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The Denton County district courts with felony jurisdiction' standing order implementing Senate Bill 9 (signed by Judges Steve Burgess, Brent Hill, Michael Dickens, Karen Alexander, Tiffany Haertling, Derbha Jones and Crystal Levonius; filed with the District Clerk Oct. 8, 2025): prior Chapter 54 part-time magistrate appointments are rescinded and attorney municipal judges of courts of record may serve as magistrates under CCP art. 2A.151(14); for a felony arrest without an indictment, the 'court before which a case is pending' is the Denton County Magistrate Court, which also has jurisdiction over a prior unindicted felony when a second felony arrest follows; under art. 17.027 the Magistrate Court is designated to set bail or conditions for a defendant arrested for a felony committed in Denton County while unindicted felonies are pending, and no other magistrate may set or modify that bail without written district-judge authorization or under approved emergency coverage, with the Magistrate Court reviewing the bond on the prior offense; a judge or magistrate without jurisdiction who sets bail at an art. 15.17 hearing must transmit the probable-cause affidavit, warrant or commitment, bail form, bond conditions, warnings and arrest report to the Magistrate Court by the close of the next business day, by e-filing with the District Clerk or secure e-mail to the designated prosecutor, the District Clerk and magistrate staff; on the District Attorney's request any Denton district judge may review and modify a bail decision made by a magistrate without jurisdiction, acting by the next business day under arts. 17.09 and 17.15, with a summons before any warrant if the defendant is not in custody; Section 3 applies to arrests on or after Sept. 1, 2025.
Texas > Denton County > District Courts with criminal jurisdiction and the Denton County Magistrate Court — felony defendants, prosecutors, defense counsel, magistrates and law enforcement in unindicted felony matters (Section 3 applies to arrests on or after Sept. 1, 2025).
"2.01. In accordance with Texas Government Code § 54.2803, and as provided under Senate Bill 9, for any felony offense alleged to have occurred in Denton County, where the defendant has been arrested but no indictment has been filed in a Denton County District Court, the phrase 'court before which a case is pending' shall be construed to mean the 'Denton County Magistrate Court.' 2.02. If a defendant is arrested for a felony offense alleged to have been committed in Denton County, and subsequently arrested for a second felony offense while the first charge remains unindicted, the Denton County Magistrate Court—or any District Judge—shall be deemed to have jurisdiction over the earlier or prior alleged offense. … 3.01. Designation of Court with Jurisdiction. Pursuant to Article 17.027, Texas Code of Criminal Procedure, as amended by Section 5, Senate Bill 9, 89th Texas Legislature, the Denton County Magistrate Court is hereby designated as the court with jurisdiction to set bail or impose conditions of release for defendant who: a) is arrested in Denton County for an alleged offense punishable as a felony; b) is arrested in Denton County for an alleged offense punishable as a felony committed in Denton County; and, c) has neither the prior nor the subsequent alleged felony offense filed by indictment in a district court of Denton County, Texas. 3.02 Exclusive Bail-Setting Authority. When the circumstances described in Subsection 3.01 apply, no magistrate or court—other than a District Court of Denton County or the Denton County Magistrate Court if designated and assigned by the District Courts—may set or modify bail or conditions of release for the subsequent felony offense unless: a) Expressly authorized in writing by a Judge of District Court of Denton County; or, b) The Denton County Magistrate Court is unavailable and the bail is set in conformity with emergency assignment or coverage procedures approved by the Local Administrative District Judge. 3.02.1 Review of Existing Bail on Prior Offense. Upon presentation of a defendant described in subsection 3.01, the Denton County Magistrate Court shall: a) Consider whether to revoke or modify the terms of the bond for the prior felony offense; b) Reevaluate the previous bail decision in accordance with Article 17.027(a-1) and Article 17.15, Texas Code of Criminal Procedure; and, c) Document any modifications, revocations, or continuation of bail conditions for both the prior and subsequent offenses. 3.04 Notification Procedures. All law enforcement agencies, magistrates, and clerks within Denton County shall ensure prompt transmission of arrest, charge, and bail-related documentation for defendants meeting the criteria in subsection 3.01 to the Denton County Magistrate Court. 