What the Northern District of Texas is
The Northern District of Texas is one of four federal trial court districts in the state, and it is part of the wider Texas federal court system. The statute that creates Texas's districts, 28 U.S.C. § 124, opens with this sentence: "Texas is divided into four judicial districts to be known as the Northern, Southern, Eastern, and Western Districts of Texas." The Northern District is subsection (a), and it says "The Northern District comprises seven divisions." The other districts have their own pages: Western District and Southern District.
This court hears federal crimes. Under 18 U.S.C. § 3231, district courts have "original jurisdiction, exclusive of the courts of the States, of all offenses against the laws of the United States." That is why a drug, fraud, firearms or violent crime charge brought by federal agents is heard here and not in a state court.
The district is large. The United States Attorney's Office says it covers 100 counties across 96,000 square miles, with a population of more than eight million people, and that it is "the largest land area district in the country, except for federal districts that encompass an entire state." A person charged in Lubbock or Amarillo may be hundreds of miles from a person charged in Dallas, yet both are in the same district.
Seven divisions: finding your courthouse by county
The statute assigns each county to a division and says where court for that division is held. Find the county where the alleged conduct happened, then match it below. For each division the statute says court is held in the city of the same name, as in "Court for the Dallas Division shall be held at Dallas."
- Dallas Division (court at Dallas): Dallas, Ellis, Hunt, Johnson, Kaufman, Navarro and Rockwall counties.
- Fort Worth Division (court at Fort Worth): Comanche, Erath, Hood, Jack, Palo Pinto, Parker, Tarrant and Wise counties.
- Abilene Division (court at Abilene): Callahan, Eastland, Fisher, Haskell, Howard, Jones, Mitchell, Nolan, Shackleford, Stephens, Stonewall, Taylor and Throckmorton counties.
- San Angelo Division (court at San Angelo): 15 counties: Brown, Coke, Coleman, Concho, Crockett, Glasscock, Irion, Menard, Mills, Reagan, Runnels, Schleicher, Sterling, Sutton and Tom Green. The court's San Angelo location page lists the same 15 under "Counties Served."
- Amarillo Division (court at Amarillo): Armstrong, Brisco (the statute's spelling), Carson, Castro, Childress, Collingsworth, Dallam, Deaf Smith, Donley, Gray, Hall, Hansford, Hartley, Hemphill, Hutchinson, Lipscomb, Moore, Ochiltree, Oldham, Parmer, Potter, Randall, Roberts, Sherman, Swisher and Wheeler counties.
- Wichita Falls Division (court at Wichita Falls): Archer, Baylor, Clay, Cottle, Foard, Hardeman, King, Knox, Montague, Wichita, Wilbarger and Young counties.
- Lubbock Division (court at Lubbock): Bailey, Borden, Cochran, Crosby, Dawson, Dickens, Floyd, Gaines, Garza, Hale, Hockley, Kent, Lamb, Lubbock, Lynn, Motley, Scurry, Terry and Yoakum counties.
Two cautions. First, the court's own venue lookup warns that "Certain cities reside in more than one county and may occupy multiple districts or divisions," so a city name alone is not enough. Second, the court's local criminal rules contain no rule about which division tries a case. Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure 18 and the court's special orders apply, and case assignment is set by a special order that has separate sections for each division. Beyond the statute's division lists, the court does not publish a separate county to courthouse rule. The papers in your case name the courthouse, so rely on them.
Courthouses and the clerk's office
The clerk's office headquarters is in Dallas. The clerk's offices are open from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding federal holidays, and some offices close for lunch. Photo identification is required to enter court floors at the court's locations.
- Dallas: Earle Cabell Federal Building & United States Courthouse, 1100 Commerce St., Room 1452, Dallas, TX 75242. Clerk's office phone 214-753-2200.
- Fort Worth: Eldon B. Mahon U.S. Courthouse, 501 West 10th Street, Fort Worth, TX 76102-3673. Clerk's office is Room 310, phone 817-850-6600.
- Abilene: Federal Building Courthouse/Post Office, 341 Pine Street, Room 2008, Abilene, TX 79601. Phone 325-677-6311.
- Amarillo: J. Marvin Jones Federal Building and Courthouse, 205 SE 5th Avenue, Room 133, Amarillo, TX 79101-1559. Phone 806-468-3800. The court's pages word this address slightly differently in places, so confirm the suite or room on your notice.
