Restraining Orders

Here are some things you may want to consider doing.  However, you will have to evaluate each one to see if it works for your situation.

• Review the order before you leave the courthouse.  If something is wrong or missing, ask the clerk to correct the order before you leave.
• If you are concerned that the abuser will harass you when you leave the courthouse, ask the court officer if s/he would escort you to the door of the building.  If you are afraid the abuser may follow you once you leave the courthouse, explain this to the court officer.  The court officer might hold the abuser there for a few minutes while you leave so that you can get a head start, which would make it difficult for the abuser to trail you.  This could be especially important if you are living in a shelter or confidential location and you do not want the abuser to know where you are staying.
• Make several copies of the protective order as soon as possible.
• Keep a copy of the order with you at all times.
• Leave copies of the order at your work place, at your home, at the children’s school or daycare, in your car, with a sympathetic neighbor, and so on.
• Give a copy to the security guard or person at the front desk where you live and/or work along with a photo of the abuser.
• Give a copy of the order to anyone who is named in and protected by the order.
• If the court has not given you an extra copy for your local law enforcement agency, take one of your extra copies and deliver it to them.
• You may wish to consider changing your locks (if permitted by law) and your phone number.  In some counties, there might be a domestic violence agency that would change your locks for free if you have an order of protection.  For example, Safe Horizon in NYC has such a program called Project Safe. 

Note: If you need the order of protection to be translated into a different language, this may be possible. Under New York law, if you used a court interpreter in the court proceedings, then the order of protection is supposed to be translated into your language.¹

Ongoing safety planning is important after receiving the order. People can do a number of things to increase their safety during violent incidents, when preparing to leave an abusive relationship, and when they are at home, work, and school.  Many batterers obey protective orders, but some do not.  It is important to build on the things you have already been doing to keep yourself safe.  Click on the following link for suggestions on Safety Planning.  Advocates at local resource centers can also assist you in designing a safety plan and can provide other forms of support as well.

¹ NY Fam Ct Act § 169