(1) Jury trials normally will be held in Division II on the Wednesday, Thursday and Friday of the first and third weeks of the month following empaneling, and in Division I on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday of the second and fourth weeks of the month following empaneling, except during July and December when no petit jury is convened. Once begun, trials may be continued to any day of the week in the discretion of the presiding judge.

(2) Additional jury trials may be scheduled during those weeks beginning with the fifth Monday of a month, or during the months of July and December in the discretion of the presiding judges.

(3) In criminal cases, when a judge assigns a trial by jury date, she shall also set a final mandatory pre-trial conference to be held 2 business days prior to the trial, if at all practicable on the court calendar.

(1) Indigent Defendants. All defendants charged with violation of the penal statutes who are found by the Court to be indigent shall be represented by the Kentucky Department for Public Advocacy. The Court shall appoint that organization to conduct the defense of the case, subject only to recoupment orders based on ability to pay if appropriate in the discretion of the Court.

(2) Withdrawal or Removal of Counsel.

(3) Attorney Appearances. Attorney appearances shall be made with a client for arraignment on felonies. No attorney may appear on behalf of his client for pre-trial conferencing, preliminary hearing or trial and excuse the presence of the Defendant, without leave of the Court. Only the Court may excuse the presence of the Defendant for good cause shown. Motions made by attorney for the Defendant do not require the presence of the Defendant unless requested by either party. (e.g. Motion for bond assignment when affidavit filed, motion for new trial date, motion for discovery.)

(1) Insurance Charges, Registration Charges, No License, No License in Possession, Expired License, and Defective Equipment. The Clerk may accept from the Defendant and file with the Court any proof of license, insurance, registration or proof of repair to be considered by the Court at the next scheduled date. Proof of insurance should be on an insurer's letterhead indicating the vehicle covered and coverage for the specific date of alleged driving. However, the Clerk shall have no authority to release a Defendant from appearance and any Defendant failing to appear shall do so at his own peril. If proof is found adequate for dismissal by prosecutor, no appearance will be necessary for the Court to dismiss. However, if proof is not adequate for dismissal by prosecutor and the Defendant does not appear at the next scheduled date, the Court may issue FTA suspension of driving privileges and/or bench warrants as appropriate in the discretion of the Court.

(2) Statutorily Set Fines for Traffic Violations and Speeding Tickets. Any Defendant may submit fines and court costs for both pre-payable and non-prepayable, statutorily set fines and court costs to the Circuit Clerk's office in advance of a court date. Any speeding citation for which the fine is not statutorily set may be submitted at the rate of $100 plus statutory court costs Such submission may be accepted by the Court as a plea of guilty by the Defendant and will release the Defendant from personal appearance. Defendants may also submit written requests for referrals to State Traffic School which will be honored by the Court and sent to DOT for review.

(3) Bench Warrants/Failure to Appear Suspensions of License. In the discretion of the presiding judge, bench warrants and failure to appear suspensions of drivers license will not be recalled without the appearance of a defendant in court. Such requests to recall bench warrants and failure to appear suspensions of drivers license shall be placed on the docket by written motion of attorneys or written request of defendants or at the telephonic or written request of Pretrial Services Specialists.

Even without the personal appearance of the Defendant, the Clerk shall consider as recalled any bench warrant for fines and court costs which have been paid in full and shall notify the Department of Transportation (DOT) to recall any attendant FTA of a drivers license.

(4) Pre-payable Offenses. Upon review of the Clerk's Manual and the correspondence of the Administrative office of the Courts dated 1/5/00 to the Hardin Circuit Court Clerk regarding pre-payable offenses, the following shall govern Pre-payable Docketing by clerks:

(5) UOR Consistency with Charges. The Clerk shall have the authority to correct any obsolete UOR code used in a citation with the current up to date code for that same violation when entering citations; to correct any UOR code to match the charging language of the citation; and to correct any notation of Limited Access by adding or deleting the same in accordance with the DOT schedule of Limited Access Roads on file.

(6) Traffic Offenses by Minors. Traffic Offenses in which a parental appearance is required by law to be made may be handled by a parental signature along side the minor's. Any order finalizing such a traffic offense must be accompanied by a copy of identification of the person that assumed liability of the minor under the provision of KRS 186.590 signing. A typical form to address such traffic charges is attached.

(1) Felony Releases. Any Defendant released on bond, whether cash, partial cash or unsecured, recognizance (Administrative Release or Judicial Release) for any felony offense shall be considered as being on conditions (1) to not commit any other offenses/ have no new arrests, (2) to supply Pretrial Services with current address and phone numbers until completion of the case, and (3) to not use illegal drugs, unless other provisions are expressly ordered. Additionally, if the charge is a felony drug offense and the defendant's criminal record indicates a history of controlled substances or alcohol abuse, then the additional condition of submission to drug or alcohol screens with Pretrial Services, both at random and on suspicion, may be entered.

