Part of your safety plan may be a protective order.
· A protective order is an order issued by a court telling one person (the restrained person) to stay away from and not to hurt, threaten, or communicate with another person.
· A protective order is also known as a protection order, a restraining order, a civil protective or restraining order, an injunction, a no contact order. The order is usually issued by a judge for the protection of family members exposed to domestic violence. It orders the abuser to do or not to do certain things that the judge specifies
Reasons for getting a protective order:
· While some people who have restraining orders against them try to violate those orders, most don't violate the orders.
· A protective order gives the abuser a message from an objective authority figure that abuse must stop.
· A protective order empowers the victim by having an objective authority figure validate the reality of her/his danger.
· A protective order informs law enforcement that the victim is serious about stopping the abuse and keeping the abuser away.
· A protective order (hopefully) delivers consequences if the abuser continues his/her abusive behavior.
· A protective order documents the victim’s attempts to change the situation and distance her/himself from the abuser. (Source PS)
· A protective order can allow a victim time to contact a lawyer.
· A protective order may make the justice system aware of your situation and provide you with a way to get some added help from law enforcement before violence happens.
· If you call law enforcement when someone has -- or is trying to violate the order -- this will give you evidence to use in legal cases you may have against the restrained person.
· If the person you have a protective order against violates the order, you can call law enforcement, possibly before the restrained person can cause more harm. Violation of a protective order is a crime and law enforcement should arrest someone who violates a protective order even without commission of any other crime.
What a protective order can do:
· Prohibit further acts of domestic violence.
· Prohibit the abuser from directly communicating with you (via phone, fax, email, or in person).
· Prohibit the abuser from going within a specific distance of your home or place of employment.
· Prohibit the abuser from going near your home, child care facility, or school of a child protected under the order.
· Provide for you to have temporary decision-making responsibility for children.
· Set child support or spousal support.
· Order the abuser to attend counseling or an intervention program.
· Provide for the possession of mutually-owned property, such as a home or car.
· Help you establish the conditions when she/he should seek assistance from law enforcement.
Who can get a protective order: (Source TCFV)
· Adults who are related to the abuser by blood or marriage. This includes a spouse, parent, sibling, parent-in-law.
· Ex-spouses.
· Persons currently living with an abusive partner or who have lived together in the past or who have a child together.
· Persons who have been involved in “an intimate relationship.”
In Colorado there are several ways a protective order may be issued.
(1) A mandatory protective order is issued by the court in a criminal proceeding (Colorado Revised Statutes Section 18-1-1001).
· This order retrains a person from harassing, molesting, intimidating, retaliating against, or tampering with any witness or victim. In cases of domestic violence the court can order the defendant:
o To stay away from victim’s home or other location including work;
o To not have direct or indirect contact with the victim;
o To not possess firearms or other weapons; and
o To not possess or consume alcohol or controlled substances; or
o Any other order the court thinks is appropriate to protect the safety of the victim.
· This protective order lasts until the defendant is acquitted or until the defendant is convicted and completes his/her sentence.
(2) A civil protective order is issued by a court after a victim petitions the court to have someone stay away from them. A civil protective order requires you to go to court at least twice.
· At the first hearing, you provide information about the harm the other person has caused you and why you think he or she will hurt you again. At the second hearing, the restrained person (defendant) has an opportunity to appear and give reasons why they think the order should not be made permanent. If the order is made permanent, it is in effect forever, unless the court cancels the order. However, the parts of the order concerning children will end after 120 days. It is, therefore, necessary that you also file in District Court for separation, divorce, or custody, so that you can get permanent custody and child support orders. (Colorado Revised Statutes Section 13-14-101,102)
· Where and how to get a civil protective order: (Source TCFV)
o You don’t need an attorney to file a protective order, although you may choose to use one.
o You can get a standardized form at the courts, or through the Judicial Branch Web site: www.courts.state.co.us.
o There is a filing fee with the court and an additional fee to have the other person served with the order. These fees may be waived for low-income people.
o Check for times and locations at your local courthouse or domestic violence agency and for court filing fees (on average $30; can be paid over time or waived if unable to be paid).
o The process to obtain an order will take at least two weeks.
o First you can get a temporary order which is good for 14 days. Then you attend a permanent order hearing (usually within 14 days) where the judge will decide if there is a reason to make the temporary order permanent.
