Decatur County Clerk Office
The Decatur County Clerk is Janet Howell. The county lists her term as beginning January 1, 2023 and ending December 31, 2026. The Clerk's Office is in Suite 244 of the courthouse in Greensburg, and its public hours match the county workday. In Decatur County, the Clerk is the unified local court-records officer for the Circuit Court and Superior Court. That means court filings, records, judgments, warrants processed through court cases, marriage licenses, court payments, and many certified-copy requests route through the same elected office.
The official Decatur County Clerk contact page identifies the office, phone, fax, email, and online payment route. The Clerk's role is broader than a front counter. The office prepares permanent historical records, keeps the Record of Judgments and Orders, maintains indexes used for civil and criminal searches, processes court-issued documents, collects fees and fines, and supports appeals by preparing or approving Records of Proceedings for Indiana appellate courts.
Decatur County Clerk
Clerk: Janet Howell
150 Courthouse Square, Suite 244
Greensburg, IN 47240
812-663-8223
clerk@decaturcounty.in.gov
Monday-Friday, 8 a.m.-4 p.m.
Decatur County Clerk Duties
The Decatur County Clerk duties page says the Clerk administers official court records for all court cases with jurisdiction in the county. Criminal files include felonies, misdemeanors, and miscellaneous criminal matters. Traffic files include infractions, local ordinance violations, and exempted ordinance violations. Civil files include torts, civil plenary actions, protective orders, small claims, domestic relations, reciprocal support, mental health, adoption, probate estates, guardianships, trusts, CHINS, juvenile delinquency, juvenile status, juvenile miscellaneous, and juvenile paternity.
Documents issued or processed by the Decatur County Clerk vary by case type. Civil work can include summonses, subpoenas, garnishment orders, proceedings supplemental, writs of execution or attachment, orders of sale, body attachments, protective orders, notices of claim, contempt citations, orders to appear, and SR33 filings. Criminal work can include arrest warrants, bond release and forfeiture forms, bondsman production notices, and transport orders. Probate work can include wills, inventories, inheritance tax orders, final reports, notifications of heirs, estate opening or closing publications, and other estate papers.
- Maintain official court records and historical judgment/order books for Decatur County cases.
- Issue court process such as summonses, subpoenas, warrants, notices, writs, and orders.
- Collect civil court costs, judgments, criminal fines, infraction fees, restitution, diversion fees, and child support related collections.
- Process marriage applications, issue marriage licenses, prepare notary certifications, register bail agents, and handle passport or distress-sale applications.
- Prepare or approve appeal Records of Proceedings for the Court of Appeals of Indiana and Indiana Supreme Court.
Note: MyCase is useful for public lookup, but the Clerk is the local custodian for official Decatur County court files and certified copies.
Request Decatur County Certified Copies
Certified copies are needed when a bank, agency, court, employer, title company, or other institution requires proof that a document is a true copy from the court file. Online case data is not the same as a certified court copy. Indiana court guidance says documents that are not available online must be requested from the county clerk where the case is heard, and that certified copies of marriage certificates or divorce decrees come from the county clerk.
The Indiana court record request guidance is the statewide fallback when MyCase does not show a document. For Decatur County, the local request should go to Janet Howell's office. A complete request is easier to process when it names the case number, court, parties, document type, number of copies, whether certification is needed, and the delivery method. Older cases may require index work because the Clerk duties page states that indexes are vital records for locating cases and conducting civil or criminal searches.
- Search MyCase first if the case number is not known. Party name, attorney, case number, and court filters may help narrow the result.
- Identify the exact Decatur County document. Examples include a final order, judgment, divorce decree, estate order, bond form, summons, or chronological case summary entry.
- Contact the Decatur County Clerk by phone, email, mail, or in person. Ask whether the record is available, whether it can be certified, and what fee applies.
- Submit the request with enough detail for staff to locate the file. Include mailing instructions if pickup is not planned.
- Pay the required copy, certification, filing, or search cost as directed by the Clerk. The county online payment form is available for listed payment categories, but not every copy request is necessarily paid through that form.
