Pomona Courthouse South, 400 Civic Center Plaza, Pomona, CA 91766, is the Los Angeles Superior Court building for Pomona-area matters, including criminal cases. A criminal complaint goes to whichever courthouse handles criminal matters for the area where the offense allegedly happened, so your own paperwork, not the building's name, confirms this is your courthouse.
Is Pomona Courthouse South the right building for my case?
Pomona Courthouse South is the only Los Angeles Superior Court building the current Local Rules list for Pomona, grouped with El Monte and West Covina in the court's East District.
The court's Local Rules place "Pomona Courthouse South, 400 Civic Center Plaza, Pomona 91766" in its East District, alongside the El Monte and West Covina courthouses. Local Rule 2.3(a)(3) requires that "criminal complaints must be filed at the courthouse handling criminal matters which serves the city or unincorporated area where the offense is alleged to have occurred." The Local Rules do not publish a separate city-by-city breakdown of exactly which East District building hears which city's criminal docket, so your own citation, notice to appear, or jail release paperwork is the surest confirmation of your courthouse; the firm's Los Angeles County courthouse assignment guide covers how the county's filing rule works more broadly.
Finding your case and court date
A defendant name search on the court's own public tool costs a flat fee and works whether or not it finds a result.
The Superior Court's Public Access Online Services system includes a "Search for Case by Defendant Name" option built for criminal matters, letting you search by Exact Match, Starts With, or Sounds Like. The court charges $4.75 for each name search under its public-access fee rule, regardless of whether the search turns up a match. The name search returns the case number, filing date and filing location; for more, the search page sends users to the court's Criminal Case Summary service. Your own citation, release paperwork, or a letter from the prosecutor remains the first place to look for your case number and the date you are due in court. If the person may still be held, the Sheriff's Inmate Information Center can be searched with a last name, first name and date of birth, and (213) 473-6100 answers custody questions.
Arraignment: your first court date
Someone held in custody has a right to see a judge within 48 hours of arrest, excluding Sundays and holidays; a cited and released person goes by the paperwork's date.
A person held in custody, rather than cited and released, has a statutory right under Penal Code 825(a)(1) to be taken before a judge "without unnecessary delay, and, in any event, within 48 hours after his or her arrest, excluding Sundays and holidays." If the 48 hours would run out while the court is not sitting, Penal Code 825(a)(2) extends that time "to include the duration of the next court session on the judicial day immediately following," meaning the deadline runs through the end of that next session; the same subdivision also has a Wednesday arrest, made after that day's session has ended, due in court by the following Friday instead, so long as neither day is a court holiday. The judge must tell you the charge and your right to counsel at every stage, under Penal Code 858(a). Penal Code 1382 then requires trial, unless the defendant waives time or the court finds good cause, within 60 days of arraignment on an information or indictment in a felony case, and in a misdemeanor case within 30 days of arraignment or plea, whichever is later, for a defendant in custody, or 45 days for anyone else.
Bail and release for a Pomona case
Many lower-level, non-violent arrests are released at $0 bail before arraignment; where a judge sets money bail, it must generally be an amount the person can reasonably attain.
Both of Los Angeles County's bail schedules, effective January 1, 2026 for felonies and misdemeanors alike, begin with the court's Pre-Arraignment Release Protocol, under which many less serious, non-violent arrests are released before or shortly after booking at zero-dollar bail rather than a dollar figure; the offenses Penal Code 1270.1 lists, and any offense carrying a sentencing enhancement, are carved out of that zero-dollar category and still require either the schedule's dollar amount or an open-court hearing. Once a judge sets bail, In re Humphrey requires weighing your ability to pay and whether nonfinancial release conditions could reasonably protect the public and the victim or reasonably assure your appearance, and under In re Kowalczyk (2026), a judge may deny bail in a noncapital case only for an offense listed in California Constitution article I, section 12(b) or (c); money bail otherwise "must generally be set in an amount that is reasonably attainable," not simply at the schedule's starting figure. The firm's how California bail amounts are set answer covers the countywide rules in full; the court's own felony and misdemeanor bail schedules carry the protocol and the dollar amounts together.
Appearing by phone, video or in person
Whether you can skip appearing in person at Pomona Courthouse South depends mainly on whether the charge is a misdemeanor or a felony.