(3) A temporary injunction automatically takes effect at the time of filing for divorce. This injunction restrains both parties from:
· Transferring, encumbering, concealing, or disposing of marital property;
· Molesting or disturbing the peace of the other party;
· Removing minor children from the state without the consent of the other party or an order from the court;
· Changing insurance without 14-days notice or written consent or court order. (Colorado Revised Statutes Section 14-10-107)
A protective order is only one part of a safety plan. Having a protective order does not ensure safety. A protective order is only as good as the abuser’s willingness to obey it. A protective order should not be used to give a victim a false sense of safety; it is not a bullet-proof shield. (Source TCFV)
Unfortunately, protective orders can sometimes have the opposite effect for which they are intended. If an extremely violence abusive partner – an abusive partner who has no respect for the law – or an abusive partner with no concern about the consequences of his/her behavior is served with a protective order, he/she may seek revenge on his/her partner and place her/him, their children, co-workers, family, and friends in danger.
For the system to work its best, law enforcement must be committed to enforce when they receive reports of violations; courts must be committed to significant consequences when they receive reports of violations; and law enforcement must be committed to regarding the next criminal offense as criminal behavior because of the existence of the protective order.
Some people obey protective orders, and others don't. Some people openly violate the order or find ways to manipulate or stretch the limits of the order. To be most effective, protective orders need to be consistently enforced – by you, by law enforcement, by prosecutors, and by judges.
All law enforcement officers in Colorado are required by law to enforce all valid protective orders, regardless of where in the United States they were issued (including Indian reservations, other states, Puerto Rico, and other U.S. possessions and territories). This is known as giving “full faith and credit” for the enforcement of protective orders.
· You can get a protective order in one state and travel or move to Colorado, and Colorado law enforcement officers must enforce the order.
· You can get a protective order in one part of Colorado and then travel or move anywhere in the state, and Colorado law enforcement officers must enforce the order.
· In other states that have passed full faith and credit laws, law enforcement officers must enforce all valid protective orders issued in the U.S. Contact the local District Attorney’s Office to find out if that state will enforce an out-of-state protective order.
In Colorado you can let law enforcement officers know that you have an out-of-state protective order by registering the restraining order with the Central Registry of Restraining Orders. Before doing that, call the local domestic violence program to discuss the advantages and disadvantages of registering your protective order and to find out where and how to register.
When you have a protective order there are several things you can do to help your protective order work for you.
· Always carry the protective order with you and give a copy to a trusted neighbor or family member. Make a copy to put in a safe place. A copy can also be placed in your personnel files at work.
· Call law enforcement if this order is broken by the abuser, each and every time. When law enforcement responds:
o show them the protective order;
o tell them what happened;
o ask law enforcement if they will file charges;
o get paperwork from law enforcement about what you’ve told them and what action they are taking; and
o get the name of the law enforcement officer.
· If you have not consistently reported previous violations, law enforcement may be hesitant to enforce the order later. Law enforcement is required to arrest the abuser if they have probable cause to believe that the protective order has been violated.
· Each and every contact the defendant makes with you is a violation of the protective order and should result in a separate criminal charge being filed against him or her. "Contact" means the defendant cannot do things such as telephone, fax, e-mail, send cards, send letters, or send flowers or gifts.
· Have an additional plan to be safe if the abuser violates the order and law enforcement is not responding quickly.
· Inform neighbors, friends, family, and others that you have a protective order.
· Go to court for the Temporary and Permanent hearing; bring witnesses and evidence with you. You must prove that the person you want to have restrained has injured or threatened you or your children. Evidence that may help prove this includes: law enforcement reports, medical records, eyewitness testimony, and your testimony. Remember: If you do not go to court for the Permanent Protective Order hearing, the Temporary Protective Order will expire.
· You can gain temporary care and control of your children. If you received an order for temporary care and control of your children, that order will expire in 120 days. If you want care and control of your children for a longer period of time, you must go to District Court and file for separation, divorce, or parental responsibility (custody).
Read and understand your protective order. If you don’t understand it, ask the judge, victim advocate, or your lawyer to either explain it to you or direct you to someone who will help you. Make sure you understand:
· what a violation of the protective order looks like;
· how long the order lasts;
· what has to happen for the order to be effective (the other person has to receive a copy of the order); and
· what it says about your children.
· Have the complaint and temporary protective order served personally on the person you are trying to keep away from you. Law enforcement officers in some places will serve these papers. You may hire someone (look in the Yellow Pages under Process Servers) or ask someone over 18 who is not involved in the case to serve the papers.
· If the abuser is to stay away from specific addresses, consider giving a certified copy to your day-care provider, neighbors, or others at those addresses so that they can use it if needed.
· If you want to change the protective order, go back to court and get it changed. Only the court can allow the abuser to see or talk with you or other people the protective order tells him or her to stay away from.
(Source CBA2 except where noted)
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