Search Henry County Court Records

How to Search Henry County Court Records

Henry County does not have a county-run online trial-court case search in the official county sources reviewed. The practical search chain is split between the Kentucky Court of Justice docket search, KYeCourts/CourtNet access where available, and direct contact with the Henry County Office of Circuit Court Clerk. KCOJ says court case records include official case documents such as criminal citations, pleadings, motions, orders, reports, dockets, video recordings, and transcripts. For Henry County Circuit, Family, and District Court cases, requests for copies or file review start with Circuit Court Clerk Jennifer Rankin's office at the Henry County Courthouse.

The official county court page is the local source for Henry County courthouse contacts and court schedules. View the Kentucky Court of Justice Henry County page before making a clerk request.

That source identifies the New Castle courthouse, the Circuit Court Clerk, public phone numbers, court hours, parking, accessibility, and the local court schedule.

1. Identify the court type. Circuit Court handles felonies, divorces, adoptions, title disputes, contested probate, and civil matters over $5,000. District Court handles traffic, misdemeanors, probate of wills, small claims, juvenile matters, mental-health cases, and domestic-violence matters.
2. Use the Kentucky Trial Court Docket when the immediate need is a court date or docket setting.
3. Try the KYeCourts guest login for online case access, keeping in mind that permissions may affect what a guest can see.
4. For copies, certified documents, or in-person file review, contact the Circuit Court Clerk at 30 N. Main St., New Castle, KY 40050.
5. If the file is older or stored off site, ask the clerk for case and file locator numbers before using the State Records Center or Kentucky Department for Libraries and Archives route.

Note: The docket page warns that its results are not an official docket and are subject to change.

Henry County Kentucky Court System

Kentucky uses a unified state court system called the Kentucky Court of Justice. Henry County is in the 12th Judicial Circuit and 12th Judicial District. Circuit Court is the primary trial court of general jurisdiction. District Court remains central for many common local records because it handles traffic, misdemeanors, violations, probate of wills, small claims, felony probable-cause proceedings, juvenile matters, mental-health proceedings, and domestic-violence matters. Family Court is a division of Circuit Court and hears divorce, custody, child support, adoption, domestic violence, dependency, and termination of parental rights matters.

The state judicial branch overview explains the same four-tier structure used for Henry County cases. The Kentucky judicial branch structure page is the source for the statewide court hierarchy.

That statewide hierarchy matters because appeals, criminal charges, divorce records, and probate matters do not all stay in the same court level.

Case flow: District Court > Circuit Court > Kentucky Court of Appeals > Supreme Court of Kentucky.

Henry County Court Record Types

Henry County court records are best sorted by court and subject. Civil Circuit Court records may include complaints, answers, motions, orders, judgments, exhibits accepted into the record, and administrative appeals. District civil and small-claims files may include complaints, summonses, returns of service, hearing entries, default judgments, and satisfactions. Criminal Circuit Court files can include indictments, arraignment entries, bond orders, motions, plea documents, verdicts, sentencing orders, probation terms, restitution, and notices of appeal.

District Court creates many of the records that users first ask for, including misdemeanor, violation, traffic, ordinance, probable-cause, and bench-warrant related docket entries. Probate has two paths: District Court handles probate of wills, while Circuit Court handles contested probate and title disputes. Wills recorded with the County Clerk are a separate record category. Family Court files include divorce, custody, support, paternity, and adoption matters, but some family-related records are restricted.

• Civil court records: claims, judgments, motions, orders, and appeals tied to civil disputes.
• Criminal court records: charges, pleas, dispositions, sentences, and bond-related orders.
• Traffic court records: citations, court dates, pleas, fines, proof filings, and failure-to-appear entries.
• Family records: divorce and custody matters, with adoption and sensitive matters restricted.
• Probate records: probate petitions, fiduciary appointments, inventories, settlements, and will contests.

What Henry County Court Records Show

A Henry County court record may be a short docket entry or a full case file. KCOJ defines court case records as official documentation of a court proceeding or case. The same case may include both public docket data and documents that require a clerk request. Common fields include a case number, court division, filing date, party names, attorneys, assigned judge, claims or charges, docket entries, disposition, and financial information. Some files also include document images, evidence, transcripts, or recordings, but access depends on the record type and the system or office holding it.

The KCOJ court-record request instructions explain why the clerk of the court that heard the case is the starting point for copies and file review.

Those instructions also explain that older case files may be in the clerk's office, at a records facility, or unavailable under retention schedules.

Docket

A list or log of cases and scheduled court events.

Disposition

The outcome of a charge, claim, petition, or case.

Expungement

Removal or deletion of court and agency records so the matter does not appear on official state background checks.

Sealing

Restriction of public access by law or court order.

Restitution

Money ordered to repay a victim for loss.

Henry County Court Records Public Access

Public access depends on the custodian. Henry County Fiscal Court records use the county open-records process, with the Deputy Judge/Executive listed as county records custodian at 19 South Property Road, New Castle, KY 40050. County Clerk recordings use Shanda Archer's office, eCCLIX, public computers, or the County Clerk copy request form. Court case records are different. KCOJ says case-record requests begin with the clerk of the court that heard the case, so Henry County court files start with the Circuit Court Clerk, not the Fiscal Court custodian.

