What should you know about the San Fernando Courthouse?

San Fernando Courthouse, 900 Third Street, San Fernando, CA 91340, is one of two Los Angeles Superior Court buildings in the North Valley District that hear criminal cases; Chatsworth Courthouse, the district's third building, does not. Your citation, notice to appear, or release paperwork names the courthouse where you must appear.

What does the San Fernando Courthouse hear?

The court's own record lists Civil, Criminal and Traffic divisions at San Fernando Courthouse, which shares the North Valley District with the Chatsworth and Santa Clarita courthouses.

The court's own Local Rules place all three buildings in the North Valley District: San Fernando Courthouse, Chatsworth Courthouse, and Santa Clarita Courthouse. Under Local Rule 2.3(a)(3), a criminal complaint "must be filed within the judicial district... at the courthouse handling criminal matters which serves the city or unincorporated area where the offense is alleged to have occurred." Of the three, the court's own courthouse records show a Criminal division only at San Fernando Courthouse (with Civil and Traffic) and Santa Clarita Courthouse (with Traffic); Chatsworth Courthouse's record lists Civil, Family Law, Small Claims, Traffic and Unlawful Detainer, with no Criminal division. To learn which of the two criminal buildings has your case, check the courthouse named on your citation, notice to appear, or case summary. The firm's Los Angeles County courthouse assignment guide explains this filing rule in full.

Finding your case and court date

Your citation or court papers name the courthouse, and the court's online name search finds the case number, filing date and filing location for a fee.

On the court's Search for Case by Defendant Name page you pick an Exact Match, Starts With, or Sounds Like search on the defendant's name, may add a filing start or end date to narrow it, and get back each matching case's number, filing date and filing location. A guest pays $4.75 for each name search, even when no record turns up, while registered users pay on a sliding scale; the court's Public Access Online Services FAQ says the index holds felony records from 1980 and misdemeanor records from 1988 to the present. California Rule of Court 2.507 keeps several items, including Social Security numbers and date of birth, out of the public index and register of actions, so a name search cannot be narrowed that way. What happens at the first appearance and afterward is set out in the firm's Los Angeles County Criminal Court Guide.

Arraignment and bail

The court's bail schedules set release terms for many arrests, and anyone kept in custody is entitled to see a judge within 48 hours, excluding Sundays and holidays.

Most non-violent, non-serious arrests in Los Angeles County now fall under the Pre-Arraignment Release Protocol that opens the court's felony bail schedule and its misdemeanor bail schedule, each in force since January 1, 2026; in the schedules' own words, the protocol "represents a shift from the practice of setting money bail" toward non-financial release conditions. Before a judge sets bail, any dollar figure comes from the arrest warrant or, without a warrant, the countywide schedule. Once a case does reach a judge, two California Supreme Court decisions control: In re Humphrey (2021) requires weighing the arrestee's ability to pay and nonfinancial alternatives before money bail is imposed, and In re Kowalczyk (April 30, 2026) limits outright bail denial in noncapital cases to the offenses in California Constitution article I, section 12(b) and (c), while requiring that any money bail "must generally be set in an amount that is reasonably attainable." Separately, anyone actually held in custody has a statutory deadline: Penal Code section 825 requires reaching a judge "within 48 hours after his or her arrest, excluding Sundays and holidays," and if that period would otherwise run out while court is not in session, section 825(a)(2) extends it "to include the duration of the next court session on the judicial day immediately following," so the deadline lasts through the end of that session. When the arrest comes on a Wednesday after that day's court session has closed, the deadline is the following Friday, as long as neither that Wednesday nor that Friday is a court holiday. A person released on a citation or other paperwork instead shows up on the printed date. The firm's Los Angeles County Criminal Court Guide walks through the county's release protocol and what happens at the first appearance and after.

Appearing remotely at the San Fernando Courthouse

Remote appearances in San Fernando's Criminal courtrooms run through LACourtConnect, the court's Microsoft Teams platform, and Penal Code 977 decides which hearings a defendant may join that way.

San Fernando Courthouse was named in the court's own announcement that, "beginning June 16, LACC will be implemented in Criminal courtrooms" at a listed group of locations, ending the prior Webex arrangement for criminal remote appearances there. The firm's LACourtConnect guide walks through logging in at the LACC welcome page, choosing the Criminal litigation type, and searching by case number, calendar, or name. Whether remote appearance is an option for you depends on Penal Code section 977. In a case charging only misdemeanors, counsel may appear for you, and if you agree, every hearing except a jury or court trial may be held remotely; a defendant charged with misdemeanor domestic violence must be present for arraignment and sentencing, and in an appropriate case a judge may order a DUI defendant to be present at arraignment, plea or sentencing. For a felony, the arraignment, the plea, the preliminary hearing, any part of trial in which evidence is taken, and sentencing all require you to be physically present unless you waive physical presence; with that waiver the court may hold proceedings remotely, but not a jury or court trial, and not felony sentencing except in postconviction relief proceedings and as otherwise provided by law.

