Criminal Court Cases in Randolph County
Randolph County divides criminal work among courts. Randolph Circuit Court is the felony trial court and also handles certain misdemeanors, appeals, and expungement petitions. Circuit Clerk Phil Riggleman keeps those files at 2 Randolph Avenue in Elkins and answers at 304-636-2765. Judges Jaymie Godwin Wilfong and David H. Wilmoth serve the Twenty-Fourth Judicial Circuit. Judge Wilfong's division is in the James F. Cain Courthouse Annex, while Judge Wilmoth uses the clerk address.
Randolph Magistrate Court, at 11 Randolph Avenue, handles complaints, initial appearances, bail, felony preliminary proceedings, warrants tied to its cases, and misdemeanors within magistrate jurisdiction. Its clerk can be reached at 304-636-5885. Municipal courts keep separate dockets for city ordinance, parking, and traffic matters. They do not try Randolph County felonies. The County Clerk's land and vital-record counter is not the criminal-file custodian.
The official Randolph court contact page shows how the judiciary separates the Circuit and Magistrate offices.
That split is crucial when a search returns a preliminary matter but not the later Circuit case, or the reverse.
Two Randolph County Case Numbers
A felony often starts with a Magistrate complaint. After an initial appearance and a preliminary hearing or waiver, the prosecutor may present the matter to a grand jury. If an indictment follows, Circuit Court opens a new case with its own number. The earlier Magistrate number does not become the Circuit number. Searchers who stop after finding one docket can miss the charge as finally filed, the plea, or the judgment.
Randolph County's grand jury meets three times each year, on the last Monday of February, June, and October. That schedule helps explain why a Magistrate entry may precede a Circuit indictment by weeks or months. It does not predict whether an indictment will issue. Ask either clerk for a transferred or companion number when the online records do not make the link clear.
Note: A complaint and an indictment are accusations; the disposition records how the court ultimately resolved the charge.
Randolph County Case Record Searches
Use Magistrate Record Search for Randolph County Magistrate matters and WVPASS for Circuit Court records. MCRSearch is free, works on computers and mobile devices, returns no more than 30 results, and does not provide document images. WVPASS supports public Circuit searching and registered document downloads for a nominal fee. Randolph joined CourtPLUS electronic filing in 2022, but older or omitted material can still remain only with the Circuit Clerk.
- Begin in MCRSearch with an exact name or case number, then narrow to Randolph County when that choice appears.
- Save the court and case number from a likely result. Compare filed dates and status cues rather than relying on name alone.
- Run a separate WVPASS party or case search for a Circuit filing, using Randolph County, case type, status, or date controls when available.
- Read docket events in order. Look for the charging paper, plea, disposition, judgment, and sentencing order.
- Call or visit the correct clerk for a public document that is absent online, an archived file, or a certified copy.
| Search control | System | Required | Use |
|---|---|---|---|
| First or last name | MCRSearch | At least one criterion | Public guidance accepts either name field |
| Case number | Both | Alternative | Best way to avoid a common-name mismatch |
| County | Both | Unspecified | Select Randolph when offered |
| Party or business name | WVPASS | Search-path dependent | Supports Circuit party searching |
| Case type, dates, status | WVPASS | Optional | Narrows Circuit results |
| Document cart or download | WVPASS | Account required | Eligible public documents carry a nominal fee |
Randolph Case Search Stops at Thirty
A broad surname may reach MCRSearch's 30-result cap before the desired Randolph County record appears. The result list is an index, not a copy of the case file. Try the full spelling, add the first name, or use the exact case number. If those steps fail, give the Magistrate Clerk the name, likely filing period, and type of matter. The clerk can identify a public file and explain current copy costs.
The official Magistrate search screen shows the limited public search route and its controls.
The image also helps distinguish an index result from the complaint, order, or certified disposition obtained through the clerk.
