§ 16-88-101 - Arkansas Statutes

Second of 2 versions of this section

16-88-101. Jurisdiction of courts for certain offenses generally. [Effective January 1, 2012.]

(a) The jurisdiction of the various courts of this state for the trial of offenses shall be as follows:

(1) The Senate shall have exclusive jurisdiction of impeachment;

(2) The Supreme Court shall have general supervision and control over all inferior courts in criminal cases;

(3) The circuit court shall have original jurisdiction, exclusive of the district court, for the trial of offenses defined as felonies by state law and shall have original jurisdiction concurrent with the district court for the trial of offenses defined as misdemeanors by state law.

(4) The district court shall have original jurisdiction, exclusive of the circuit court, for the trial of violations of ordinances of any town, city, or county within the territorial jurisdiction of the district court and shall have original jurisdiction concurrent with the circuit court for the trial of offenses defined as misdemeanors by state law and committed within the territorial jurisdiction of the district court.

(b) Where an indictment is found in the circuit court for an offense within its jurisdiction, the circuit court shall have jurisdiction of all the degrees of the offense and of all the offenses included in the one (1) charge, although some of those degrees or included offenses are within the exclusive jurisdiction of the district court.

(c) A district court may issue arrest warrants and search warrants and may perform other pretrial functions, as authorized by the Arkansas Rules of Criminal Procedure, in the prosecution of a person for an offense within the exclusive jurisdiction of the circuit court.