Search Carbon County Traffic Records
Traffic and summary motor-vehicle matters in Carbon County are primarily handled by Magisterial District Courts. The UJS Case Search system can search by citation number, participant name, docket number, complaint number, incident number, and MDJ court office. Use County = Carbon or Judicial District = Carbon - 56 when the search path allows it. The public docket can show the court office, citation or docket number, charge data, case events, disposition, and financial obligations where payment is approved.
- Open UJS Case Search and choose Citation Number, Participant Name, Docket Number, or another available traffic-related search path.
- Limit the search to Carbon County or Carbon - 56 when the form provides those filters.
- Open the docket sheet and review the citation, charge, court office, event list, plea, disposition, and costs.
- Use PAePay only when the matter is approved for online payment, and read the guilty plea warning before paying a traffic citation.
UJS search also matters when a traffic citation becomes a failure-to-respond issue. The Sheriff active warrant portal includes warrant types such as Arrest Warrant - Fail to Respond and Summons Disobeyed, and the MDJ offices handle summary and motor vehicle matters.
Carbon County Traffic Courts
The official Carbon County Magisterial District Judge page says MDJs hear summary offenses, including motor vehicle violations. They also handle civil money claims within their limit, landlord-tenant claims, preliminary criminal stages, arraignments, bail, arrest warrants, and search warrants. DUI cases are heard by an MDJ only if it is a first offense, no personal injuries occurred, and the defendant pleads guilty. More serious DUI and criminal traffic cases move into Common Pleas criminal records.
| MDJ Office | Judge | Address | Phone |
|---|---|---|---|
| 56-3-01 | Eric M. Schrantz | 340 Center Avenue, P.O. Box 356, Jim Thorpe, PA 18229-0356 | 570-325-2751 |
| 56-3-02 | William J. Kissner | 401 Delaware Avenue, 2nd Floor, Palmerton, PA 18071-1892 | 610-826-3707 |
| 56-3-03 | Beth A. Dodson | 417 East Ridge Street, P.O. Box 203, Lansford, PA 18232-0203 | 570-645-3024 |
| 56-3-04 | Joseph D. Homanko, Sr. | 71 W. Main Street, Weatherly, PA 18255 | 570-427-4100 |
MDJ offices are open 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., closed 12:00 to 1:00 p.m., Monday through Friday. Staff can explain basic procedure but cannot give legal advice.
Carbon County PAePay Fields
PAePay is the statewide payment search for traffic tickets, court costs, fines, and restitution in Common Pleas and Magisterial District Courts. It is not a full court-record database. Only obligations approved for online payment display, and the maximum payment amount for fines, costs, and restitution is $2,500 per transaction. UJS states that paying a traffic citation online requires pleading guilty during the online payment process.
| Field Label | Type | Required | Options or Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Search By | Radio | Yes | Docket Number, Payment Plan, Citation Number, Person, Organization. |
| Docket Number | Text/build tool | Conditional | Used for docket-based payment lookup. |
| Payment Plan | Text/build tool | Conditional | Used for existing payment plan lookup. |
| Last Name / First Name | Text | Conditional | Person search path. |
| Zip Code | Text | Optional | Narrows person search. |
| Date Of Birth | Date | Optional/conditional | Used for person search. |
| Citation Number | Text | Conditional | Traffic citation lookup. |
| Offense Start Date / End Date | Date | Optional | Narrows citation or person search. |
| Court Type | Dropdown | Conditional | Common Pleas, Magisterial District Court, Philadelphia Municipal Court, Philadelphia Traffic Division. |
| County / Court Office | Dropdown | Optional | Includes Carbon and statewide court office lists. |
The PAePay search page is the assigned image source for Carbon County traffic ticket payment lookup.
The form fields are useful for payment matching, but the docket sheet remains the better place to read the court record itself.
Carbon County Traffic Record Fields
Carbon County traffic court records can include docket and citation details from the UJS public docket system. The exact fields depend on the search path and court office, but research supports the following field inventory for public docket and traffic records. Financial details may show only when the obligation is approved for PAePay or when the public docket includes the relevant cost entry.
| Field | What It Shows |
|---|---|
| Citation Number | Identifier tied to the traffic or summary citation. |
| Docket Number | Court docket used for case tracking and payments. |
| Court Office | MDJ or Common Pleas office handling the matter. |
| Participant | Defendant or other case participant and role. |
| Charge or Statute | Traffic, summary, DUI, or related criminal allegation. |
| Case Status | Active, closed, disposed, inactive, or other UJS status values. |
| Events | Hearing, plea, disposition, warrant, or payment-related docket entries. |
| Financial Obligations | Fines, costs, restitution, or payment-plan items where approved for display. |
Pay or Contest Carbon Tickets
PAePay may be used for approved Carbon County traffic tickets, court costs, fines, and restitution. The payment path is limited to financial obligations approved for online payment. It does not guarantee that every citation, payment plan, or cost is available. If a ticket does not appear, check UJS Case Search, the MDJ office on the citation, or the Clerk of Courts payment channels for Common Pleas criminal matters.