What a Criminal Case File Contains
A Randolph County case file follows one prosecution. It is not the same as a sheriff's incident report, a Tygart Valley booking profile, or a fingerprint-linked CIB history. The docket groups filed papers and court events under a case number. Public entries may identify attorneys, the assigned judge, hearing dates, and whether the matter is open, closed, or disposed.
| Case number and court | The unique identifier, Randolph County court level, filing date, judge, and case category. |
|---|---|
| Charging document | A complaint, indictment, or other authorized filing that states the alleged offense and count. |
| Docket entries | Chronological filings such as counsel entries, motions, notices, hearing records, pleas, and orders. |
| Disposition | The outcome of a charge, such as conviction, acquittal, dismissal, or nolle prosequi. |
| Judgment and sentence | Any incarceration, probation, fines, costs, restitution, or other terms recorded by the court. |
| Public documents | Eligible PDFs in WVPASS or copies from the clerk; sealed and protected filings remain unavailable. |
Charges can change between booking, complaint, indictment, and disposition. For that reason, the judgment or final order is usually the most useful proof of outcome. A broader Randolph County arrest search answers a different question about custody and the arresting agency.
Randolph Court Copy or PDF
A WVPASS download can be convenient for reading a public Circuit filing. It is not always a certified court copy. When a certified disposition is needed for personal record correction, expungement work, or another formal purpose, contact the Randolph Circuit Clerk. For a Magistrate document found through MCRSearch, contact the Magistrate Clerk because no document image appears in that system.
Randolph Circuit Clerk
2 Randolph Avenue
Elkins, WV 26241
304-636-2765
Fax: 304-637-3700
Randolph Magistrate Clerk
11 Randolph Avenue
Elkins, WV 26241
304-636-5885
Fax: 304-636-2510
Published official sources do not give a complete Randolph County fee schedule or firm turnaround. Call before travel to ask about the record's availability, copy or certification cost, accepted payment, office hours, and advance retrieval for archived volumes.
Criminal Case Stages in Randolph County
The case path depends on the charge and court. After an incident or arrest, a complaint may lead to a prompt initial appearance and bail decision in Magistrate Court. A felony can proceed through a preliminary hearing or waiver and then grand-jury review. An indictment opens the Circuit phase. Counsel then addresses discovery and motions before a plea or trial. The court records a disposition and, after a conviction, a sentence. Appeal or post-judgment filings may follow.
Case flow: Charges Filed › Arraignment › Pretrial › Plea or Trial › Disposition › Sentencing
- Arraignment
- The hearing where the charge is formally addressed and a plea is taken.
- Disposition
- The status or result that resolves a charge or case.
- Nolle prosequi
- The prosecutor's formal choice not to continue a charge at that time.
- Concurrent sentence
- Two or more sentences served at the same time.
Randolph Court Filings Are Not Convictions
Official 2025 judiciary totals report 91 Randolph Circuit felony filings, two magistrate appeals, nine Circuit misdemeanors, and 84 other criminal cases. Those figures measure court workload. They are not a crime count, arrest count, or conviction count. One filing may contain more than one charge, and an accusation can end through dismissal, acquittal, plea, or conviction.
This distinction also applies to individual records. A filed complaint shows that an allegation reached court. An indictment shows a grand jury found probable cause for a formal accusation. Neither label alone proves guilt. Read through the disposition and judgment, then verify the record with the Randolph County clerk when the status is unclear.
Access Rules for Case Records
West Virginia Trial Court Rule 10.04 supports public inspection of court records subject to law, sealing, and reasonable reproduction costs. Online access is narrower than the full public file. Social Security numbers, operator-license numbers, account details, victim and informant data, juror contact information, street addresses, SID numbers, sealed items, and sensitive unserved-warrant information may be blocked or redacted.
The West Virginia judiciary's public information area explains the official court-access setting.
Its statewide guidance does not replace a call to the Randolph County clerk about a specific archived, sealed, or omitted file.
Juvenile and abuse or neglect proceedings are confidential. Expunged material is removed from ordinary public systems as the governing order requires. A missing online result can also reflect an older paper file, a transfer between courts, a search limit, or an alternate case number. It does not by itself prove that no case exists.
When a Randolph Case Is Missing
First confirm the court level. Search MCRSearch for the initial complaint and WVPASS for a later Circuit filing. Next, compare the exact name, date range, county, case type, and any known number. If the matter began in a city court, contact that municipal counter. If it is a federal case in the Northern District of West Virginia, use PACER instead of a state portal.
Then call the correct Randolph County clerk. Provide enough facts to locate the record, but do not send sensitive identifiers unless the office asks through a secure method. Ask about transferred numbers, archived volumes, public terminal access, certified copies, and whether a seal or confidentiality rule limits disclosure. A Freedom of Information Act request can reach administrative records, but it is not a substitute for normal clerk access to a judicial case file.
Note: Similar names require comparison by court, case number, dates, and docket events before drawing any conclusion about identity.