Henry County Restricted Court Records

Not all Henry County court records are open like a civil judgment or adult traffic docket. Juvenile records are confidential under Kentucky law. Mental-health proceedings are handled in District Court, and KCOJ background-check guidance treats mental-health cases as confidential or excluded from criminal-record reports. Domestic-violence-sensitive records, adoption files, termination of parental rights files, sealed cases, expunged matters, Social Security numbers, birth dates, addresses, and financial details may be redacted, withheld, or limited to parties and authorized users.

Expungement also has a defined court process. KCOJ states that an expungement certification is not the same as an expungement order. The person first requests certification from the Administrative Office of the Courts, then files the proper petition with the Circuit Court Clerk in the county where the original charge was filed. For felony expungement under KRS 431.073, KCOJ materials list a $40 certification cost and a $300 total felony expungement fee made up of a $50 nonrefundable filing fee plus $250 if granted.

Henry County Sheriff and Jail Records

Official Henry County sources list Sheriff Keith Perry at 502-845-2909 and Jailer Scott Southworth at 502-645-8371. No official Henry County sheriff website, online county jail roster, detention-center inmate search, or sheriff mobile app was located in the official sources reviewed. Custody checks therefore use a phone and court-file chain: sheriff or jailer for local custody status, the Circuit Court Clerk for bond orders and next court dates, and Kentucky Online Offender Lookup for state-sentenced or Department of Corrections offenders.

Henry County's elected-officials and services information is listed through the county site. The Henry County services directory gives local city and county context around the courthouse and county offices.

Those county directories are useful for separating sheriff, jailer, city, clerk, and county administrative contacts before making a records request.

KCOJ Pretrial Services supplies the official statewide process for many new arrests. A pretrial specialist may interview the person, complete a background check and risk assessment, and review whether release on recognizance is allowed within 24 hours of incarceration. If not, the matter goes to a judge for a release decision. Henry County court materials state that cash is required for bail bonds.

Henry County Marriage Divorce Probate

Marriage licenses in Henry County are handled by the Henry County Clerk, not the Circuit Court Clerk. County Clerk Shanda Archer's office is at 27 South Property Rd, New Castle, KY 40050, with phone 502-845-5705. The Clerk's office issues marriage licenses, records wills and land documents, handles elections and vehicle matters, and provides land-record and marriage-license copy services. Divorce records are court records because divorce and dissolution are Circuit or Family Court matters. The County Clerk copy request form specifically says the office does not handle divorce or child-support court documents and directs those requests to the District/Circuit Clerk.

The County Clerk homepage is the source for local clerk services, hours, and contact details. Use the Henry County Clerk website for marriage-license, recorded-document, and County Clerk copy routes.

That office is separate from the trial-court clerk, which is why marriage-license copies, recorded wills, and divorce case files do not follow one route.

Probate matters also split by record type. District Court handles probate of wills, while Circuit Court handles contested probate and title disputes. The County Clerk records wills and will-related documents, with local recording fees of $47 for a will, $46 for a renunciation of will, and $46 for a disclaimer of will. Probate case files and court dates start with the Circuit Court Clerk's District Court Division.

Henry County Court Records Fees

Fee details vary by custodian. Published sources list County Clerk copy and recording fees, county open-records copy costs, KCOJ expungement certification and felony expungement amounts, and KCOJ background-check payment fees. No official Henry County probate court filing-fee amount or local traffic ticket fee schedule was located in the reviewed official sources, so those amounts should be confirmed with the clerk before payment.

Henry County Courthouse Contacts

The Henry County Courthouse is the central public location for Circuit, Family, and District Court access. KCOJ lists the courthouse at 30 N. Main St., P.O. Box 359, New Castle, KY 40050. Hours are Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., with Saturday and Sunday closed. The Circuit Court public number is 502-845-2868, the additional phone number is 502-845-7551, and the email listed for local court contact is HenryCountyCourts@kycourts.net. Jury Services has a recorded information line at 502-845-4692, and juror questions route to 502-845-2868 extension 4.

Henry County Court History

Official local court-history detail is limited, but KCOJ documents a significant recent courthouse change. Court functions temporarily used 125 E. Broadway in Eminence during extensive renovations to the historic courthouse. The temporary site closed at 4 p.m. on September 17, 2021, and most public court operations were suspended September 20-24, 2021 for the move back. District Court and Family Court used remote proceedings during part of that transition. All court operations resumed at 30 N. Main St. in New Castle on September 27, 2021.

The 2021 return also marked a service change. Henry County residents no longer obtained driver-license services from the Office of Circuit Court Clerk after Kentucky moved licensing to Transportation Cabinet Driver Licensing Regional Offices. That point matters for traffic court users because court traffic records remain with the court, while driver-license services and driver-history records are separate from the courthouse clerk.

Henry County Court Records FAQ

For county open records outside court case files, Henry County provides an official public-records route. The Henry County open-records page lists county records custodians, office hours, copy cost, and request materials.

That county process is useful for Fiscal Court or department records, but court case records still belong with the court clerk that heard the case.