PROTECTIVE ORDERS

If you have been arrested for a case that is domestic in nature, then the Court WILL issue you a protective order while the case remains pending. These protective orders are issued immediately after arrest—the very next day. At this point, most people do not have a lawyer and attend their arraignment alone. This is a mistake—see Attorney Paz's rant on Fernando A. Hearings to learn more!

understanding protective orders

A protective order can be as minimal as a partial protective order, which will order you not to

assault, threaten, abuse, harass, interfere with, or assault the protected party. In other words,

just keep the peace with the complainant while the case is pending.

However, protective orders can get WAY more intrusive in the form of a residential stay away.

This means that in addition to all the requirements of a partial protective order, you are also

being ordered by the Court to leave your home while the case is pending. This means that you

will have to find alternative lodging for what could be months while the case works its way

through the court system. This means additional living expenses and time away from your

family.

Finally, protective orders can be full no-contact protective orders, which means that in addition

to all of the requirements of a partial and residential stay away order, you are also being

ordered to have no contact with the protected party in any manner—this means via phone,

text, social media, or through a third party. Attorney Paz has seen people get arrested for tagging someone in a social media post as a form of “contact.”

These protective orders can also apply to the protected party’s minor children, which means

that this could negatively impact your ability to see and speak to your children. If there are

young children, sometimes DCF gets involved and they oftentimes report to the Court their

recommendations for levels of protective orders based on the family’s level of cooperation with

recommended services. A violation of any one of these orders is a Class D felony carrying with it

up to 5 years’ incarceration.

what will determine my level of protective order?

The level of protective order that gets issued at arraignment by the Court is made based on the

recommendation of the Family Relations Officer. These recommendations are based solely on

a checklist that includes the level of charges, history of the parties, any mental health or

substance abuse issues on the part of the defendant and based on an interview with the

complainant as to his/her request on the level of the order. See Attorney Paz's rant on the Family

Relations Office to learn more about this process!

Paz Law can help with your protective order

There are ways to get protective orders modified. This is easier to do so if you retain an attorney

BEFORE you go to your arraignment. Contact Paz Law to see if Attorney Paz can help you get your protective order modified. As an experienced criminal defense attorney, she will be happy to provide a consultation and assist however she can.