How to Search St. Landry Parish Court Records
St. Landry Parish court records begin with the Clerk of Court because the Clerk's Court Division files civil suits and keeps records of criminal proceedings. The main online court-record path is the St. Landry ClerkConnect registration page, which names civil, criminal, traffic, family, and probate records. ClerkConnect is subscription based for search and printing, so in-person, phone, mail, and certified-copy channels still matter.
The first choice is record type. District-court civil, felony criminal, family, divorce, traffic, and probate files usually start with the Clerk of Court. City-court traffic, ordinance, and bench-warrant questions may require Opelousas or Eunice City Court contacts. Jail custody records use LAVNS or the jail phone. Prosecution records use the District Attorney. State driver histories use Louisiana OMV, not the court.
- Identify whether the record is a district-court file, city-court file, jail record, DA record, or state agency record.
- Use the ClerkConnect registration page for subscribed access to St. Landry civil, criminal, traffic, family, and probate records.
- Use eClerksLA/eVaultLA for land records, marriage-license searches, and civil information where that portal is the better fit.
- Call the Clerk at 337-942-5606 when a record is older, certified, restricted, not online, or needs a file-room check.
- Use the city courts, sheriff, jail, DA, or OMV channel when the record came from that agency rather than the Clerk.
The St. Landry Parish Clerk of Court homepage shows the local records navigation and office identity.
That page is the local starting point before moving into ClerkConnect, eClerksLA, marriage, archives, or court-division contact channels.
The St. Landry Parish Judicial System
Louisiana uses district courts as the primary trial courts of general jurisdiction. St. Landry Parish is served by the 27th Judicial District Court, a one-parish district court with four divisions. The Louisiana Judiciary source confirms that the 27th Judicial District covers St. Landry Parish, has four judges, and hears civil and criminal cases in Opelousas.
Lower local matters may start in city courts, justice of the peace courts, or mayor's courts. Appeals from district court move to the Louisiana courts of appeal and then to the Louisiana Supreme Court when further review is available. That structure explains why St. Landry Parish court records can be split by court level, division, custodian, and case type.
Case flow: City Court or Justice of the Peace Court › District Court › Court of Appeal › Louisiana Supreme Court
| Court | Jurisdiction | Case Types |
|---|---|---|
| 27th Judicial District Court | General trial jurisdiction for St. Landry Parish | Civil, criminal, family, traffic, probate, protective-order, and related district-court matters |
| Opelousas and Eunice City Courts | Local city or ward matters | City traffic, ordinance, bench-warrant, and lower-level matters tied to those courts |
| Justice of the Peace and Mayor's Courts | Limited local jurisdiction where applicable | Ward-level civil, local, or municipal matters under Louisiana court structure |
The Clerk's Courts Division overview confirms the local file-room role for civil suits and criminal proceedings.
That distinction matters because the general clerk office and the Court Division are not the same courthouse counter.
St. Landry Parish Courthouses
The primary courthouse address for St. Landry Parish court users is 118 South Court Street in Opelousas. The Clerk's general office is listed as Suite 207, while the Court Division is in Suite 121 on the first floor. Marriage licenses are listed as Suite 206, and archives are in Room 11 in the basement. These room differences are practical, since civil filings, criminal records, marriage services, and historical archives do not all use one counter.
St. Landry Parish Clerk of Court
118 South Court Street, Suite 207
Opelousas, LA 70570
337-942-5606
Clerk contact page
27th Judicial District Court
118 South Court Street
Opelousas, LA 70570
337-943-7800
District Court contact
St. Landry Parish Sheriff's Office
1592 East Prudhomme Street
Opelousas, LA 70570
337-948-6516
Sheriff homepage
The Clerk contact page gives the suite, mailing address, fax numbers, and department extensions used for record requests.
Use the Court Division extension for civil and criminal files, not the marriage or archives extensions unless those record types fit.
Types of Court Records Available in St. Landry Parish
St. Landry Parish court records include civil suits, criminal proceedings, family and divorce files, traffic matters, probate or succession filings, protective-order matters, and city-court records. The ClerkConnect subscription page names civil, criminal, traffic, family, and probate records. The Clerk Archives page adds long historical runs for civil suits, marriage licenses, probates, conveyances, sheriff deeds, and other record series.
Some records look like court records but belong elsewhere. Jail custody records are sheriff and LAVNS records. Traffic fines may be paid through the sheriff's Civil, Tax, and Traffic Annex. Driver-history records are Louisiana OMV files. DA pretrial or defensive-driving records are prosecution program records, not the court's full case file.