Decatur County Records Request Fields
Decatur County did not publish a single visible HTML court-record request form for all certified copies. The practical request fields come from the statewide court-request path, MyCase search needs, and the Clerk's role as custodian. A clear request should be specific enough to let the Clerk distinguish between people with similar names and between court records, marriage records, probate filings, traffic cases, and payment records.
| Field | Required | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Case Number | No, but preferred | Use the MyCase case number when known; older records may need party names and date range instead. |
| Party Names | Yes | Give full names and role if known, such as defendant, plaintiff, petitioner, respondent, decedent, or spouse. |
| Court or Case Type | Yes | State whether the request concerns Circuit Court, Superior Court, probate, marriage, divorce, criminal, traffic, small claims, or civil records. |
| Document Type | Yes | Name the final order, decree, judgment, will, estate claim, summons, warrant, docket entry, or other paper requested. |
| Certification Needed | Yes | Say whether a plain copy is enough or whether the Clerk must certify the copy for official use. |
| Delivery and Contact | Yes | Include mailing address, email or phone, pickup preference, and the number of copies needed. |
The official state guidance page shown in the manifest explains the request fallback. The image below links to the Indiana court record request guidance.
That statewide instruction supports the local rule: Decatur County Clerk requests are the next step when an online case entry does not provide the needed document.
Decatur County Clerk Payments
The Decatur County Clerk collects a wide range of money tied to court cases. The county names civil court costs, judgment money, criminal fees and fines, deferral fees, pre-trial diversion fees, extradition fees, restitution, misdemeanor and infraction fees, child support related collections, and special user fees. The official online payment form shows payment types for Court Restitution - Fees, Judgments, and Miscellaneous, with fields for amount, reference, name on case, customer name, and email.
Decatur County did not publish a complete local clerk fee schedule in visible HTML. The research therefore points users to the Indiana Trial Court Fee Manual for statewide filing-fee context and to the Clerk for local copy and certification amounts. For marriage records, statewide court guidance lists a certified marriage license copy fee, while certified court copies such as decrees, judgments, and probate orders should be confirmed with the Decatur County Clerk before payment.
| Item | Amount or Source |
|---|---|
| Civil court costs and judgments | Collected by Clerk; amount depends on the case or judgment. |
| Criminal, misdemeanor, infraction fees | Collected by Clerk; includes county, city, and state fees and fines where applicable. |
| Restitution, diversion, extradition, special user fees | Collected as directed by the case, order, or program. |
| Certified court copy | Decatur amount not located in official HTML; contact Clerk. |
| Statewide trial-court filing fees | Use the Indiana Trial Court Fee Manual as a reference. |
The manifest image below links to the county's Decatur County Clerk online payment form.
The payment form is useful for listed payment categories, but certified-copy cost and eligibility still need confirmation from the Clerk.
Decatur County Clerk Forms
Decatur County publishes form lists for small claims and miscellaneous filings. These lists matter because several forms become court records once filed. The small-claims forms include Affidavit of Debt, Notice of Claim, eviction/rent/damages notice, fee-waiver motion, continuance forms, proceedings supplemental forms, dismissal forms, wage assignment, corporation resolution, and links to Indiana small-claims rules. The miscellaneous forms include transfer of assets without administration, estate claim, Circuit Court subpoena, Superior Court subpoena, Circuit Court summons, Superior Court summons, generic dismissal, continuance, and telephonic appearance motion/order.
The image below links to the Decatur County Clerk duties page, which identifies the record categories and documents administered by the office.
Those duties explain why forms, filings, payments, judgments, warrants, probate papers, and certified-copy requests converge at the same Clerk's Office.
For working forms, use the county form pages directly. The small-claims list is at Decatur County small-claims forms. The probate, subpoena, summons, estate claim, dismissal, continuance, and telephonic appearance forms are at Decatur County miscellaneous Clerk forms. Clerk staff can explain filing logistics, but they cannot choose forms or give legal advice.
Decatur County Clerk Access Channels
Decatur County Clerk access is not limited to one database. Public case information may appear in MyCase, attorneys and some self-represented filers use Indiana e-filing, certified copies and older files route to the Clerk, payments may route through the county online payment form or other court payment paths, and in-person questions can be handled at the courthouse during office hours. The Indiana Judicial Branch Decatur County page also links MyCase, e-filing, local rules, court statistics, and court contacts.
The official Clerk contact image below links to the Decatur County Clerk page.
Use that contact page as the local source for office hours, phone, fax, email, suite number, online payment, and court-search links.
Indiana statewide e-filing is the filing channel for many court documents, but e-filing is not a certified-copy service. A person who needs an authenticated Decatur County order, judgment, marriage certificate, probate order, or divorce decree should request it from the Clerk. A person who needs only public case status can start with MyCase, then use the Clerk if the document is missing, confidential, older, or not posted.