---
title: "Kathie Hess | KnowJudges"
canonical: "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/kathie-hess-circuit-judge-first-judicial-circuit-first-judicial-circuit-division-5-ar"
page_type: "judge_profile"
updated: "2026-10-07"
---

# Kathie Hess

First Judicial Circuit · Circuit Judge

## Profile

- Court: First Judicial Circuit
- State: Arkansas
- Role: Circuit Judge
- Service status: active
- Last verified: 2026-07-26

## Summary

Official statewide and applicable court procedural guidance applies to this judge.

## Before you appear

- Read the judge-specific standing order first when one is listed.
- Check the docket and case orders for requirements that supersede broader guidance.
- Confirm current remote-access and courtroom technology arrangements before the proceeding.

## Courtroom Rules

### remote hearing platform

Scope: statewide

Arkansas Judiciary publishes electronic-hearing Zoom resources and court-user guides for remote proceedings.

Evidence excerpt: Zoom Guides for Court Users

[Arkansas Judiciary: Electronic Hearings With Zoom](https://arcourts.gov/arkansas-supreme-court-statement-novel-coronavirus-outbreak-and-courts/electronic-hearings-zoom)
Source checked: 2026-07-26

### audio recording

Scope: statewide

Arkansas Judiciary publishes state-district-court digital audio recording guidance as an official court resource.

Evidence excerpt: AOC Provisional Guidelines for Digital Audio Recording in State District Courts

[Arkansas Judiciary: District Courts](https://arcourts.gov/courts/district-courts)
Source checked: 2026-07-26


## Sources

- [Official profile](https://arcourts.gov/directories/circuit-judges)
- [Official roster](https://arcourts.gov/directories/circuit-judges)
- [Arkansas Judiciary official judicial roster](https://arcourts.gov/directories/circuit-judges)
- [Arkansas Judiciary: Electronic Hearings With Zoom](https://arcourts.gov/arkansas-supreme-court-statement-novel-coronavirus-outbreak-and-courts/electronic-hearings-zoom)
- [Arkansas Judiciary: District Courts](https://arcourts.gov/courts/district-courts)

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## Biography

### Professional career

- Advocacy for systemic change in juvenile justice
- Kathie M. Hess is a judge of the First Judicial Circuit Court of Arkansas, serving in Department Division 5 and covering Cross, Lee, Monroe, Phillips, St. Francis, and Woodruff counties

### Education


### Additional information

- She was admitted to the Arkansas Bar in 2001 and was elected circuit judge in 2020.
- Drug Court leadership in reducing recidivism and promoting rehabilitation Arkansas Judiciary.
- Contact (Court Office): First Judicial Circuit Court of Arkansas, Department Division 5, Box 2232, Forrest City, AR.
- Phone: +1 (870) 633‐5995.
- focusing on rehabilitation over punishment.
- As a circuit judge, Hess presides over a wide range of cases in her jurisdiction, including criminal, civil, and juvenile matters.
- Also active in specialized programs such as the St. Francis County Success Program, designed to deter juvenile crime, and the St. Francis County Drug Court Treatment Program, which integrates substance abuse treatment with case management for non-violent offenders.