County Ordinance Violations and Certain Misdemeanor Jurisdiction
Magistrate Court conducts trials for county ordinance violations and certain misdemeanors. Those misdemeanors include prosecutions for certain crimes that occur outside the city limits of Dahlonega, including: possession of less than one ounce of marijuana, theft by shoplifting, refund fraud, underage possession of alcohol and criminal trespass. Finally, the Court has jurisdiction over prosecutions for bad checks. A defendant will receive notice on either a citation or by notice through mail delivery. The person will be given an opportunity to speak to an attorney and decide whether to request a trial or plead guilty or nolo contendere to the charge. For county ordinance violations, the person cited will be given the opportunity to pay a fine prior to court. This may be done with cash or a debit or credit card in our office. A 4.5% charge is assessed for debit and credit card payments, which goes to the company providing this service to the Court. A person paying prior to the court date will also have some paperwork to complete. The fine amount is a pre-set standard amount, but if a person wishes to contest the charge or be heard as to the amount, then they must appear in person to speak with the judge while the County’s designated prosecutor is also present.
If you have any questions on this procedure then please call our criminal clerk at (706) 864-7760.