Getting into the courthouse

San Fernando Courthouse opens at 8:00 a.m. and closes at 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday except court holidays, and every visitor goes through weapons screening at the entrance.

The court's own record for the building puts Clerk's Office hours at 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. and points to paid public parking in the lot on the corner of Third Street and Brand. The same Local Rules that place San Fernando Courthouse in the North Valley District set department sessions "from 8:30 a.m. to 12:00 noon and from 1:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.," unless the Presiding Judge orders a variance in writing, and require screening for weapons and other prohibited items for everyone entering; a person who refuses screening is refused entry, and except for the officers and others the rule lists, no one may bring a firearm or a deadly or dangerous weapon inside. Check your own court papers for the department and time of your hearing.

Public defender, district attorney and probation

The Public Defender and District Attorney both list San Fernando branches at 900 Third Street, the courthouse address, and the court's building record lists Probation phone lines.

The Los Angeles County Public Defender keeps a San Fernando branch inside 900 Third Street, Suite 2041, San Fernando, CA 91340, the same address as the courthouse, phone (818) 898-2440; Government Code section 27706(a) requires that office to represent an eligible defendant "without expense to the defendant" once Penal Code section 987(a) triggers an appointment by asking the court for a lawyer at arraignment. The District Attorney's office directory lists its San Fernando Branch Office on the Third Floor of the same building, 900 Third Street, San Fernando, CA 91340, phone (818) 898-2511. For probation questions, the court's own record for San Fernando Courthouse lists a Probation line, (818) 898-2674, and a Probation Own Recognizance Program line, (818) 898-2522. The firm's public defender versus private attorney answer compares appointed counsel with hiring your own lawyer.

If you miss a court date

A missed date is not automatically a new crime, but a bench warrant can follow, and a willful failure to appear can be charged as its own offense.

After a bail or own-recognizance release, a judge "may," not must, issue a bench warrant under Penal Code section 978.5 once a defendant fails to appear. A signed citation without bail is stricter: under Penal Code section 853.8 the magistrate "shall issue" a warrant within 20 days after the missed date, and section 853.7 makes willfully breaking that written promise to appear a misdemeanor. A separate charge can also come from willfully failing to appear in order to evade the court: Penal Code section 1320 makes that a misdemeanor or felony after an own-recognizance release, and Penal Code section 1320.5 makes it a felony after a felony bail release. Section 1320 goes further: when a defendant willfully misses the date and does not appear within 14 days of it, the law presumes the defendant intended to evade the court, while under section 1320.5 such a willful failure may be found to have had that purpose. The firm's what to do about a California bench warrant answer covers the options once one has been issued.

Talk to a lawyer about a San Fernando-area case

Whether the case is yours or a family member's, talk to a criminal defense lawyer before the next date at the San Fernando Courthouse. 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.

Frequently asked questions

Does the Chatsworth Courthouse hear criminal cases from the same area?

No. The court's own courthouse record lists Civil, Family Law, Small Claims, Traffic and Unlawful Detainer divisions at Chatsworth Courthouse, with no Criminal division, unlike San Fernando Courthouse.

How do I know whether my case is at San Fernando or Santa Clarita Courthouse?

Both buildings have Criminal divisions in the North Valley District. The courthouse named on your citation, notice to appear, or case summary is the one to go to.

Can I look up a San Fernando-area criminal case online?

Yes. Enter the defendant's name in the court's Search for Case by Defendant Name page; a guest pays $4.75 per search even with no match, and the index holds felony records from 1980 and misdemeanor records from 1988.

Who prosecutes a misdemeanor filed from an arrest in the City of San Fernando?

The Los Angeles County District Attorney. Its FAQ names the cities whose misdemeanors it does not prosecute, and San Fernando is not one of them, so the District Attorney prosecutes both felonies and misdemeanors from that city.

Can I get a public defender for a case heard at San Fernando Courthouse?

Yes. Under Penal Code 987, when you want a lawyer at arraignment and cannot afford one, the judge must assign counsel, and the Public Defender's San Fernando office is in the courthouse building itself.

Can my lawyer appear for me at the San Fernando Courthouse?

In a misdemeanor-only case your lawyer can usually appear for you, but Penal Code 977 makes a defendant charged with domestic violence attend arraignment and sentencing, and lets a judge, in an appropriate case, require a DUI defendant's presence at arraignment, plea or sentencing. In a felony case you must attend the arraignment, plea, preliminary hearing, trial evidence and sentencing yourself; a waiver can let you join some of those steps remotely.