Grounds can you get restraining order

Examples of such evidence include:. Prosecutors should follow the rules of civil evidence in order to adduce further evidence to enable the court to determine whether to make a restraining order. In all cases, prosecutors should be prepared to give the court relevant background information upon the court's request. This may include whether the defendant is subject to any civil injunctions or whether there are any pending applications for civil injunctions.

It will be important to check that the information provided is still up-to-date when the matter comes before the court, to ensure that the information given is still accurate. Prosecutors should always consider whether a restraining order is required at the outset and request the police to seek the victim's view.

Although a court can make a restraining order where the prosecution has offered no evidence, it is imperative that prosecutors bear in mind the procedure when applying for a restraining order. Since no evidence will have been heard in the sense that there will have been no trial, the prosecution will have to adduce evidence to support its request for the court to make a restraining order. The effect is that any evidence which would be admissible in proceedings for an injunction under section 3 would be admissible by way of further evidence for the purposes of seeking a restraining order on acquittal.

It is likely that a court would require further evidence to be satisfied that it was necessary to make the restraining order to protect the victim from harassment by the defendant, and the court would not be able to make this assessment without seeing any evidence at all. Evidence generally means sworn testimony, exhibits and agreed facts. It would be sensible to establish before presenting the evidence what is and is not in dispute.

The court is not concerned to establish a criminal offence beyond reasonable doubt, just that there is enough evidence on the balance of probabilities to impose an order which is required to protect a victim. Once the facts are agreed, the prosecutor may offer no evidence provided the defence agree to a Restraining Order and then outline the agreed facts to a court.

There may be circumstances where the defence initially agree to a Restraining Order, but change their mind AFTER the prosecution offers no evidence. In R v Major [] EWCA Crim the court explicitly stated that there was no requirement for the defendant to consent, so if a defendant withdraws consent after no evidence is offered the court can impose the order. However the court also stated that the judge should identify the factual basis for granting a restraining order which must be based on evidence, and the standard of proof for a post acquittal restraining order is a civil one.

Where necessary, this may include adjourning a case to call witnesses. Although offering no evidence and applying for a restraining order may be a sensible way of disposing of some cases, Prosecutors are reminded to be circumspect about this approach and ensure that it does not become the default position particularly in Domestic Violence cases. When advising the court of its powers to make a restraining order, it will be of assistance to the court if the prosecutor is able to provide it with a draft order setting out proposed prohibitions.

A template for use when drafting a restraining order is available. Do not use references to "fear of violence" in draft post-acquittal orders as there is no power to protect a person from fear of violence that falls short of harassment where the defendant has been acquitted.

A restraining order made under section 5 or 5A of the PHA may have effect for a specified period or until further order section 5 3 PHA Unlike an ASBO, for which there is specific legislative provision for an interim order, there is no power for the court to make an interim restraining order.

However prosecutors should bear in mind the provisions under the Bail Act and request for conditions as appropriate. Under section 5 3 of the PHA, it is possible to make a time-restricted restraining order. However, the test for the making of such a restraining order is the same as for an order of a longer or indefinite period for ASBO interim orders there is a separate lesser test. If the defendant states that he is not in a position to deal with the consideration of the making of a restraining order and requests that the matter be adjourned, the court should be encouraged to still make an order if at all possible.

Prosecutors should remind the court that it is always open to the defendant to subsequently apply for the order to be varied or discharged. Section 5 4 of the PHA permits the prosecutor, defendant or any other person mentioned in the section 5 or 5A order to apply to the original court for the order to be varied or discharged.

Section 12 4 of the DVCVA inserted a new section 5 7 into the PHA , which permits the court to vary or discharge the section 5 order when it deals with a person for the offence of breach of the order. Any person mentioned in the order including the defendant and persons protected by the order is entitled to be heard on the hearing of a variation or discharge application section 5 4A of the PHA A situation may arise whereby the victim seeks to vary the restraining order under section 5 4A of the PHA If the victim approaches the CPS, we should endeavour to apply on behalf of the victim, so to maintain the confidence stakeholders have in the CPS and lessen the burden on the victim.

This situation requires very sensitive handling, especially in light of the fact that victims or other persons may not be legally represented in court. Prosecutors should take account of the victim's views as outlined in the Prosecutors' Pledge and inform the court accordingly.

In R v Brown [] EWCA Crim the victim opposed the making of a restraining order and in quashing the order, the court said: "This young woman wishes to continue in a relationship with a man who has been repeatedly violent to her. That is a decision that she is entitled to make, however dispiriting it may be. There is no suggestion that she lacks capacity, or that she has been forced to do this, or that she is in fear of the applicant.

She genuinely wishes to pursue her relationship. In those circumstances the restraining order should not have been imposed. It may be helpful to ask the victim to give another Victim Personal Statement before an application for variation or discharge is heard, in order to gain a better understanding of what has happened since the restraining order was granted.