- Criminal records - charging documents, pleas, minute entries, bonds, motions, disposition, and sentence where public.
- Civil records - petitions, service, answers, motions, judgments, garnishments, and certified-copy requests.
- Family and divorce records - divorce petitions, custody, support, hearing-officer orders, and judgments, with restrictions where law applies.
- Probate records - successions, wills, inventories, letters, judgments of possession, tutorship, and interdiction files.
- Traffic records - court citation files, traffic dispositions, fine/court-fee payment paths, and driver-record distinctions.
What St. Landry Parish Court Records Show
The exact ClerkConnect result fields were not visible without subscription, so the safest description is a local district-court file inventory rather than a claim about a public sample screen. St. Landry district-court records commonly need the party names, case number if known, filing date, case type, division, pleadings, motions, minute entries, orders, judgments, and certified-copy status. Criminal files may also show arraignment, plea, bond, disposition, sentence, and probation terms where public.
| Field | What It Shows |
|---|---|
| Case Number | Identifier used by the Clerk or court to locate the file. |
| Division | 27th JDC Division A, B, C, or D when the local rules assign the case to a district judge. |
| Parties | Plaintiff and defendant in civil cases, petitioner and respondent in family/probate matters, or state and defendant in criminal cases. |
| Charges / Cause | The criminal charge, civil claim, succession, divorce, protective order, or other case type. |
| Disposition | The outcome of a charge, claim, motion, or case, such as judgment, dismissal, plea, verdict, or sentence. |
| Certified Copy Status | Whether the user needs an official copy from the Clerk rather than an online printout. |
Public Access Laws for St. Landry Parish Court Records
Louisiana public-record access starts with the custodian. For court filings, that is usually the St. Landry Parish Clerk of Court. For law-enforcement records, it may be the Sheriff. For prosecution records, it may be the DA. For driving records, it is Louisiana OMV. Public access does not make every record free, online, or unredacted; the ClerkConnect page publishes subscription tiers and a per-page print fee.
Key Statutes:
La. R.S. 44:31 - adult requesters may inspect, copy, or reproduce public records unless another law restricts access.
La. R.S. 44:32 - the custodian must provide copies or reproduction subject to lawful procedures and fees.
Louisiana Children's Code art. 412 - juvenile records are confidential except traffic violations and authorized disclosures.
The official 27th JDC judges page lists the local divisions and phone numbers that help users match records to the right court division.
Those division contacts are useful when a case setting, hearing, or division-specific record cannot be resolved from an online search alone.
Records That Are Restricted or Confidential
St. Landry Parish court records can be restricted by statute, court order, case type, or redaction rule. Juvenile court records and reports are confidential under Louisiana Children's Code art. 412 except as authorized. Expungement removes eligible arrest or conviction records from public access without destroying them. Adoption, interdiction, mental-health, minor-related, and sensitive family records may be restricted in full or in part.
For a sealed, expunged, or restricted court file, the practical route is the court or Clerk where the matter was filed. A requester should expect to provide the case number, party names, filing date, record type, and the legal basis for access. Law-enforcement and criminal-justice agencies may have access to records that ordinary public users cannot view.
Specialty Courts in St. Landry Parish
No official St. Landry drug court, veterans court, DWI court, or mental-health court page was confirmed in the inspected sources. The verified local alternatives are narrower. The 27th JDC local rules document hearing-officer procedures for protective orders, juvenile traffic matters, custody and visitation, child support, interim and final spousal support, and use or occupancy of the family home.
The District Attorney also provides separate online education paths. The DA online education portal has a Pretrial Intervention login for people with DA enrollment paperwork and a Defensive Driving login for people with a traffic citation bearing a green sticker. Those programs should not be treated as open public search portals.
The 27th Judicial District Court contact page is the official court contact channel for district-court questions.
That court contact is separate from the Clerk's file-room role and the DA's prosecution program role.
St. Landry Parish Sheriff and Jail
The St. Landry Parish Sheriff's Office is led by Sheriff Bobby J. Guidroz and is headquartered at 1592 East Prudhomme Street in Opelousas. The St. Landry Parish Jail is listed at 108 South Market Street, with jail phone 337-948-5804. The official inmate route is the St. Landry LAVNS roster, and DPS&C says LAVNS can search by location, name, and ID or case number and updates every 24 hours.
