Municipal Court

Municipal Court upholds municipal codes and ordinances by processing and rendering decisions on the cases filed by the city’s prosecuting attorney. Court support staff, under the direction of the Finance Department, also collect the fines levied by the court, prepare warrants and failure-to-appear notices, schedule bond forfeiture hearings and transmit monthly reports to the city clerk, county circuit court and State Department of Revenue.

If You Have Been Ticketed

• You need to come to court on the date shown on your ticket.
• You may plead not guilty by coming to court and a trial date will be set.
• You may plead guilty by mail or by coming to the St. Joseph Municipal Court to pay your fine.
• If you plead guilty, you will be given a new date to pay if you can’t pay the day of court.
• If you want to plead guilty, but you don’t have the funds to pay your ticket, you still must come to court. You will not be arrested for not having money to pay.
• If you are indigent, you may be required to complete documentation to be determined by the court as evidence of your financial status and as an aid to the court in assessing fines, costs and setting of a payment plan.
• If you do not come to court when summoned to do so, you are subject to a warrant being issued for your arrest.

Payment Information

As of January 2022, all court online payments must be made through MO Case.net. If you have any questions or concerns, please call the municipal court offices at 271-4686.