Dallas County Constable Precincts: Service, Writ Logistics, and How to Work With Each Office

Dallas County has five elected constables, one per Justice of the Peace precinct, and each constable’s office handles service of citations, service of other process, and execution of writs of possession within its precinct. For landlords managing eviction matters in Dallas County, the constables are the critical execution layer between filing the case and getting the unit back. Knowing how each precinct’s constable office operates, what their response times look like, and how to coordinate writ logistics is the difference between a clean writ execution and a chaotic one. We walk through how the Dallas County constable system actually operates and what landlords should know when filing or executing in each precinct.

In our practice, we coordinate writs of possession across all five Dallas County constable precincts on a regular basis. Each precinct office has its own way of running things, from how it schedules executions to who answers the phone and when. None of that is in the statute or rules. It’s learned over years of practice in Dallas County.

The five Dallas County constable precincts

Each Dallas County constable’s office serves the JP precinct of the same number. The precincts cover defined geographic areas within Dallas County:

• Constable Precinct 1. Covers a portion of the City of Dallas and surrounding southern Dallas County areas. The Precinct 1 constable’s office handles service and writ work in the precinct.
• Constable Precinct 2. Covers a portion of the City of Dallas plus surrounding southern Dallas County suburbs.
• Constable Precinct 3. Covers western Dallas County, including Irving, Grand Prairie (Dallas County portion), and surrounding areas.
• Constable Precinct 4. Covers eastern Dallas County, including Mesquite, Garland, Sunnyvale, and surrounding areas.
• Constable Precinct 5. Covers northern Dallas County, including northern City of Dallas, Richardson (Dallas County portion), Addison, Farmers Branch, and Carrollton (Dallas County portion).

The constable serving the precinct where the property sits is the right office for citation service and writ execution on cases filed in that precinct’s JP court.

How constable service works in Dallas County

After an eviction petition is filed in the appropriate JP court, the court issues a citation and forwards it to the corresponding constable’s office for service on the tenant.

SB 38‘s five-business-day window applies to service in Dallas County the same as statewide. Dallas County constables generally meet the five-day deadline on routine residential cases. The five-day clock runs from when the petition is filed, not from when the constable’s office receives the citation (§ 24.0051(f)).

Service methods authorized by Rule 510:

• Personal service on the tenant.
• Substituted service on a person of suitable age and discretion residing at the premises.
• Posting on the property’s main entry door with a mailed-copy follow-up, when personal or substituted service can’t be effected after diligent attempts.

Practical points on Dallas County constable service:

• For gated multifamily properties, providing access information at filing (gate code, contact for property management) speeds service. A constable who can’t reach the door can’t complete personal service.
• The constable’s return of service should be reviewed by the landlord or counsel when filed with the court. Defects in the return can be raised at trial.
• When service fails after the five-day window, the landlord can request that service be reassigned to another peace officer authorized to serve process under SB 38.

Writ of possession execution by precinct

Writ of possession execution is the constable’s most operationally complex task in eviction work. After judgment for possession and the six-day waiting period, the landlord requests the writ from the JP court clerk and pays the writ fee. The clerk issues the writ and forwards it to the constable’s office for execution.

The constable’s execution process:

1. The constable’s office schedules the writ. Scheduling timelines vary by precinct caseload, typically a few days to a week from issuance.
2. The constable contacts the landlord (or landlord’s counsel) to confirm logistics, the scheduled date, time, location, and any access issues.
3. On the scheduled date, the constable arrives at the property. The landlord must have labor and a locksmith on site.
4. The constable conducts the actual removal of occupants. The landlord’s crew moves belongings; the locksmith rekeys.
5. After the unit is cleared, the constable departs and the property is the landlord’s responsibility.

Each Dallas County precinct has its own scheduling rhythm. Some precincts are highly responsive and can usually schedule writs within 3-4 days. Others run heavier caseloads and may schedule out 5-7 days. We track each precinct’s tendencies and set client expectations accordingly.

Practical coordination across the five precincts

For landlords with portfolios spanning multiple Dallas County precincts, a few practical principles from our experience coordinating writs across the system:

• Each constable’s office has its own preferences on writ scheduling. Some prefer phone calls; others prefer email. Some accept the landlord’s preferred schedule; others assign based on available crew.
• The landlord’s labor and locksmith should be staged before the constable arrives, or close enough that the wait time is minimal. Constables vary in their tolerance for waiting; the practical norm is that the landlord’s crew is on site when the constable arrives or within 15 minutes.
• For multi-unit writs (multiple units at the same complex), coordination with the precinct in advance allows the constable to handle them in sequence rather than as separate trips.
• If the writ execution encounters an unexpected complication (occupant refuses to leave despite constable presence, locksmith not available, moving crew running late), the constable’s discretion controls how the day proceeds. Some constables wait for the landlord to recover; others reschedule.

How Cook Keith & Davis works with the Dallas County constables

We coordinate writs of possession across all five Dallas County constable precincts on a regular basis. Our typical workflow:

• We file the eviction petition in the correct precinct and stay in contact with the JP court clerk on citation issuance.
• We monitor service status through the constable’s office and respond if the five-day window slips.
• After judgment and the six-day waiting period, we request the writ and coordinate with the constable’s office on scheduling.
• We coordinate the landlord’s labor and locksmith to be on site when the constable arrives.
• We handle any complications that emerge during writ execution.

Most landlords find this end-to-end coordination valuable because the writ execution is the operationally complex part of the eviction, and it’s where well-executed paperwork turns into a unit you can re-lease.

What makes a writ execution go smoothly or sideways

The writ executions that go cleanly in Dallas County share certain features:

• The writ logistics are coordinated with the constable’s office at least 24-48 hours in advance.
• The labor and locksmith are confirmed and on-site at the scheduled time.
• The landlord has access information (gate codes, building access, unit-specific issues) communicated to the constable in advance.
• Any expected complications (known difficult tenant, large quantity of belongings, animals present) are communicated to the constable’s office so they can plan appropriately.

The writ executions that go badly typically involve one of: landlord’s crew not on site, locksmith not available, miscommunication with the constable’s office on timing, or an unexpected access issue that wasn’t communicated in advance.

In our experience, the difference between a 90-minute writ execution and a half-day writ execution is almost always preparation. The constable does their job; the landlord’s preparation determines how smoothly the day goes.