The North Justice Center is the Orange County courthouse that hears criminal and traffic matters for the northern part of the county. If someone was arrested in Anaheim, Brea, Buena Park, Fullerton, La Habra, La Palma, Placentia or Yorba Linda, this is where the case goes.

This page collects the practical details families ask us for most: where it is, which number to call, what the hours are, and what you cannot bring through the door.

Court details

The criminal and traffic line offers automated information 24 hours a day, with customer service agents available during business hours.

Cities the North Justice Center serves

The court assigns eight cities to this courthouse:

• Anaheim — we have an office here
• Brea — we have an office here
• La Habra — we have an office here
• Buena Park
• Fullerton — the courthouse itself is in Fullerton
• La Palma
• Placentia
• Yorba Linda

We serve all eight. Our offices are in Anaheim, Brea and La Habra only — we do not have an office in Buena Park, Fullerton, La Palma, Placentia or Yorba Linda, and we serve those cities from whichever of the three is nearest. More detail is on our North Orange County bail bonds page.

Security screening — what you cannot bring

The North Justice Center is a full security facility. Everyone entering passes through a weapons screening device, and hand-carried items are x-rayed.

The court prohibits weapons of any type. Items specifically named include:

• Knives of any kind, including pocket knives
• Scissors
• Corkscrews
• Mace and pepper spray
• Knitting needles
• Anything else that may be deemed potentially offensive

There is no cloakroom for prohibited items, so leave them in your vehicle. This catches people out constantly — a keyring pocket knife or a small canister of pepper spray is enough to send you back to the car park and risk missing a hearing.

The Self-Help Center

The court runs a Self-Help Center at this location on the 2nd and 4th Tuesday of each month, 8:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. and 1:00 to 4:00 p.m., reachable on (657) 622-6623. It is a court service, not ours, and it is a reasonable first stop if you have procedural questions we cannot answer.

Where the courthouse fits in the process

A courthouse is where the case is heard. It is not where someone is held straight after an arrest.

1. Arrest by the city police department — or, in Yorba Linda, by Orange County Sheriff’s deputies.
2. Booking, either at a city facility or in the county system. The main county booking and release point is the Central Men’s and Women’s Jail / Intake Release Center at 550 N Flower St, Santa Ana.
3. Bail, where the charge carries a bail amount. Some holds prevent release regardless of money, and we will tell you plainly if that is the situation.
4. First appearance at the North Justice Center, where the charges are formally read and the court addresses custody and future dates.

What happens at that first appearance depends entirely on the charge and the individual circumstances. That is a question for a defence attorney, not for a bail agency, and we will say so rather than guess.

How a bail bond fits in

Bail is posted at the jail, not at the courthouse. If someone is in custody and bail has been set, we can usually get the process moving quickly — often before the first court date.

Because all three of our offices sit in cities assigned to this courthouse, the North Justice Center is the court we deal with most. That familiarity is the practical benefit of using a local agency rather than a call centre.

Call whichever office is nearest the city where the arrest happened:

All three are open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. See all of our office locations, the areas we cover on our service areas page, or read more frequently asked questions.

Other Orange County courthouses — Central, West and Harbor — are listed on our Orange County courthouses page, and the county-wide overview is on Orange County bail bonds.

Please note: American Freedom Bail Bonds is a private bail bond agency licensed by the State of California (licence 1841014). We are not affiliated with, endorsed by, or acting on behalf of the Superior Court of California, County of Orange, or the North Justice Center. The details below are published for the convenience of families and are drawn from the court’s own published information. Court hours and procedures change — always confirm directly with the court on (657) 622-5600 before you travel. Nothing on this page is legal advice.