Searching Cases by Name
Pick the portal first, then type the name. Pleasants County cases split into two streams. Felony filings, Circuit civil matters, and Pleasants Family matters live in WVPASS, while misdemeanors, traffic cases, preliminary examinations, small claims, personal-safety matters, and domestic-violence magistrate matters start in MCRSearch. The statewide access landing page lays out this same two-path structure for a docket search.
- Read the caption, citation, or notice to identify Circuit, Family, Magistrate, or Municipal Court.
- Open WVPASS for Circuit records or pass the disclaimer and CAPTCHA gate in MCRSearch for Magistrate records.
- Enter the exact spelling from the filing. In MCRSearch, use first name, last name, or a case number.
- Review the county, filing date, charge or case type, and status to distinguish similar results.
- Open the matching case activity, save its number, and note any listed document needed from the clerk.
MCRSearch publishes only limited search fields, and it says nothing precise about wildcards. So a partial spelling may not surface every Pleasants County case in the docket. WVPASS works differently: it loads as a JavaScript application, and its interactive controls appear only after you create a free account.
| Field Label | Type | Required | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Click to continue | Control | Yes | Passes the disclaimer and CAPTCHA entry gate. |
| First Name | Text | No | Supported, but matching rules are not published. |
| Last Name | Text | No | Use the spelling shown in the court filing. |
| Case Number | Text | No | Enter the complete number exactly as issued. |
| Result Limit | System | Not entered | MCRSearch returns no more than 30 records. |
Choose the Pleasants Search System
Where the case sits decides where you search. Circuit Clerk Millie Farnsworth holds the Circuit Court dockets and any Pleasants-filed Family records. Magistrate Court Clerk Pam Cox keeps the lower-court files. Those cover misdemeanors, traffic, preliminary examinations, and small claims. County Clerk Jody Davis handles probate, deeds, vital records, and county-commission material. None of that is Circuit Court dockets.
Belmont ordinance citations belong to Belmont Municipal Court. St. Marys publishes no dedicated municipal docket portal. City Hall or the issuing office is the first contact for a court docket question there. A city-court appeal can later land in Circuit Court with a different docket context.
Note: a person's location does not choose the portal; the court and case type do.
Searching by Case Number
For a Pleasants County case lookup, the case number is the sharpest tool. One official local setting order shows CC-37-2018-C-2. Search the full identifier exactly as printed. Pleasants publishes no code sheet that defines each segment. Do not invent meanings for the letters or strip punctuation unless the portal itself tells you to.
The Magistrate Court Payment System spells out the lower-court formats. Case ID examples are ##-M##X-##### and M##M-##########, Citation ID #########, and Payment Plan ID MC##-#####. Its official form returns exact matches only, since it is an ID-based payment search rather than a broad public name search of court records.
The Pleasants 30-Record Limit
MCRSearch caps results at 30 records. If a Pleasants County docket search turns up a common name, that limit can cut the list short before every possible match appears. Add the full case number whenever you have it. Without one, compare birthdate, filing date, charge, and disposition line by line, and call the Magistrate Clerk before treating the screen as the whole story.
The portal itself warns that retrieved results may not form a complete civil or criminal history and should be validated with the clerk. Take that seriously when tracking a case. A missing result proves nothing either way. A filing, a transfer, a sealed matter, or an older court record can still sit outside what the screen shows.
What a Case Search Returns
What a Pleasants County case search hands back is docket information, which works like an index of the case. Entries can point you toward filings and outcomes without delivering the underlying pages themselves.
| Case Number | The court's identifier used for a precise follow-up search. |
|---|---|
| Name or Caption | The person name or formal style assigned to the case. |
| Filing Date | The date the case or listed paper was received. |
| Charge or Type | The published charge or civil, criminal, family, or other classification. |
| Status or Disposition | The reported state or outcome, subject to clerk verification. |
| Document List | Names of papers or events; in MCRSearch, the files themselves are not downloadable. |
WVPASS opens public Circuit documents for a small download charge once you register, and registration is free. MCRSearch costs nothing and needs no account, though copies must come from Pam Cox's office. Remember that a certified copy from the custodian is not the same thing as a portal screen.