- Lubbock: Federal Building and US Courthouse, 1205 Texas Avenue, Room 209, Lubbock, TX 79401-4091. Phone 806-472-1900.
- San Angelo: Federal Building and US Courthouse, 33 E. Twohig Avenue, Room 202, San Angelo, TX 76903-6451. Phone 325-655-4506.
- Wichita Falls: United States District Court, 1000 Lamar Street, 2nd Floor, Wichita Falls, TX 76301. The court notes that this location "is only occupied while Court is in session."
Wichita Falls is an unusual case. The court says it "will continue to be a designated place for holding court in the Northern District of Texas, despite not having full-time Clerk’s Office staff onsite at the courthouse." Documents filed in person or by mail for a Wichita Falls case go to the Fort Worth clerk's office, and the Wichita Falls clerk phone number is the Fort Worth number, 817-850-6600.
For a filed matter that needs a judge's review outside business hours, the clerk directs people to email USDCemergencyfile@txnd.uscourts.gov or call 214-753-2177 to leave a detailed message. In practice, a lawyer handles that, not the defendant.
The United States Attorney's Office
Criminal cases here are prosecuted by the United States Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Texas. It states that it was "established in 1879 to prosecute federal crimes and represent federal agencies in matters in North Texas." Its headquarters is in the Earle Cabell Federal Building at 1100 Commerce Street, Suite 300, Dallas, phone 214-659-8600. It also has staffed offices in Fort Worth, Lubbock, Amarillo and Abilene. San Angelo and Wichita Falls have no staffed prosecutor offices; the office directs inquiries about San Angelo to its Lubbock office and about Wichita Falls to its Dallas headquarters.
The office says its Criminal Division "works to ensure public safety, primarily by prosecuting violations of federal criminal laws." The sections it names are Major Crimes, National Security & Cybercrimes, Fraud & Public Corruption, Narcotics & OCEDTF, and Violent Crimes. The Violent Crimes section covers "firearms and explosive offenses (including NFA violations), gun trafficking offenses, carjackings, bank robberies, Hobbs Act robberies, and kidnappings." Which section holds a case tells you something about how the government sees it. Our pages on federal drug charges, drug trafficking, fraud and firearms charges explain the offenses these sections most often charge.
You may be contacted before any charge. A target letter, a subpoena or a visit from agents are all signs of a federal investigation. If that happens, do not talk with agents until you have spoken with a lawyer.
The Federal Public Defender and the CJA panel
People who cannot afford a lawyer are not left without one. The Federal Public Defender's Office for this district says it "offers effective counsel to federal defendants who cannot afford to retain their own representation." The office was established in 1990 and maintains four staffed offices, in Dallas, Fort Worth, Lubbock and Amarillo, and it "travels to the remaining three divisions to represent clients."
- Dallas: 525 S. Griffin St., Suite 629, Dallas, TX 75202, (214) 767-2746.
- Fort Worth: 819 Taylor St., Room 9A10, Fort Worth, TX 76102, (817) 978-2753.
- Lubbock: 1205 Texas Ave., Room 507, Lubbock, TX 79401, (806) 472-7236.
- Amarillo: 600 S. Taylor, Suite 2300, Amarillo, TX 79101, (806) 324-2370.
The Criminal Justice Act requires each district court to "place in operation throughout the district a plan for furnishing representation for any person financially unable to obtain adequate representation." This district's plan is Miscellaneous Order 3, and the court posts panel directories for the Dallas and Fort Worth panels. When the Federal Public Defender cannot take a case, for example because of a conflict, the court can appoint a panel lawyer. A judge decides eligibility after reviewing your finances, usually at the first appearance.
Pretrial services and probation
The district has one combined office, United States Probation and Pretrial Services, with offices in Abilene, Amarillo, Dallas, Fort Worth, Lubbock, San Angelo and Wichita Falls. Its stated mission is "To assist the federal courts in the fair administration of justice" and "To protect the community." Its officers "gather and verify information about persons who come before the courts," and prepare "reports that the courts rely on to make release and sentencing decisions." The office says, "If you are charged and/or facing prosecution, then you are in the Pretrial and Presentence processes."
At the start of a case, expect an officer to interview you about your address, work, family and history, and to report to the judge before the release decision. Be accurate, because the officer verifies what you say. Do not discuss the facts of the charge in that interview; talk to your lawyer first. Phone numbers on the court's page include Dallas 214-753-2500 and Fort Worth 817-978-3633.