(2) Domestic Violence, Assault or Stalking Releases. Any Defendant released on bond, whether, cash, partial cash, or unsecured, recognizance (Administrative Release or Judicial Release) for any domestic violence, assault, or stalking offense, whether misdemeanor or felony, may be ordered (1) to have no contact with the alleged domestic violence victim other than to permit one phone call by a third party to request retrieval of personal clothing and effects and, if agreed, one time third party visit to retrieve any agreed items (with no direct contact), (2) to vacate or stay away from the home of the alleged victim and to stay away from any other location where the victim is likely to be, and (3) to not commit any other offenses/have no new arrests/no violations of law.

(4) All Other Misdemeanor Releases. Any Defendant released on bond, whether cash, partial cash or unsecured or on recognizance (Administrative Release or Judicial Release) for any other misdemeanor offense shall be considered as being on conditions to not commit any other offenses/ have no new arrests.

(5) Conversion to Fines and Court Costs. Posting of all cash bonds which were made in the name of the Defendant may be converted by the Court for the payment of all fines and court costs without further notice to the Defendant and without further order of the Court.

(6) Release of Bonds and Sureties. It is the stated and established policy of this Court to follow the Rules of Criminal Procedure (RCr) concerning bond surety and release of bonds and sureties. Except as provided in RCr 5.22 and RCr 12.78, bail taken at any stage of the proceedins shall continue in effect to insure the appearance of the defendant for any and all purposes at all stages of the proceedings including appeal. The Rule of Criminal Procedure 4.54 (1) and (2) state at this time:

Bond shall also terminate upon the entry of a final judgment and sentence on an unconditional guilty plea.

(7) Bond Assignments. Requests for bond assignments shall be made pursuant to R Cr 4.46(2) and shall be made by written motion on regular motion day at 8:30/8:45 with a tendered order confirming bond assignment, indicating distribution of full bond amount, and indicating bond to be distributed in accordance with Hardin Local Rules. Hardin Circuit Clerk shall not honor any bond assignment filed which has not been confirmed by Bond Assignment Order by a judge. Bond assignments on bonds posted by defendants will not be honored until payment of fines and court costs has been made in full. A sample bond assignment form is attached.

(8) Probation Revocation. Any person having been arrested for failure to appear at a Probation Revocation Hearing shall remain incarcerated and shall not be eligible for Administrative Release by Pretrial Services pending an appearance in Hardin District Court for bond consideration or Probation Revocation Hearing.

(1) “Good Time” Credits. This Court will not grant service credits / “good time credits” for inmate work in community work service programs or for work conducted through the Hardin County Detention Center to any inmates sentenced by this Court. The Hardin County Jail may use applicable statutory process for any appropriate sentence credits.

(3) Victim Impact Panel. At the time of entry of plea in a DUI case in which a Victim Impact Panel is agreed as sentencing, the Defendant shall be referred to the CAMS Program for VIP referral and review.

(4) Prisoner Transport. No prisoners shall be transported to Court except at the request of judges, Pretrial Services Specialists or clerks of the court. Defendants set on dockets by order of court are presumed to be eligible for transport at the request of counsel with 24 hours notice to the jail/sheriff via email. Otherwise, inmates will be seen from the jail via video for court appearances.

(5) Theft by Deception Fees. Pursuant to notice by the Hardin County Attorney: For checks issued prior to July 14, 2000, the merchant and County Attorney fee shall be assessed at $15 each for a total of $30. For checks issued July 14, 2000--July 14, 2008, the merchant and County Attorney fee shall be assessed at $25 each for a total of $50 per check. For checks issued July 15, 2008 and after, the merchant and County Attorney fee shall be assessed at $50 each for a total of $100 per check.

(6) Theft by Deception Warrants. Pursuant to KRS 455.160, a warrant may issue for violations of KRS 514.040 when a warrant for theft by deception has been issued within the previous 90 days for the same defendant and the Court determines that based on the issuance of that previous warrant, it is necessary to forego issuance of a summons and instead issue an arrest warrant to assure the appearance of the defendant in court.

(7) Withdrawn/Remand. A judicial docket entry of “Remand” in reference to a Motion to Revoke Probation shall be considered by the clerk as the same as “Withdrawn” for purposes of computer entry, as there is no intention to have a further date set without the filing of a new motion.

(8) Shock Probation Motions. Motions for Shock Probation shall be made in writing and filed with the clerk to be heard “At the Convenience of the Court.” When Shock Probation Motions are filed, the Clerk shall immediately submit the motion with the file to the Judge's chambers for review. Regardless of whether an attorney or party so requests or files, the Clerk shall not docket the motion for a motion day or bring a prisoner from jail without an Order from the judge. In conformance with KRS 439.267(2), hearings will only be set “in the discretion of the trial court.”