Etowah County Circuit Court Overview
Alabama Circuit Courts are trial courts of general jurisdiction. Etowah County is Alabama's Sixteenth Judicial Circuit. The local Circuit Court hears civil matters where the amount in controversy exceeds $20,000, all felony prosecutions, and family court matters. It also has concurrent jurisdiction with District Court for civil matters over $6,000 and not over $20,000, not counting interest and costs.
The Circuit Court also functions as an appellate court for Etowah County. It hears appeals from District Court, Probate Court, municipal courts in the county, and certain administrative and municipal boards. That appeal role matters for records because a case that began as a small claim, eviction, probate matter, or city-court citation may later create a Circuit Court record.
Local court path: Municipal Court or District Court › Circuit Court › Alabama Court of Civil Appeals or Alabama Court of Criminal Appeals › Supreme Court of Alabama.
Etowah County Circuit Court Judges
The Etowah judiciary directory and Circuit Court page list four Circuit Court judges in the Judicial Building. The table below keeps the judge, suite, and phone details together so a reader can distinguish Circuit Court from the District Court judges in Suite 200 and from the Probate Judge at the nearby county courthouse.
| Court | Judge | Address | Phone |
|---|---|---|---|
| Circuit Court | Hon. George C. Day, Jr., Presiding Circuit Judge | Judicial Building, Suite 303, 801 Forrest Ave., Gadsden, AL 35901 | 256-549-5364 |
| Circuit Court | Hon. Brynn T. Crain, Circuit Judge | Judicial Building, Suite 307, 801 Forrest Ave., Gadsden, AL 35901 | 256-549-5368 |
| Circuit Court | Hon. Cody D. Robinson, Circuit Judge | Judicial Building, Suite 305, 801 Forrest Ave., Gadsden, AL 35901 | 256-549-5316 |
| Circuit Court | Hon. Sonny J. Steen, Circuit Judge | Judicial Building, Suite 300, 801 Forrest Ave., Gadsden, AL 35901 | 256-549-5372 |
Etowah County Circuit Court Compared
Etowah County court users often need to decide whether a record belongs to Circuit Court, District Court, Probate Court, or a municipal court. The dividing line is not just the building address. It depends on case type, amount in controversy, charge level, and whether the matter is an appeal.
| Issue | Circuit Court | District Court | Probate or Municipal Court |
|---|---|---|---|
| Civil cases | Over $20,000, plus some cases over $6,000 through concurrent jurisdiction. | Up to $20,000, with small claims at $6,000 or less. | Probate handles estates and recording; municipal courts do not handle ordinary civil claims. |
| Criminal cases | Felony prosecutions and misdemeanor appeals. | Misdemeanors, felony preliminary hearings, and certain guilty pleas. | Municipal courts handle city ordinance and city traffic matters. |
| Family cases | Domestic relations, divorce, and family court matters. | Juvenile jurisdiction is shared with Circuit Court judges. | Probate handles adoption and involuntary commitment functions. |
| Appeals | Receives appeals from District, Probate, municipal, and certain administrative matters. | Lower trial court, not the main county appeal court. | Appeals may move to Circuit Court depending on the matter. |
Etowah County Circuit Case Flow
Circuit Court case flow depends on the record type. A felony may start with arrest, first appearance, and preliminary hearing activity in District Court, then move to grand jury indictment and a new Circuit Court case number. A domestic relations case begins with a complaint and filing fee, then moves through service, answer, waiting period, judge assignment, decree, and certified copies when the record is complete. A civil case moves through pleadings, service, answer, motions, judgment, and appeal.
Criminal flow: Arrest › First Appearance › Preliminary Hearing › Grand Jury › Indictment › Arraignment › Pretrial › Plea or Trial › Disposition › Sentencing › Appeal.
Civil flow: Complaint › Service › Answer › Motions › Hearing or Trial › Judgment › Collection or Appeal.
Alabama Code 12-11-30 is the state jurisdiction statute that supports the Circuit Court's felony, larger civil, domestic, and appellate role.
Etowah County Circuit Court Records
Circuit Court records are kept by the Etowah County Circuit Clerk, Cassandra "Sam" Johnson, in Suite 202 of the Judicial Building. The clerk is the official record keeper and business manager for Circuit and District Court proceedings. The office maintains pleadings, orders, notices, court funds, fines, fees, trial and hearing notices, jury functions, and electronically imaged court files.
Access channels include Alacourt ACCESS for account-based trial court records, the public access computer terminal in the Circuit Clerk's Office for public record name searches, and written requests for copies or certified copies. Written requests should include requester contact information, the documents needed, whether certification is required, case number, party names, dates of birth or aliases when useful, charges, case type, and a money order plus self-addressed stamped envelope when records are mailed.
Etowah County Circuit Clerk
801 Forrest Avenue, Suite 202
Gadsden, AL 35901
256-549-2150
Etowah County Lower Courts
District Court is the main lower trial court for misdemeanors, felony preliminary hearings, small claims, lower-value civil matters, evictions, and many traffic citations from the Alabama State Trooper or Etowah County Sheriff. Municipal courts in Altoona, Attalla, Gadsden, Glencoe, Hokes Bluff, Rainbow City, Sardis, and Southside handle city ordinance and municipal traffic cases. Probate Court handles probate, recording, marriage certificate recording, elections, passports, licenses, involuntary commitment, and record room functions.
These lower and parallel courts matter because a search in the wrong office can miss the record. City traffic citations may never appear in the county Traffic Division. Probate online records are not official if they conflict with courthouse records. District Court files may appeal into Circuit Court and then become part of the Circuit Court record.
Note: Circuit Court is the primary trial court page for this Alabama project, while District Court remains a separate local page because the research map added it.