The same office later prepares the presentence report before sentencing. The court's own overview of a federal criminal case lists a 14 day mandatory response time for that report under Rule 32. The local criminal rules also say "A probation officer shall not disclose any recommendation regarding the sentence." Our federal sentencing page covers what follows.
The first days of a case
An arrest or a summons leads to an initial appearance before a magistrate judge, where you are told the charge and your rights, and counsel is appointed if you qualify. The government may ask for detention. The hearing is under 18 U.S.C. § 3142, and a judge orders detention before trial only if the judge finds that "no condition or combination of conditions will reasonably assure the appearance of the person as required and the safety of any other person and the community." Our detention hearing page explains the factors. The court's overview lists the bond or detention decision as an early step, and no local criminal rule changes the statute.
Felony charges generally come by indictment, voted by a grand jury. At arraignment you hear the charges and enter a plea. When a criminal case is filed, the local rules require the United States to submit a criminal case cover sheet for each defendant.
Local criminal rules (LCrR)
The court's local criminal rules are cited as "LCrR" followed by the rule number, for example "LCrR 47.1." They are short. They set a 14 day response time for opposed motions and pretrial deadlines for exhibit lists and jury charges, but they set no deadline for filing pretrial motions and say nothing on plea agreements or detention. Motion filing deadlines therefore come from the judge's own orders and the federal rules. The court says the HTML copy of the rules on its website is not the official version, and the PDF is. The court amends its rules from time to time, so confirm the edition in force when your case is pending.
Rules that change what happens in a case include:
- LCrR 47.1, motions. "Before filing a motion, an attorney for the moving party must confer with an attorney for each party affected by the requested relief to determine whether the motion is opposed." A motion to dismiss the entire indictment is excepted. "A response and brief to an opposed motion must be filed within 14 days from the date the motion is filed." Reply briefs need the judge's permission, and "Unless otherwise directed by the presiding judge, oral argument on a motion will not be held." If a motion is not listed in the rule's table, a brief, certificate of conference and proposed order are required.
- LCrR 47.2, briefs. Briefs carry a disclosure about the use of generative artificial intelligence.
- LCrR 16.1 and 30.1. At least 14 days before trial, the parties file exhibit and witness lists, and unless the judge directs otherwise, each party files a requested jury charge.
- LCrR 55.3 and 55.4, sealing. A party may file under seal only on motion and with the judge's permission when no statute or rule allows it, and paper sealed documents are unsealed 60 days after final disposition of the case.
- LCrR 24.1. Parties and lawyers may not contact jurors, before or after trial, unless the judge explicitly permits it.
Because the local rules are brief, the presiding judge's orders carry weight. A lawyer reads those orders as soon as a judge is assigned.
Appeals go to the Fifth Circuit
An appeal leaves this district. Under 28 U.S.C. § 1294, appeals go "From a district court of the United States to the court of appeals for the circuit embracing the district;" and Texas is in the Fifth Circuit, along with Louisiana and Mississippi. The deadline is short. Under Federal Rule of Appellate Procedure 4(b)(1)(A), "In a criminal case, a defendant's notice of appeal must be filed in the district court within 14 days after the later of:" the entry of the judgment or order being appealed, or the filing of the government's notice of appeal. Our federal appeals page explains the process. Talk about appeal rights with your lawyer before sentencing, not after.
A note on penalties
This page gives no sentence predictions. Any penalty figures on our charge pages are statutory maximums or guideline ranges, not forecasts. A mandatory minimum may apply to some offenses, and the facts of your case, your record and the judge's decision all affect the result.
Talking to a lawyer about a case in this court
If you have been charged, arrested or contacted by agents in any of these 100 counties, a few steps help before the first conversation. Write down the county and city where the events took place, and keep any summons, indictment, release order or notice that names a courthouse and room. Note your next court date and the name of any pretrial services officer who has contacted you. Gather proof of where you live and work, and a list of family members who could support release. Bring any letters from agents, subpoenas, or search warrant paperwork, and a list of questions. Do not post about the case online or discuss it with witnesses. If you cannot afford a lawyer, ask the judge about the Federal Public Defender at your first appearance. When you are ready to talk through a case in the Northern District of Texas, you can request a consultation.
Federal representation outside California is subject to applicable court admission requirements. Pro hac vice admission and association with local counsel may be required.