3.05 Applicability. This section applies to all qualifying arrests occurring on or after September 1, 2025, in accordance with the effective date provisions of Senate Bill 9. 4.01 Duty to Transfer. In any case in which a person is arrested for any felony alleged to have occurred in Denton County … and the person appears before a judge or magistrate who does not have jurisdiction of the felony offense charged, that judge or magistrate shall, promptly and no later than the close of the next business day following the issuance of bail or bail conditions at an Article 15.17 hearing, transfer and transmit to the Denton County Magistrate Court the following documentation: a) the probable cause affidavit upon which arrest was made; b) a copy of the arrest warrant or order of commitment; c) the Bail Form containing the amount of monetary bail, form of bail, and any conditions of bail; d) any conditions of bond issued by the magistrate; e) Magistrate's warning and completed documentation of the Art. 15.17 hearing; and, relevant portions of the arrest report. 4.02 Method of Transfer. … a) Electronic filing with the Denton County District Clerk via E-File Texas (E-filing); or, b) Submission in PDF format via a secure, dedicated email address provided by Denton County to: 1. The designated prosecutor with the Denton County District Attorney's Office; 2. The Denton County District Clerk, in their capacity as the Clerk of the magistrate Court; and, 3. Magistrate Court Staff. 5.01 Upon request by the District Attorney, filed with the District Clerk, any District Judge of Denton County has jurisdiction to review and modify a bail decision made by a magistrate without jurisdiction, regardless of whether an indictment or information has been filed. 5.02 A District Judge reviewing a bail decision shall act as soon as practicable, but not later than the next business day after the request is filed. The judge shall comply with Article 17.09 and consider the factors in Article 17.15(a), Texas Code of Criminal Procedure. The judge may increase the amount of bail, alter its form, or impose additional conditions of release as necessary to protect the victim or the community. 5.03 If the defendant is not in custody at the time bail is modified, the judge shall order issuance of a summons for the defendant to appear and shall allow a reasonable opportunity to appear before issuing a warrant for arrest."
"2.01. In accordance with Texas Government Code § 54.2803, and as provided under Senate Bill 9, for any felony offense alleged to have occurred in Denton County, where the defendant has been arrested but no indictment has been filed in a Denton County District Court, the phrase 'court before which a case is pending' shall be construed to mean the 'Denton County Magistrate Court.' 2.02. If a defend
Reviewer note: Own-site document (text layer, 4 pp, 8,786 chars) read in full 2026-09-06; the operative sections quoted verbatim (the Section 1 rescission of Chapter 54 magistrates and municipal-judge authorization summarized; that subject is also the separate rescission order and the June 2026 assignment order, held as records/officer evidence); the signature date is OCR-damaged ('SIGNED ON THIS [3?] day of October 2025') so the District Clerk file stamp (Oct. 8, 2025) and the order's own Sept. 1, 2025 applicability date are recorded. Composed as a county-level district-courts rule (court-less; division_family) benchpath-ajr8-denton (own-site lane).
Standing order of the 109th Judicial District Court for every pending or later-filed case in Andrews, Winkler and Crane Counties: any attorney or self-represented litigant who uses any form of artificial intelligence for legal research or drafting in a case must, before using AI-generated information in a court submission or proceeding, sign and submit the court's certification form stating that all language, quotations, sources, citations, arguments and legal analysis created or contributed to by generative AI were verified as accurate by a human through traditional (non-AI) legal sources, and acknowledging responsibility and potential sanctions for their or their co-counsel's failure to comply. Effective immediately; in effect until rescinded or replaced.
Standing order of the 109th Judicial District Court for every pending or later-filed case in Andrews, Winkler and Crane Counties: any attorney or self-represented litigant who uses any form of artificial intelligence for legal research or drafting in a case must, before using AI-generated information in a court submission or proceeding, sign and submit the court's certification form stating that all language, quotations, sources, citations, arguments and legal analysis created or contributed to by generative AI were verified as accurate by a human through traditional (non-AI) legal sources, and acknowledging responsibility and potential sanctions for their or their co-counsel's failure to comply. Effective immediately; in effect until rescinded or replaced.