Reviewed and updated October 9, 2026 by the SearchSystems.net editorial team. The arrest counts are the ones each agency reported to the FBI, as the FBI held them on October 8, 2026. Every office link was opened and checked against the office's own site between September 24, 2026 and October 2, 2026.
Petal, Mississippi, in Forrest County, has about 12,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate). Its court cases are filed in the Forrest County Circuit Court and the Justice Court and County Court, and the file of each case, kept by the Circuit Clerk for criminal and civil cases and the Chancery Clerk for divorces, estates and land records, is the public record of it. This guide says which court hears what, where to look a case up and who keeps the files.
This guide covers the courts, the records page, criminal cases, kinds of files and common questions.
Related guides: Petal public records, Forrest County court records, Petal arrest records, Petal warrants, Petal inmate search, Petal criminal records, Mississippi arrest records and Mississippi inmate search.
The Courts That Hear Cases from Petal
In Petal, the Forrest County Circuit Court hears felonies and the larger civil cases.
Below it, the Justice Court and County Court take misdemeanors, traffic cases and small claims in the Justice Court; the County Court, where the county has one, takes eminent domain, juvenile and mid-sized civil cases.
A city with a municipal court of its own tries the tickets written under its ordinances.
Divorces go to the Chancery Court, and the file stays with the Chancery Clerk.
The Circuit Clerk for criminal and civil cases and the Chancery Clerk for divorces, estates and land records keep the files, and a copy of anything in a file comes from that office, under the court's own rules rather than the Mississippi Public Records Act.
Looking Up a Case from Petal
For Forrest County, SearchSystems opened and checked the court records page for the county at forrestcountyms.us/forrest-county-courts (page title: Forrest County Courts), phone (601) 545 6100, 110 Alcorn Ave, Hattiesburg, MS 39403, which answered when SearchSystems opened it on September 24, 2026. That page belongs to a lower court, the Justice Court and County Court, not to the Forrest County Circuit Court.
Mississippi has no single public index of every trial court case; each court's records are looked up through that court.
The Mississippi court page SearchSystems verified is at courts.ms.gov.
What Reaches the Court from Petal
Together, the three agencies in Forrest County with all twelve months of 2025 on file reported 1,856 arrests to the FBI that year; the District Attorney decides which of those arrests become cases in the Forrest County Circuit Court or the Justice Court and County Court.
The Kinds of Court Files
The court file is one record with several readers: a criminal case from the arrest to the sentence, a divorce from the petition to the judgment, a traffic ticket from the citation to the conviction the court reports to the Mississippi Department of Public Safety Driver Service Bureau, and an eviction or a lien on land.
The other Petal guides take the kinds of file one at a time: Petal criminal records, Petal traffic tickets, Petal DUI and Petal property records.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I look up a court case in Petal?
The court records page SearchSystems verified for the county is at forrestcountyms.us/forrest-county-courts, phone (601) 545 6100; it belongs to a lower court, the Justice Court and County Court, not to the Forrest County Circuit Court.
Which court hears felonies in Petal?
The Forrest County Circuit Court, which hears felonies and the larger civil cases. The Justice Court and County Court take misdemeanors, traffic cases and small claims in the Justice Court; the County Court, where the county has one, takes eminent domain, juvenile and mid-sized civil cases.
Who keeps the court records in Petal?
The Circuit Clerk for criminal and civil cases and the Chancery Clerk for divorces, estates and land records. Copies come from that office under the court's own rules.
Is there a statewide court case search in Mississippi?
No. Each court's records are looked up through that court.
Is this the official Petal website?
No. SearchSystems.net is an independent public records guide, online since 1997. It links to the official city, county, court and state offices described above and does not hold records, charge for them or take requests.