An order made on acquittal can be appealed against in the same way as an order made on conviction. Where a conviction is quashed on appeal, the Court of Appeal may remit the case to the Crown Court to consider the making of a restraining order if it is satisfied that it is necessary to do so to protect any person from harassment section 5A 3 PHA The penalty that may be imposed upon breach of the new section 5A restraining order is identical to that which can be imposed under section 5.

On conviction on indictment, the defendant may be subject to imprisonment for a term not exceeding five years, or a fine, or both. On summary conviction, the maximum penalty is imprisonment for a term not exceeding six months, or a fine not exceeding the statutory minimum, or both. The Code for Crown Prosecutors is a public document, issued by the Director of Public Prosecutions that sets out the general principles Crown Prosecutors should follow when they make decisions on cases.

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Can I take my kids out of the state? I was granted temporary custody with my protective order. Will another state enforce this custody order? What are the requirements? Can I have my out-of-state protection order changed, extended, or canceled in Oklahoma?

Will I still have temporary custody of my children in Oklahoma? How do I register my protective order in Oklahoma? Do I have to register my protective order in Oklahoma to get it enforced? Will the abuser be notified if I register my protective order?

View all. What are the reasons grounds for getting a protective order? You may have as little as two days to get ready to go to the hearing. If the hearing is scheduled more than a few days away, the court will send you notice of the time and date of the hearing in the mail.

If there is not enough time to mail you a notice, the court may contact you by telephone. Be sure the court always has your current contact addresses and contact phone numbers so you get notice of any hearing. You also can call the court to check to see if a hearing has been set. Remember, you must go to the hearing or the order will probably be dropped. If you cannot go to the hearing due to an emergency, call the court clerk right away.

It may be helpful to have an attorney represent you at the hearing, but it is not required. You do not have to disclose your current residential address. You may have gone to a safe place that is not known to your abuser. If so, you may want to use a so-called "contact address"— that is, an address other than where you are actually staying.

If you decide to do this for your safety, you also are agreeing to allow your abuser to serve his or her court papers on you at that address.

You must check for court papers at that address regularly so long as you list that address with the court since it is the address where your abuser must send copies of anything he or she files. If you miss a court deadline because you have not checked for court papers at that location, the other person will win whatever he or she was asking for in the papers delivered to that address.

The purpose of the hearing is to decide whether or not the restraining order will remain in effect, and if it does remain in effect, if the order will stay the same or change in some way. The judge may decide not to change the order even if both sides agree that they want the same changes.

At the hearing, you must prove that you have been abused and that you are in danger of further abuse. Some judges will ask you to present your case first, and other judges will ask the other side to present their case first.

Either way, be prepared. You should be ready to give your own testimony, call your witnesses for in-person testimony and give the judge any evidence you have such as photos of your injuries. Your witnesses may also be questioned by the other side. If you are worried about your safety, you may ask for a sheriff's deputy to be present in the courtroom.

The respondent must request the hearing within 30 days of being served, and the hearing must be held within 21 days after the court receives the request for hearing. If temporary child custody is an issue, the hearing must be held within 5 days after the request.

In addition, if there are exceptional circumstances that would affect custody, either party can request that the hearing take place within 14 days. You can call the police. The officer must arrest the respondent if there is a good reason to believe a violation has happened. The respondent can be charged with contempt of court. If found guilty of contempt, the respondent can be fined, placed on probation, or put in jail.

It is best that you carry a copy of the restraining order with you at all times and that you not contact the other party. A restraining order does not guarantee your safety. You can take other steps to stay safe. A domestic violence or sexual assault program can help. After being processed at the jail, the abuser could be released without posting bail if he or she appears likely to reappear in court. A condition of the release will probably be that the abuser does not have any contact with you.

Otherwise, the abuser will be held in jail until 10 percent of the bail is paid, or until the bail is lowered in a court proceeding, or until a hearing has been held on whether or not the restraining order has been violated.

Other possible punishments could be a warning, probation, a suspended sentence or a sentence of less than the maximum. Your local district attorney is required to represent your interests at the contempt hearing if you cannot afford to hire your own attorney.

You must file papers at the courthouse to ask the judge to drop the order. The order remains in effect until the judge dismisses it. It may take a few days for law enforcement to get notice of the dismissal. In a small number of situations, the parties may agree to dismiss the restraining order and enter into a limited no-contact agreement to facilitate communication between the parties with respect to the children and parenting time only.

This should only be done if it is safe to do so, and it would be best to speak with a lawyer first. Forms to modify a restraining order are available at the courthouse or online. If you ask for a change that removes or makes a term less restrictive, the judge may sign an order changing the terms without requiring a hearing.