Payment is not neutral for traffic citations. UJS states that to pay traffic citations online, the user must plead guilty during the online payment process. A person who wants to contest a citation should not pay online first. Instead, they should follow the citation instructions, contact the correct MDJ office, or seek legal advice before the response deadline.
Payment warning: Online payment of a traffic citation requires a guilty plea, which may affect the court record and driver record.
Carbon County Clerk of Courts payments for criminal matters can be made by mail with check or money order, in office by cash, in office kiosk by credit or debit card, and online through PAePay. That office handles criminal Common Pleas records and collections, while MDJ offices handle many traffic citations directly.
Court vs PennDOT Records
A Carbon County traffic court record is a court file. A PennDOT driver record is a Bureau of Driver Licensing file. They overlap when courts and police report convictions or offenses, but they are not the same record. A court docket can answer what was filed, which court handled it, what plea or disposition occurred, and what fines or costs were imposed. A driver record can answer license-history, conviction-history, and points questions as kept by PennDOT.
| Point | Court Traffic Record | PennDOT Driver Record |
|---|---|---|
| Record source | MDJ or Common Pleas docket, UJS, PAePay for approved payments. | PennDOT Bureau of Driver Licensing. |
| What it shows | Citation, charge, court, plea, disposition, fines, costs, court events. | Driver history, convictions received from courts and police, points, license information. |
| How to access | UJS Case Search, PAePay, or the correct court office. | PennDOT online driver-record service or Individual Driver Records interface. |
| How to correct | Start with the court that entered the docket or disposition. | Start with PennDOT after confirming court reporting. |
The PennDOT driver-record service is the assigned source for the statewide driver record side of traffic research.
Use this state source when the question is about license history rather than the Carbon County court docket.
PennDOT Driver Record Access
PennDOT's online driver-record service requires identifying information. Research lists driver's license number, date of birth, last four Social Security number digits, and credit card information. The Individual Driver Records page requires Adobe Reader and allows online download and printing after a successful order. The user must certify their own access or written authorization. Those requirements do not apply to UJS public docket searches, which are court-record searches.
The Individual Driver Records interface is another assigned traffic source because it shows the state access path for driver history.
That distinction is important for CDL drivers and anyone trying to separate a court case result from license-record consequences.
DUI and CDL Traffic Records
Carbon County MDJs can hear DUI cases only under the official limits: first offense, no personal injuries, and the defendant pleads guilty. More serious DUI matters route to Common Pleas criminal records and are maintained by the Clerk of Courts. For full criminal case context, use Carbon County criminal court records, not only a citation search.
Commercial driver issues may require both the court docket and PennDOT driver record. The research did not identify a Carbon-specific CDL diversion or defensive-driving program, so do not assume one exists. CDL drivers should verify court consequences, PennDOT reporting, and employer or federal reporting effects before entering a plea or paying online.
| Issue | Where It Appears | Carbon County Caution |
|---|---|---|
| First-offense guilty-plea DUI with no injuries | May be handled by an MDJ. | Only within the official MDJ limits. |
| More serious DUI | Common Pleas criminal docket. | Use Clerk of Courts and UJS criminal docket paths. |
| CDL consequences | Court docket and PennDOT driver record. | Verify before paying or pleading guilty online. |
Traffic Record Access Limits
Traffic records can be public court records, but access still has limits. UJS public dockets may not show secure docket content, accounting reports, confidential identifiers, or restricted matters. Docket sheets may contain delayed or inaccurate entries and should not be treated as a criminal-history check. Carbon County Right-to-Know procedure is available for county agency records, but court records follow UJS public access policies and judicial financial records follow Pa.R.J.A. 509.
If a traffic matter turns into a bench warrant, failure-to-respond warrant, or criminal docket, the record path changes. Check the MDJ docket, CountySuite warrant portal, and Common Pleas criminal docket as needed. Sealed warrant information is governed by Rule 513 and may not appear publicly. A missing online payment record also does not prove the ticket is gone, because PAePay displays only approved online obligations.