Macon County District Court Overview
Macon County District Court is the county's lower Alabama trial court. Its docket includes district civil claims from $6,000.01 through $20,000, small claims up to $6,000, evictions and unlawful detainers, state and county traffic cases, misdemeanors, and early steps in felony cases. It sits within Alabama's Unified Judicial System and shares record administration with Circuit Court through Circuit Clerk David Love.
District Judge Deborah H. Biggers is listed at 101 East Rosa Parks Avenue, P.O. Box 830703, Tuskegee, Alabama 36083, with phone (334) 727-6110. Macon County belongs to the Fifth Judicial Circuit with Chambers, Randolph, and Tallapoosa Counties. Circuit judges serve the wider circuit, while Judge Biggers is the listed Macon County District Judge.
The District Court operates at the Macon County Courthouse in downtown Tuskegee. Circuit Clerk David Love keeps its records, manages funds, collects fines and fees, prepares subpoenas, and issues hearing notices. The Macon County sheriff service page identifies Sheriff André Brunson's law-enforcement channel, but the filed District Court case remains with the Clerk.
Macon County Court Locations
Macon County does not have a set of numbered District Courts. The official research identifies one county District Court, the related Circuit Court and Circuit Clerk, a separate Probate Court, local municipal venues, and state appellate courts. The full researched court table is therefore organized by actual court or office rather than invented court numbers.
| Court or Office | Jurisdiction | Address | Phone |
|---|---|---|---|
| Macon County District Court | District civil, small claims, traffic, misdemeanors, preliminary criminal matters, evictions | 101 East Rosa Parks Ave., P.O. Box 830703, Tuskegee, AL 36083 | (334) 727-6110 |
| Macon County Circuit Court / Circuit Clerk | Larger civil, felony criminal, domestic relations, lower-court appeals, trial records | 101 Rosa Parks Plaza, Tuskegee, AL 36083 | (334) 724-2614 |
| Macon County Probate Court | Estates, wills, guardianships, adoptions, land, marriage, elections, tags and licenses | 101 Rosa Parks Avenue, Suite 101, Tuskegee, AL 36083 | (334) 724-2611 |
| Municipal courts / police | Municipal ordinances, city misdemeanors, city-limit report and warrant routing | Tuskegee, Franklin, Notasulga, and Shorter | Tuskegee (334) 727-0200; Franklin (334) 727-2111; Notasulga (334) 257-3444; Shorter (334) 727-9190 |
| Alabama appellate courts | Appeals from Alabama trial courts | 300 Dexter Ave., Montgomery, AL 36104 | Supreme Court (334) 229-0700; Civil Appeals (334) 229-0733; Criminal Appeals (334) 229-0751 |
Call the listed office before a visit when the court level is uncertain. A District Court citation, small claim, eviction, or misdemeanor should not be sent to Probate Court. A felony trial or domestic-relations case belongs to Circuit Court. Federal and bankruptcy matters are outside both county trial courts.
The Fifth Judicial Circuit roster names Presiding Circuit Judge William Isaac Whorton, Circuit Judge James Luke Farmer, and Circuit Judge Kevin M. Hall. Their listed chambers are in Lafayette and Dadeville because the circuit serves four counties. Those offices are part of Circuit Court administration, not additional Macon County District Courts.
Macon District Versus Other Courts
Alabama does not use a separate Macon County Court or Justice of the Peace court in the researched local structure. The useful comparison is District Court, Circuit Court, and Municipal Court. Probate Court remains a fourth, separate county venue for probate and administrative work.
| District Court | Circuit Court | Municipal Court | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Civil Work | $6,000.01-$20,000; small claims up to $6,000; evictions | Over $20,000 and other general-jurisdiction matters | No local civil limit documented in the research |
| Criminal Work | Misdemeanors, traffic, preliminary felony matters | Felony trials and lower-court appeals | Municipal ordinances and city misdemeanors |
| Domestic Relations | Not the Macon divorce filing division | Divorce and domestic relations | Not documented as a divorce venue |
| Record Keeper | Circuit Clerk David Love | Circuit Clerk David Love | Relevant municipal court |
| Appeal Route | To Circuit Court where allowed | To the appropriate Alabama appellate court | Depends on the municipal matter and Alabama procedure |
Small claims are informal and have no jury at the District Court level. Either party may appeal to Circuit Court. The defendant has 14 calendar days after service to answer, and an appeal must generally be filed within 14 calendar days after judgment under the local instructions.
Macon District Court Case Flow
District Court case flow depends on the case type. A civil claim begins with a statement of claim or complaint, service, and an answer. The court may then set a hearing, enter judgment, and record collection steps. A criminal case may begin with an incident report and warrant, followed by an early appearance, plea, pretrial action, and trial or transfer to Circuit Court when felony prosecution advances.