Penal Code 977(a)(1) lets a person charged only with a misdemeanor appear through a lawyer, and, with that person's agreement, attend the first appearance, arraignment, plea and most proceedings besides a jury or court trial remotely; a misdemeanor domestic violence case still requires the defendant in person for arraignment and sentencing, and a judge may require the same in a misdemeanor DUI matter. For a felony, Penal Code 977(b)(1) requires physical presence at arraignment, plea and the preliminary hearing, while trial evidence is taken, and at sentencing, unless the defendant waives it under 977(c), and even then 977(c)(1)(D) bars any remote appearance at a jury or court trial, and 977(c)(1)(E) bars a felony defendant from appearing remotely at sentencing, except in postconviction relief proceedings and as otherwise provided by law. The Superior Court's own rollout notice named Pomona Courthouse among the first eight courthouses to move criminal courtrooms onto LACourtConnect, its remote-appearance platform, beginning June 2, 2025. When the law and the judge allow a remote appearance, participants join through Microsoft Teams from the LACourtConnect welcome page, with no registration needed in advance.
Getting to Pomona Courthouse South: hours, phone and parking
Pomona Courthouse South is open on court days from 8:00 a.m., with the Clerk's Office opening at 8:30 a.m.; both close at 4:30 p.m., main line (909) 802-1100.
The court's record for the building lists the Criminal Clerk's Office in Room 101 on the first floor, (909) 802-1199, with phone hours from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Public parking, by the same record, is in the lot on 7th St., on the courthouse's south side, and everyone entering is subject to the weapons screening the court's security order requires.
Who handles a Pomona criminal case?
The Los Angeles County District Attorney prosecutes both felonies and misdemeanors arising in Pomona, and a county Probation office keeps a branch nearby.
Pomona does not appear on the County District Attorney's own office FAQ list of ten cities whose misdemeanors go to a separate city prosecutor, so the County District Attorney's Office prosecutes every Pomona-area case, felony or misdemeanor. The court's directory for Pomona Courthouse South lists the District Attorney (Adult Matters) in Room 201 on the second floor, (909) 716-4100, and the Public Defender at (909) 868-6400. If you cannot afford a lawyer, Penal Code 987 requires the court to appoint one once you ask at arraignment, provided "without expense to the defendant" under Government Code 27706(a); the LA County Probation Department's own Pomona Valley Area Office, at 1660 W. Mission Blvd., Pomona, CA 91766, (909) 469-4507, serves the area, with weekday kiosk report-in available. How an appointed lawyer compares with a hired one is covered in the firm's public defender versus private attorney answer. The Law Offices of David S. Chesley also keeps an office in Pomona; see the firm's Pomona office page for its current address, phone and map.
What happens if I miss my court date?
A missed date can lead to a bench warrant; failing to appear willfully, to evade the court, can also be charged as a separate crime.
Penal Code 978.5 permits, without requiring, a bench warrant once a defendant fails to appear as required, including after release on bail, on their own recognizance, or on a signed citation promise. Willfully failing to appear to evade the court after an own-recognizance release is punished as a new misdemeanor or felony under Penal Code 1320, matching the level of the original case, and the same conduct after a felony bail release is a new felony under Penal Code 1320.5. The firm's answer on what to do about a California bench warrant walks through the options for resolving one.
Talk to a lawyer about a Pomona case
If you or a family member is facing a criminal case tied to Pomona Courthouse South, talk to a lawyer before your court date. The Law Offices of David S. Chesley offers a free, confidential consultation, available 24 hours a day, with payment plans and service in Spanish. Call (800) 755-5174 or request a free consultation online. See also the firm's Pomona criminal defense and Pomona DUI pages.
Frequently asked questions
Is Pomona Courthouse South the only courthouse serving Pomona?
Yes, among buildings the current Local Rules name for Pomona itself; it sits in the East District with the El Monte and West Covina courthouses, and your own paperwork confirms which one actually has your case.
How much does it cost to look up a Pomona case online?
The Superior Court's public case-search tool charges a flat $4.75 per defendant name search, whether or not the search finds a matching case.
Does everyone arrested for a Pomona-area offense have to post cash bail?
No. Under the court's Pre-Arraignment Release Protocol many less serious, non-violent arrests carry $0 bail before arraignment; Penal Code 1270.1 charges and sentencing enhancements need the scheduled amount or a hearing, and capital crimes when the facts are evident or the presumption great, and California Constitution article I, section 12(b) and (c) offenses, get no release before arraignment.
Who prosecutes a Pomona misdemeanor?
The Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office, since Pomona is not one of the ten cities whose misdemeanors go to a separate city prosecutor instead.
Can I appear at Pomona Courthouse South by video?
Sometimes. A misdemeanor defendant who agrees can often appear remotely through LACourtConnect for most proceedings besides a jury or court trial; a felony defendant must generally appear in person for the key stages of the case.
Is there a Public Defender office that serves Pomona cases?
Yes. The court's directory for Pomona Courthouse South lists the Public Defender at (909) 868-6400; Penal Code 987 requires the court to appoint a lawyer once you ask at arraignment if you cannot afford one, and Government Code 27706(a) provides that defense without expense to you.