The sheriff's app is also relevant. The Google Play and Apple listings for the St. Landry Parish Sheriff's app advertise public-safety news, crime reporting, tips, and interactive features. The sheriff contact page says the app can be used to report crimes electronically, while public-record or legal requests should go to pir@slpsheriff.com. Custody details belong with St. Landry Parish inmate records; warrant confirmation belongs with sheriff, court, or city-court channels.
The Clerk's city-court contact page lists Opelousas and Eunice city-court officials for local court questions.
Those city-court channels help prevent district-court searches from missing a local traffic, ordinance, or bench-warrant matter.
Marriage, Divorce, and Probate Division of District Court
The Clerk of Court issues St. Landry Parish marriage licenses and keeps marriage records issued there. Louisiana marriage licenses may be issued by any parish, but the ceremony must occur in Louisiana and the record stays in the issuing parish. Divorce files are civil/family district-court records kept through the Clerk. Probate and succession matters are filed in the district-court system rather than a separate probate courthouse.
The Clerk Archives Department makes St. Landry unusually strong for historical research. The archives list marriage licenses from 1807 to present, civil district suits from 1813 to present, probates from 1807 to present, probate court suits from 1822 to 1846, and conveyances from 1805 to present. Current certified copies still require the correct Clerk request channel.
- Succession
- Louisiana probate process used to transfer a deceased person's property.
- Judgment of possession
- A probate judgment placing heirs or legatees in possession of property.
- Tutorship
- A Louisiana guardianship-type proceeding for a minor.
St. Landry Parish Court Records Fees
St. Landry Parish court-record costs depend on the service. ClerkConnect court records are subscription based. eClerksLA land-record images have a separate subscription schedule. The civil-cost PDF lists deposits and copy costs for court filings. Marriage licenses and certified marriage copies have their own published fees.
| Item | Amount |
|---|---|
| ClerkConnect court-record access | $20 daily, $50 monthly, or $600 yearly plus $1/page printing |
| eClerksLA land index/images | $20 daily, $50 monthly, or $500 yearly plus $1/page printing |
| Copies | $1.00 |
| Suit for divorce | $400 |
| Suit for probate/succession | $400 |
| Marriage license | $32.50 cash only |
How to Interpret St. Landry Parish Court Records
Several terms appear across St. Landry Parish court records. A docket is the chronological list of filings, settings, and court events. A minute entry is the clerk's short official note of what happened in court. A disposition is the outcome of a claim, charge, motion, or case. A charge is not the same as a conviction because a charge may be amended, reduced, dismissed, or resolved by plea or trial.
Division labels matter in the 27th JDC. Local rules say all civil and criminal cases are randomly allotted among Divisions A through D, with exceptions for traffic, non-support, protective-order, and juvenile matters. The rules also require the Sheriff and police departments that book an accused to provide bond-setting information to the judge, including offense seriousness, prior record, and ability to give bail.
Accuracy and Record Limitations
Online records may lag behind courthouse activity, agency updates, or court orders. ClerkConnect was not publicly inspectable for live St. Landry sample records without a subscription, and the LAVNS jail roster could not be fetched during research even though official sources identify it as the jail roster path. A certified record or current hearing status should be confirmed with the originating office.
Note: Confirm court dates, bonds, fees, warrants, and certified-copy needs with the office that controls the record.
History of St. Landry Parish Courts
St. Landry Parish court history is document-rich because the Clerk's Archives Department holds regional historical records, not just modern courthouse files. The archives include present-day St. Landry materials and pre-mid-1800s records tied to several other Louisiana parishes. Listed holdings include Opelousas Post Colonial Documents from 1764 to 1805 on microfilm at the State Archives, conveyances from 1805 to present, marriage licenses from 1807 to present, probates from 1807 to present, and civil district suits from 1813 to present.
The Louisiana Judiciary court map identifies the modern 27th JDC structure for St. Landry Parish.
Modern online searches and historical archive requests often require different Clerk departments even when both involve court records.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where are St. Landry Parish court records kept?
District-court civil, criminal, traffic, family, and probate files are kept through the St. Landry Parish Clerk of Court and the Court Division in the courthouse. City-court matters may be with Opelousas or Eunice City Court. Jail, warrant, sheriff, DA, and driver-history records use separate official channels.
Is ClerkConnect free?
No. The St. Landry ClerkConnect page publishes paid access tiers for civil, criminal, traffic, family, and probate records, plus a per-page print fee. eClerksLA land-record images use a different subscription schedule.
Can juvenile or expunged records be searched online?
Ordinary public access should not be expected for juvenile or expunged records. Louisiana Children's Code art. 412 makes juvenile records confidential except authorized disclosures, and expungement removes records from public access without destroying them.