Wetzel Preliminary Hearing Schedule
The MCRSearch CASE EVENT SCHEDULE is not the dated register; it is a separate view. Each line can list the preliminary hearing type, its date and time, the room, the location, the judge, and why the event closed. Rooms are sometimes left blank, so weigh the entry against the newest notice. Then confirm details with the Magistrate Clerk.
Codes carry meaning here. A waiver shows as MMWPH, and a later MGTCC marks the transfer to Circuit Court. Neither code is a ruling on guilt. They simply explain why later Wetzel County criminal docket settings turn up in WVPASS instead.
How to Search Criminal Dockets
Wetzel County criminal docket searches run on two official systems. For a misdemeanor, traffic charge, felony complaint, initial appearance, bond, or preliminary hearing, begin with Magistrate Case Record Search. It is known as MCRSearch. Once a felony has moved to Wetzel County Circuit Court, switch to the West Virginia Public Access Search System. The system goes by WVPASS. The judiciary's Court Record Access hub ties both systems together.
A case number is the cleanest way to match. MCRSearch also takes a first and last name once you clear its verification step. Results cap at 30 and give case information, not document images. WVPASS browsing is free after registration. It covers public circuit cases from July 1, 1999 forward. For a complaint, order, judgment, or certified copy, go to the right clerk.
- Identify the court from a notice, bond paper, or prior docket entry.
- Search MCRSearch by exact case number, or use a name if the number is unknown.
- Check case location, filing date, charge, and event schedule before selecting a result.
- If the register says the case transferred, repeat the search in WVPASS.
- Call or write the record-holding clerk for documents, certification, or a setting check.
Prefer a person? Call. Magistrate Clerk Cindy D. Adams takes requests at 304-455-5171. Circuit Clerk Lori Wetzel McCoy can be reached at 304-455-8234. You can also ask at the counter or by mail. Public terminals sit in the magistrate clerk offices, per MCRSearch help. Any of these routes works when a portal returns nothing or hides a document.
Wetzel Criminal Search Fields
The two Wetzel County criminal docket tools offer different controls. MCRSearch lays out a short, clear field set. WVPASS supports name and case-number routes, but its filters change live. Do not count on searching by attorney, date, or charge. Rely only on filters in your current session.
| Channel | Documented inputs | Result |
|---|---|---|
| MCRSearch | CAPTCHA, first name, last name, case number | Up to 30 magistrate case records; no document images |
| WVPASS | Party name, case number, other live filters | Free circuit detail; public document pages may be bought |
| Clerk | Case number, name, charge or date, document title | Authoritative status, copies, and certification |
A Wetzel magistrate number may look like 23-M52F-00049. On the circuit side, a felony example reads CC-52-2022-F-2. Type the number exactly as printed. No public key decodes its parts.
What a Criminal Docket Shows
A Wetzel County criminal court docket splits into blocks. These include a case summary, charges, bond, an event schedule, parties, and dated entries. The summary can name the court, case type, filing date, agency, and related cases. Charges add the count. You also get the law cited, the alleged offense date, the plea, the disposition date, and the magistrate. The schedule carries the hearing type, date and time, room, location, judge, and closure reason.
| Case Number | The court identifier used for the most exact search. |
|---|---|
| Charge | Count, statute, description, alleged date, plea, and disposition. |
| Bond | Type, amount set, reductions, posted total, status, receipt, and dates. |
| Case Event | Hearing type, date, time, room, location, judge, and closure reason. |
| Docket Entry | Record number, filing date, code, description, and filer. |
| Judgment | The order recording the result; a status label alone may not state it. |
The public screens may show names and a birthdate field. Treat a result as case information only, since the filed order is the stronger proof of a ruling. Any entry that touches a deadline or appearance deserves a check with the clerk.
Wetzel Bond Codes Need Context
MBOND stands for Bond/Bail Set. That is all it says. It does not prove bond was posted, that release happened, or that the case ended. Read the set amount next to the posted amount, the status, the receipt, and the dates, then follow the entries after it.
- MFFCF
- Felony Complaint, often the start of a magistrate felony record.
- MBOND
- Bond/Bail Set, a release condition rather than a disposition.
- MBTCC
- Bond Transferred to Circuit Court during the handoff.
- MGTCC
- Transfer to Circuit Court, which signals a second search in WVPASS.
- MGHCC
- Hearing/Event Closed, not necessarily a closed criminal case.
Read the code with its description, never alone. A bond transfer and a case transfer can land as separate Wetzel County criminal docket entries. Together they trace a move between courts, not a conviction or a dismissal.
