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Changing Your Court Date

The Circuit Clerk's office is NOT allowed to delay the court date given to you by the police officer. We do NOT accept phone calls or letters requesting that court dates be changed because a Defendant is unable to appear on their scheduled date. You have four options available to you if you cannot appear on the date scheduled on your ticket.

  • If you wish to appear in Traffic Court prior to your court date, walk-in Traffic Court is scheduled for Wednesday, Thursday and Friday at 9:00am

  • Send a friend or family member to appear in court for you and ask the Judge for a continuance. There is NO guarantee the Judge will grant your request for a continuance.

  • If you are eligible to pay your ticket without appearing in court, pay your ticket BEFORE your scheduled court appearance date. See the PAYING YOUR TRAFFIC TICKET WITHOUT A COURT APPEARANCE section for instructions.

  • As a last resort, call the Traffic Division at (815) 434-8271 the day after your court date to find out what happened to your case in court. At that time, we
    will give you your available options based on what happened on your court date. You should be warned that failure to appear can subject you to arrest, summons, bond forfeiture, suspension of driving privileges and/or additional costs.