How Texas handles a case

Who decides release first

A magistrate sets bail first, at the hearing that must follow arrest. Magistrates include judges of every level, justices of the peace, and, in some counties, appointed criminal law magistrates. In misdemeanors, a sheriff, officer, or licensed jailer may take bail, and many counties use bond schedules signed by judges.

Tex. Code Crim. Proc. arts. 17.027, 17.20 to 17.22Tex. Code Crim. Proc. art. 15.17

Time to see a judge

A person arrested must be taken before a magistrate without unnecessary delay and no later than 48 hours after arrest. The magistrate gives the warnings, sets bail, and can appoint a lawyer. The hearing may be held by video.

Tex. Code Crim. Proc. art. 15.17(a)

Money bail

Texas allows money bail. Since voters approved Proposition 3 in November 2025, a judge must deny bail for murder, aggravated assault, aggravated robbery, aggravated sexual assault, and several other felonies when the state proves flight risk or danger at a hearing, and must explain in writing any grant of bail on those charges.

Tex. Const. art. I, secs. 11 to 11dTex. Code Crim. Proc. art. 17.15

Pretrial risk assessment

Every magistrate must consider a public safety report before setting bail. The state court office runs the report system; it lists the charge, criminal history, past failures to appear, and protective orders, and gives no risk score. Some counties also run their own pretrial risk assessment.

Tex. Code Crim. Proc. arts. 17.021, 17.15

Courts

District courts try felonies. Each county has a constitutional county court, and larger counties add county courts at law; these hear Class A and B misdemeanors. Justice courts and city municipal courts hear Class C misdemeanors, which carry only a fine.

Texas Office of Court Administration, The Texas Judicial System (2025)

Judges and magistrates

Voters choose district judges in partisan elections for four-year terms, and the governor fills vacancies until the next election. County judges, county court at law judges, and justices of the peace also win partisan elections for four-year terms. Justices of the peace and most constitutional county judges need not be lawyers; most municipal judges are appointed by the city council.

Texas Office of Court Administration, The Texas Judicial System (2025), "Selection and terms"

Prosecutors

Local elected prosecutors handle criminal cases. Depending on the county, the office is a district attorney, a criminal district attorney, or a county attorney; some district attorneys serve several counties, and in some counties the county attorney handles misdemeanors while a district attorney handles felonies. The attorney general prosecutes only when a local prosecutor asks or agrees.

Texas District and County Attorneys Association, Texas Prosecution 101 (2018)

Public defense

Each county decides how to provide lawyers for people who can't pay, under a plan its judges file with the Texas Indigent Defense Commission. Most counties appoint private lawyers case by case from a rotating list; some have public defender offices, managed assigned counsel programs, or contracts. The state has no statewide public defender for trial cases.

Texas Indigent Defense Commission, Public Defender PrimerLegislative Budget Board, Indigent Defense issue brief

Jails

The sheriff of each county keeps the county jail. Some counties contract with private firms or other counties to hold people, but the sheriff stays in charge. The Texas Commission on Jail Standards sets the rules jails must follow.

Tex. Local Gov't Code sec. 351.041

Read from the statutes and court rules cited, 2026-09-30. Prop 3 (2025) changed when bail must be denied, not whether money bail exists. Appointed criminal law magistrates exist only in counties with an enabling section in Gov't Code ch. 54, such as Harris, Dallas, Bexar, and Travis. Counts of public defender offices change often; check TIDC before quoting a number.