Stages on a Criminal Docket
A felony usually begins in Wetzel County Magistrate Court with a complaint, a warrant or summons, an initial appearance, counsel entries, bond, and a preliminary-hearing setting. A service entry means process was completed. Early steps get documented in a rights sheet and an appointed-counsel order. The charge, though, is still only an allegation here.
Docket flow: Filing › Arraignment › Pretrial › Plea or Trial › Disposition › Sentencing
In the magistrate portion of a felony, expect a waiver of preliminary hearing plus transfer entries. The circuit docket then carries indictment or information. Arraignment follows. Motions, orders, plea or trial, verdict, sentence, and appeals come after. A waived preliminary hearing is not a guilty finding. Court Disposition Reporting, likewise, is administrative and does not state the outcome. Read the judgment, or ask the clerk.
Wetzel Felonies Need Two Searches
A transferred felony can leave two linked public records behind. The early Wetzel County criminal docket in Magistrate Court sits in MCRSearch. The later Circuit Court case sits in WVPASS. The magistrate register may look like it stopped. But that is only because its job ended when jurisdiction moved.
| Stage | Custodian | Route |
|---|---|---|
| Complaint through preliminary phase | Magistrate Clerk | MCRSearch; 304-455-5171; Shiben counter |
| Indictment through circuit judgment | Circuit Clerk | WVPASS; 304-455-8234; courthouse or mail |
| Felony document questions | Circuit felony deputy | 304-455-8219 |
Jot down both numbers and the transfer date. The Magistrate Clerk holds the complaint, warrant, bond paper, hearing order, or magistrate judgment. The Circuit Clerk's felony deputy holds the indictment, plea, sentencing order, or circuit judgment. A WVPASS download is not certified. Official copies still come from a clerk.
Which Court Holds Criminal Dockets
Wetzel County Magistrate Court keeps the misdemeanor dockets. It also handles the first phase of most felony matters. State-law traffic tickets start there too. Anything serious moves up. Wetzel County Circuit Court is the felony court of record. It holds general criminal jurisdiction over the county. Where one operates, a municipal court takes city-ordinance violations rather than the county's state-law prosecution.
Custody follows the court. The Magistrate Clerk is in the Shiben Building at 257 Main Street, third floor, New Martinsville. The Circuit Clerk is at 200 Main Street, New Martinsville, and takes mail at P.O. Box 263. The two offices are not far apart. Older county pages show conflicting Shiben street numbers. So lean on the judiciary directory and call ahead to confirm the entrance and floor.
Wetzel County also joins Marshall and Tyler Counties in the Second Circuit Treatment Court. It was established in 2021. Participation usually appears under the underlying case instead of creating a separate public docket. The Circuit Clerk can explain how a treatment event gets labeled.
Wetzel Event Closure Is Not Disposition
A common mistake is reading MGHCC, Hearing/Event Closed, as the end of a Wetzel County criminal case. That label sits on one event row. It may mean the hearing was held, waived, reset, or simply closed out in the scheduling system. The charge can still be pending. It can also move to another court.
Look for the outcome in the plea and disposition fields, then in the formal judgment. An Order-Criminal Judgment may show as MMOJO. Conviction, dismissal, acquittal, plea, or transfer are the possibilities. MMCDR alone picks none of them. When the text is unclear, ask for the signed order instead of guessing from a short status.
Public Access and Sealed Criminal Dockets
West Virginia law presumes public inspection. Even so, a Wetzel County criminal docket can be limited by statute, court rule, or order. WVPASS hides sealed filings and juvenile cases. MCRSearch gives case information but no online document images. Personal identifiers may be masked, and older circuit material or paper files can still need a clerk search even when public.
Key access rules:
W. Va. Code §51-4-2 makes court records open to inspection and copying unless another law limits access.
Trial Court Rule 15A.26 provides access to the electronic docket and nonconfidential, nonsealed circuit documents.
W. Va. Code §53-8-17 defines sealing to include removal of proceeding information from public court websites.
When a Wetzel County criminal docket will not come up, start small. Spelling comes first. Then check the exact case number and both court levels. Next, ask one more question. Was the record ever digitized at all? Does it fall outside the portal date range, or is it secured, sealed, or juvenile? A specific written request can go out under West Virginia's Freedom of Information Act. Do not press staff to reveal restricted contents by phone.
Note: The originating clerk remains the final source. It stands behind a current hearing date, a complete file, and a certified Wetzel County criminal record.