Pleasants Results Are Not Documents
A docket entry labeled Order, Judgment, or Notice records an event in the case. It is not the signed document itself. Before contacting the clerk, jot down the case number, filing date, and document title. For Magistrate material, call Pam Cox at 304-684-7197. Or stop by Room B-6. Circuit documents go through Millie Farnsworth at 304-684-3513 in Room 201.
WVPASS carries public Circuit coverage back to 1999. Older Pleasants County records may need archival retrieval, so send a specific written request by mail, fax, or email. Name the court, the caption, and the case number. Add the paper you want, the date range, your preferred format, and delivery details.
Statewide vs County Case Search
West Virginia runs its case lookup at the state level, through WVPASS and MCRSearch. The Pleasants County clerk handles the local file and paper channel instead. No separate county case-search database exists to replace those statewide portals, so a docket search starts with the state tools and ends at the clerk's counter for documents.
| Statewide Portal | Pleasants County Clerk |
|---|---|
| WVPASS searches public Circuit records. | The Circuit Clerk confirms the local docket and supplies available Circuit documents. |
| MCRSearch covers statewide Magistrate case information. | The Magistrate Clerk validates Pleasants results and supplies available copies. |
| Remote access may be limited by login, CAPTCHA, coverage date, or result cap. | Phone, counter, mail, fax, email, and supervised inspection provide fallback routes. |
| Best for locating a current public case. | Best for a search miss, older file, document, or certified copy. |
One link on the county site invites confusion. The official "Search Public Records" page at Pleasants County records search covers property and land data rather than court dockets. Treat it as a land records resource, not a Pleasants County case search.
CourtPLUS Is Not Case Search
CourtPLUS and West Virginia E-File serve a different crowd. They form the filing and case-management layer for attorneys and other authorized users. The public is not that crowd. Pleasants County joined the e-filing system on April 12, 2021. Access is tied to each user's role, which is nothing like general public access. The system may assign an alpha-numeric reference code to an e-filed order. The sign-on host offers a Verify an Order function. Helpful tools, but neither one is a free public search box for a docket. A reference code can confirm a document you already know about. It cannot replace a case-number or name search. For public Circuit Court lookup, begin with WVPASS. CourtPLUS explains filing and verification, not where a Pleasants County docket search starts.
Access and Restricted Cases
Not every Pleasants County court record is open to the public. Juvenile and abuse-and-neglect proceedings stay closed. Confidential Family Court matters stay closed too. So do domestic-violence and personal-safety filings, mental-health cases, and sealed or limited Circuit Court files. Protected identifiers get redacted too. A public docket entry may still show that an event happened, even when the underlying paper or personal data is held back.
West Virginia Code §51-4-2 backs the public's right to inspect and copy court records. It applies unless a law expressly limits access. Trial Court Rules 10.03 and 10.04 set out those limits and the reasonable procedures for inspection. The Pleasants County clerk cannot override a sealing order. If you need a restricted file, a motion or court order may be required.
When a Pleasants Search Misses
Start with the clerk. If your Pleasants County case lookup comes up empty online, call the office that holds the docket, or go to 301 Court Lane during posted weekday hours to view the record in person. The Magistrate Clerk's office also has a public terminal available. Written requests work best when you name a specific docket or document, not a broad topic you want staff to dig into.
There is a law behind all this. West Virginia FOIA §29B-1-3 lets you ask the custodian orally or in writing, and it sets a five-day window for a response, not counting weekends and legal holidays. Court rules and standing orders can still seal or restrict certain files, so a docket entry may stay off limits. If the clerk turns you down, request the denial in writing so you know the reason.
Clerk fallback. Circuit and Family searches go to the Pleasants County Circuit Clerk, Room 201, 304-684-3513.
Magistrate searches go to Pam Cox, Room B-6, 304-684-7197. Bring the court, case number, name, document, and date range.