Reviewed and updated October 11, 2026 by the SearchSystems.net editorial team. Every office link was opened and checked against the office's own site between September 24, 2026 and October 11, 2026.
DeSoto County, Mississippi, has about 196,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate). A traffic ticket written in DeSoto County is a court case in the Justice Court and County Court; a city with a municipal court tries its own, and the conviction it ends in goes on the driving record kept by the Mississippi Department of Public Safety Driver Service Bureau. This guide says which court takes the ticket, who writes them and where the driving record lives.
This guide covers where tickets go, who writes them, the driving record, cities and common questions.
Related guides: DeSoto County public records, DeSoto County arrest records, DeSoto County warrants, DeSoto County inmate search, DeSoto County criminal records, Mississippi arrest records and Mississippi inmate search.
Where a Ticket Written in DeSoto County Goes
A ticket written by a deputy or a state trooper in DeSoto County goes to the Justice Court and County Court; one written by city police goes to that city's municipal court where it has one. Either way the ticket is a court case, and the court's index is the record of it.
The court records page SearchSystems verified for the county is at desotocountyms.gov/675/Chancery-Court-Filing-Fees, phone 662-469-8398.
Mississippi has no single public index of every trial court case; each court's records are looked up through that court.
Who Writes the Tickets in DeSoto County
The DeSoto County Sheriff's Office and the agencies that report for Southaven, Olive Branch, Horn Lake, Hernando and Walls write the traffic tickets in DeSoto County.
The FBI's agency list also places one more agency in DeSoto County: Northwest Mississippi Community College at Desoto (campus police).
The Driving Record and the Mississippi Department of Public Safety Driver Service Bureau
Convictions are reported by the court to the Mississippi Department of Public Safety Driver Service Bureau, which keeps the driving record and decides on points and suspensions. Order the driving record from that agency, not from the court.
Paying a ticket is a conviction, reported to the Mississippi Department of Public Safety Driver Service Bureau like any other; contesting it means a plea of not guilty entered with the court by the date on the ticket.
A DUI is a criminal charge rather than a ticket, with its own license case before the Department of Public Safety (see DeSoto County DUI).
Cities in DeSoto County
A ticket written inside a city goes to the Justice Court and County Court, or to the city's municipal court where it has one.
SearchSystems has a guide to the offices of these cities in DeSoto County, with the 2024 Census Bureau population:
- Olive Branch (47,365)
- Horn Lake (26,574)
Frequently Asked Questions
Where do I pay a traffic ticket from DeSoto County?
With the Justice Court and County Court; a ticket from city police goes to the city's municipal court where it has one.
Who keeps my driving record in Mississippi?
The Mississippi Department of Public Safety Driver Service Bureau. The court reports each conviction to it, and paying a ticket counts as one.
Which court handles traffic tickets in DeSoto County?
The Justice Court and County Court, which 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 under its ordinances.
Is this the official DeSoto County website?
No. SearchSystems.net is an independent public records guide, online since 1997. It links to the official county, court and state offices described above and does not hold records, charge for them or take requests.