Clinton Circuit Court convened Dec. 10 for a lengthy multi-county docket in which the judge read charges, confirmed identities and set negotiation and sentencing dates for numerous defendants.

The court repeatedly set negotiation days for Jan. 5 and follow-up hearings on Jan. 8, and entered reciprocal discovery orders directing the Commonwealth to provide materials to defense counsel. Commonwealth attorney Tom Judd (referred to in court as Mr. Judd) outlined plea offers in several cases: defendants in possession and drug cases were offered probated terms, supervised probation, mandated treatment in long-term facilities and community-service requirements; restitution amounts were specified in some pleas (for example $613 and $500 in two matters). In many misdemeanor cases the judge accepted pleas, credited time served and ordered payment plans — commonly $30 per month — toward fines and costs.

The court routinely ordered pre-sentence investigation reports for felony pleas and scheduled sentencing hearings. In numerous cases the court accepted plea agreements that conditioned release or sentence on completion of inpatient treatment arranged through probation or the Department of Public Advocacy.

Procedural matters dominated much of the docket: judges signed discovery orders, resolved scheduling conflicts for counsel and arranged trial dates where indictments or 404(b) evidence required more preparation. The session also included routine arraignments and procedural continuances across several counties (Clinton, Wayne, Pulaski, Rockcastle and others). The court praised grand jurors and reiterated administrative instructions about transport and coordination with holding facilities.

The docket reflects the court’s broad use of treatment-based dispositions alongside traditional incarceration and probation — a pattern seen repeatedly across the plea agreements accepted during the session. The next court dates and sentencing hearings are clustered in early January as the court and parties complete pre-sentence investigation work and treatment placements are arranged.