage Records

The Mississippi County Clerk records and issues marriage licenses and makes the records available online, by phone, in person, or by mail. For online access, individuals can make a records request through the Arkansas Department of Health’s Vital Records Online Service. A $5.00 processing fee and a $1.85 non-refundable identity verification fee are charged for online requests. For walk-in, mail, and phone records, requesters are required to have a valid form of identification to access the records and it costs $10 per copy.

Mississippi County Divorce Records

Mississippi County divorce records can be obtained online, by mail, or in person from the Vital Records Department of the Arkansas Department of Health. Divorce records cost $10 per record but records ordered online through the Vital Records search cost $5 with an additional $1.85 non-refundable identity verification fee. The divorce record application form is required to be filled out and pay the applicable fees to order a certified record.

Mississippi County Birth Records

Arkansas State laws restrict access to birth records less than 100 years old unless the requester is one of the following people:

• The record owner (individuals named on the record)
• Record owner’s spouse
• Registered domestic partner
• Descendants
• parents or guardians
• Designated legal representative
• Federal/state/local government
• Genealogist or agent with a court order.

The Arkansas Department of Health's Vital Records Office manages all birth certificates. It costs $12 for a copy of a birth record and $10 for additional copies of the same record. When ordering through the Vital Records Online Service, it costs $5.00 to process with an extra $1.85 non-refundable fee for background verification. Birth records can also be requested from them by mail, in person, or by telephone. Individuals are required to provide their name, address, date of birth, a government-issued form of identification, or any other proof of relationship they have for identity verification.

Mississippi County Death Records

The Arkansas Department of Health's Vital Records Office also manages death records for all counties in Arkansas including Mississippi County. Death records can be obtained through an in-person visit to their office, by telephone, by mail, and online through their Vital Records Online service. The first copy of the death record costs $10.00 and subsequent copies of the same record cost $8.00. The individuals eligible to request birth records include the following people:

• Parents of the deceased (as named on the birth certificate)
• Children of the deceased
• Grandchildren and other descendants of the deceased
• Funeral home
• Spouse of the deceased
• Beneficiaries of the deceased (with adequate documentation).

Mississippi County Probate Court Records

Mississippi County Probate Court Records are records filed or created during the legal process of administering a deceased person’s estate, payment of their debts, or distributing their assets according to their will or without a will. The Mississippi County Circuit courts have jurisdiction over probate cases in the county. Examples of these probate cases include:

• Testate estate administration (with a will)
• Intestate estate administration (without a will)
• Guardianships
• Trust administration
• Conservatorships
• Claims against the estate.

To obtain a probate record, individuals can visit the Mississippi County Circuit Clerk's office to make an in-person records request or they can also use the Mississippi County Circuit Court Records Search Tool (Administrative Office CourtConnect) if the probate record is available online.

Mississippi County Property Records

Probate Court records are documents created or filed that relate to the ownership, valuation, and legal status of real estate within Mississippi County. The Mississippi County Assessor's Office is the custodian of probate records in the county. They also ensure that all properties in the county have adequate legal descriptions and that the property is assigned a parcel number.

The assessor's office offers a free public search tool for obtaining property records online. They can also be visited in person and a property record is requested. The Mississippi County Assessor's Office and contact information is as follows:

Mississippi County Assessor's Office
Blytheville Courthouse
200 West Walnut, Room 106
Blytheville, AR 72315
Phone: (870) 763-6860
Fax: (870) 763-5151

Examples of property-related information contained in property records include ownership history, property descriptions, property tax information, property assessments, deeds, mortgages, and zoning information.

Mississippi County Court Records Online

In addition to government resources and offices, third-party online resources like arkansascourtrecords.us are also a convenient avenue for accessing Mississippi County Court Records Online. They offer a user-friendly interface and are a repository for court records of multiple counties which cuts down search time and improves accessibility to court records. As they are not the record's official custodians, record accuracy and completeness may differ from records from official government sources.