District criminal flow: Incident or Arrest › Magistrate / Initial Proceeding › Charge and Plea › Pretrial › District Trial or Felony Transfer › Disposition › Appeal
District civil flow: Claim Filed › Service › Answer › Setting › Hearing › Judgment › Collection or Appeal
Sheriff André Brunson's department handles county incident reports and may accompany a complainant in the warrant process. The magistrate independently determines probable cause. Misdemeanors inside Tuskegee city limits route through Tuskegee Municipal Court unless a felony is involved in the same incident or an extraordinary circumstance applies.
Note: An arrest warrant is not a public record before service, even when later District Court events may become publicly accessible.
Macon District Court Case Types
Macon County District Civil covers claims from $6,000.01 through $20,000. A one-defendant filing costs $279. Additional defendants cost $15 each. Unlawful detainer starts at $221.50, plus $10 for each extra defendant. District records may contain the complaint, service returns, answer, judgment, garnishment, execution, subpoenas, and default or summary-judgment motions.
Macon County Small Claims has a $6,000 ceiling. Filing fees are $81 through $1,500, $155 from $1,500.01 through $3,000, and $244 from $3,000.01 through $6,000. If an answer is filed, the local page says a trial is set four to six weeks after receipt. The process can be handled by mail until a hearing requires attendance.
Traffic cases include state and county citations. The date on the ticket is not automatically a trial date. A person seeking a trial must appear and request one. Eligible tickets may be resolved online, by mail, or through the Traffic Service Center. A mail payment needs the signed guilty plea and a money order or cashier's check sent to District Court Clerk, P.O. Box 830723, Tuskegee, AL 36083. Personal checks are not accepted.
- District civil: claims, service, answers, judgments, and enforcement.
- Small claims: informal claims up to $6,000, with no District Court jury.
- Eviction: unlawful detainer pleadings, service, hearing, judgment, and possession process.
- Traffic: citation, plea, setting, payment, driving-school eligibility, and disposition.
- Criminal: misdemeanors, warrants, and preliminary felony proceedings.
Macon County has a rare traffic-school limit. Driving school is not available for the listed high-speed thresholds or for a citation received on Interstate 85 in Macon County. Contact David Love at (334) 724-2614 before paying when requesting defensive driving, since payment may foreclose that request.
Access Macon District Court Records
Most Macon County District Court information may be searched through Just One Look. The official state trial-court service offers name and case-number searches for $9.99, with one case detail included. Reports may show status, settings, parties, court action, rulings, financial history, and a case action summary. Document images cost $5 for the first 20 pages and $0.50 for each later page.
Direct access remains important. Visit Circuit Clerk David Love at the Macon County Courthouse court office, 101 Rosa Parks Plaza, Tuskegee, from 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., or call (334) 724-2614. The Clerk can locate records, explain filing channels, and issue notices, but cannot give legal advice. Alacourt.com also offers subscription-based read-only access, while Just One Look is case by case.
Traffic users may use the Alabama Traffic Service Center, call 1-866-954-9399, use Online Traffic Resolution, pay through Alapay, call the automated payment line at 1-877-252-7294, or follow the researched mail route. Tickets may take up to ten business days to appear. Failure to resolve a citation or appear can lead to a warrant, ALEA license suspension, added fines, and bond forfeiture.
The Alabama Department of Revenue is tied to county probate administration, not Macon County District Court case access. The official Alabama Department of Revenue source is shown below because its directory supports the separate Probate Office channel.
Tax, tag, license, and Probate Office directory functions should not be confused with a District Court docket search.
Separate Macon Court Channels
Macon County Probate Court is separate from District Court. Judge James Cooper's office handles estates, wills, guardianships, conservatorships, adoptions, mental-health commitments, name changes, land records, marriage records, elections, tags, and licenses. Its records office is in Suite 101 at the Macon County Courthouse. Probate and land files online date back to June 3, 1997; earlier records require office access.
The Macon County Probate Court AL mobile app may assist with probate, vital, land, election, and administrative services. It does not search District Court civil, small claims, traffic, eviction, misdemeanor, or warrant records. The official Apple App Store listing appears below.
The Apple listing identifies a Probate Court tool, so District Court users should stay with the Circuit Clerk and Alabama trial-court systems.
The official Google Play listing for the Macon County Probate Court app provides the other mobile channel.
Neither store listing documents District Court case search, warrant lookup, or a Sheriff André Brunson service.
Federal and bankruptcy records are also separate. Federal cases from Macon County belong to the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Alabama. Bankruptcy cases belong to the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for that district. They do not appear in Macon County District Court or Just One Look.
The official U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Middle District of Alabama is shown below.
This federal court handles bankruptcy, not Alabama District Court civil or criminal cases at the Macon County Courthouse.
The PACER bankruptcy court lookup provides the federal electronic record route.
PACER should be used only for the federal bankruptcy docket. Macon District Court records remain with Circuit Clerk David Love and Alabama's state systems.
The same separation applies to municipal and appellate matters. Tuskegee Municipal Court handles city-limit misdemeanors under the local warrant rules. Alabama appellate courts review qualifying state appeals. A District Court small-claims appeal goes first to Circuit Court. Identifying the correct court keeps each search in the record system that actually owns the case.