Felony

The Felony department processes charges that could result in a “by law” required sentence penalty of serving more than 1 (one) year. Grand theft, theft, fraud, burglary, robbery and murder are classified as felonies.

NOTE: A maximum allowable sentence in the County Jail is 1 (one) year. Any additional time requires placement with the Dept. of Corrections.

The Circuit Court has jurisdiction over all defendants accused of committing crimes that have been designated by the State Legislation as felonies. A felony is a criminal offense punishable by death or imprisonment in a state penitentiary. Felonies are classified into the following degrees:

Capital Felony is punishable by death or life imprisonment without the eligibility for parole.
Life Felony is punishable by a term of life imprisonment and by a fine not to exceed $10,000.
First Degree Felony is punishable by a term of imprisonment not to exceed 30 years and by a fine not to exceed $10,000.
Second Degree Felony is punishable by a term of imprisonment not to exceed 15 years and by a fine not to exceed $10,000.
Third Degree Felony is punishable by a term of imprisonment not to exceed 5 years and by a fine not to exceed $5,000.

Court Appearance
Once a court date has been set on a felony case the Clerk’s Office cannot change it.
If there is a problem you will need to contact your attorney.

Failure to Appear
A warrant may be issued for your arrest and any bond that you have posted may be forfeited when you fail to appear for court.
If you are arrested because of a failure to appear warrant you may be held in jail without bond.

First Appearance
Every morning anyone arrested during the previous 24 hours appears before a judge. This is a public proceeding held each weekday morning at 8:30 in the Indian River County Courthouse.

On weekends and holidays First Appearances are held at 8:30 A.M. in the Indian River County Courthouse.

Arraignments
An arraignment is a hearing where a defendant is advised of the charges filed against him/her and allowed to enter a plea. If you enter a plea of guilty or no contest you will be sentenced at that time. If you plea not guilty your case will be set for a Status Conference, Pre-Trial, Change of Plea Session and Jury Trial. If you plea not guilty to a violation of probation charge then your case will be set for a Violation of Probation Hearing.

Arraignment Court Dates

The Clerk’s Office cannot change a court date. If there is a problem with your date, you may want to consult an attorney or contact the Judge assigned to your case.

Sentencing

The court may sentence you to serve time in the Indian River County Jail and is required to impose court costs and may assess a fine on each count as charged. The Court has the authority to suspend your driving privileges on traffic violations and some misdemeanors. All fine and court costs are payable to the Clerk of Court by cash, cashier’s check, money order or Credit Card. We accept Visa, MasterCard, Discover, and Check Cards with the appropriate insignia. Credit Card payments will not be accepted over the phone. Personal checks are not acceptable on fines or court costs.

Trials

All sessions of court are open to the public, unless a particular judge orders his courtroom closed.

Forms

*We suggest that you first download the PDF form to your computer, and then open it with Adobe Acrobat.  You can either type information directly into each field, or copy and paste text.

*Application for Criminal Indigent Status

PAYMENT PLANS

Payment plans are available on most cases.  If you would like to request a payment plan on your case please send your request to the following [email protected] .  Please include ALL case numbers/citation numbers you are requesting a payment plan for in your email. A $25.00 administration fee per case will be applied to the fines and cost due for the payment plan option.  If you have been charged with a traffic violation and you are eligible to attend traffic school and would like to elect that option please include that in your email request.

Not what you’re looking for? Call us: (772) 226-3100

Ryan Butler
Clerk of Circuit Court & Comptroller
Indian River County
2000 16th Avenue
Vero Beach, Florida 32960
Phone: (772) 226-3100
Criminal/Felony Department
2000 16th Avenue, Room 125
Vero Beach, Florida 32960
Phone: (772) 226-3100 Ext. 3240

 

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