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What Is Civil Harassment?
In general, civil harassment is abuse, threats of abuse, stalking, sexual assault, or serious harassment past someone you have not dated and do not accept a close relationship with, like a neighbor, a roommate, or a friend (that yous have never dated). It is also civil harassment if the abuse is from a family member that is not included in the list nether domestic violence. Then, for example, if the corruption is from an uncle or aunt, a niece or nephew, or a cousin, information technology is considered civil harassment and non domestic violence.
The civil harassment laws say "harassment" is:
- Unlawful violence, like assault or battery or stalking, or
- A credible (real) threat of violence, and
- The violence or threats seriously scare, annoy, or harass someone and there is no valid reason for it.
"Credible threat of violence" means intentionally saying something or interim in a way that would make a reasonable person agape for his or her safety or the safe of his or her family. A "credible threat of violence" includes post-obit or stalking someone, making harassing calls, or sending harassing messages, by phone, mail, or email, over a period of fourth dimension (fifty-fifty if it is a brusk time).
Read virtually the law in Code of Ceremonious Procedure section 527.6.
Civil Harassment Restraining Orders
A ceremonious harassment restraining order is a courtroom order that helps protect people from violence, stalking, serious harassment, or threats of violence.
Y'all can ask for a civil harassment restraining social club if:
- A person has abused (or threatened to corruption), sexually assaulted, stalked, or seriously harassed you, and
- You are scared or seriously annoyed or harassed.
Generally, for ceremonious harassment restraining orders, the person you desire to restrain is not:
- Your spouse/partner or former spouse/partner,
- Someone you dated at any point, or
- A shut relative (parent, kid, brother, sis, grandmother, grandfather, in-law).
If you have a close relationship like ane of these, consider whether a domestic violence restraining club is best for your state of affairs.
In a ceremonious harassment restraining gild, you tin can ask to restrain:
- A neighbor,
- A roommate,
- A friend,
- A family member more than 2 degrees removed, like an aunt or uncle, a niece or nephew, cousins, and more distant relatives, or
- Other people you are not closely related to.
Of import: If you are 65 or older or a dependent developed, you tin file a civil harassment restraining order confronting someone you are not shut to, just you lot can also file an elder or dependent adult abuse restraining social club, which may be improve for you considering you lot may be able to get more help before, during, and after the courtroom instance.
If you do non authorize for a civil harassment restraining club, there are other kinds of orders you lot may be able to ask for:
- Domestic violence restraining order (for protection from people you were involved with romantically at some indicate or close family members). Go more information on getting a domestic violence restraining order.
- Elder or dependent adult abuse restraining order (if the person being driveling is 65 or older, or between 18 and 64 and a dependent adult). Get more information on getting an elder or dependent adult corruption restraining lodge.
- Workplace violence restraining club (filed by an employer to protect an employee from violence, stalking, or harassment by another person). Go more than information on getting a workplace violence restraining order.
If you are not sure what kind of restraining social club you lot should go, talk to a lawyer. Click for help finding a lawyer. Also, your court's family unit police force facilitator or cocky-help heart may be able to assistance you. And your local legal services offices may also be able to help yous or refer you to someone who tin.
If you think you have a ceremonious harassment case but would similar data most trying to resolve it out of courtroom, click to watch the video Resolving Your Civil Harassment Instance in the California Courts (also available in Spanish).
What Tin a Restraining Order Do?
A restraining society is a court society. Information technology can order the restrained person to:
- Not contact yous or any member of your household;
- Not go near you, your children, or others who live with y'all, no thing where yous become;
- Stay away from your piece of work, your school, or your children's schoolhouse; or
- Not take a gun.
Once the court issues (makes) a restraining club, it goes into a statewide computer arrangement. This means that law enforcement officers across California can see there is a restraining order in place.
Result of a Restraining Society on the Restrained Person
For the person to be restrained, the consequences of having a courtroom guild against him or her can be very severe.
- He or she will not be able to go to certain places or to do certain things.
- He or she will generally non be able to own a gun. (And he or she will have to turn in, sell or store any guns he or she has and will not be able to buy a gun while the restraining order is in event.)
- The restraining guild may affect his or her immigration status. If you are a person to exist restrained and y'all are worried about this, talk to an immigration lawyer to detect out if you volition be afflicted.
If the person to be restrained violates the restraining club, he or she may get to jail, or pay a fine, or both.
Types of Ceremonious Harassment Restraining Orders
Emergency Protective Order (EPO)
An EPO is a blazon of restraining order that simply police force enforcement can ask for past calling a judge. Judges are available to upshot EPOs 24 hours a mean solar day. So a police officer that answers a call because of serious violence or a serious threat tin ask a judge for an emergency protective order at any time of the day or nighttime. For civil harassment cases, EPOs are only bachelor in cases of stalking. If you are existence stalked, yous can call the police and ask for an EPO.
The emergency protective order starts immediately and can last up to 7 days. The judge can order the abusive person to go out the home (if they alive with you) and stay abroad from y'all for up to a calendar week. That gives y'all plenty time to go to court to file for a temporary restraining order.
To become a more permanent guild, yous first must inquire the courtroom for a temporary restraining order (also called a "TRO").
Temporary Restraining Order (TRO)
When you lot become to courtroom to ask for a ceremonious harassment restraining social club, you fill out paperwork where you tell the judge everything that has happened and why you demand a restraining order. If the gauge believes y'all need protection, he or she volition give you lot a temporary restraining club.
Temporary restraining orders commonly concluding about 20 to 25 days, until the court hearing date.
"Permanent" Restraining Order (Restraining Order After Hearing)
When you go to courtroom for the hearing that was scheduled for your TRO, the guess may outcome a "permanent" restraining order. They are not really "permanent" considering they normally final up to 5 years.
Criminal Protective Gild or "Stay-Away" Order
Sometimes, when there is an incident of violence or astringent harassment (or series of incidents), the district attorney will file criminal charges against the person committing the violence. This starts a criminal court example going. It is common for the criminal courtroom to result a criminal protective order against the defendant (the person who is committing the violence and abuse) that is constructive while the criminal case is going on, and, if the defendant is establish guilty or pleads guilty, for 3 years later the case is over.
The Restraining Order Process
When someone asks for a civil harassment restraining guild in court, they have to file court forms telling the judge what orders they want and why. What happens after that varies a little from court to court, but the general steps in the court case are:
i. The person wanting protection files court forms request for the civil harassment restraining gild.
ii. The gauge will decide whether or not to make the order past the next business day. Sometimes the judge decides sooner. Then, the clerk will set a date for a hearing.
iii. If the judge grants (gives) the orders requested, he or she will first make "temporary" orders that only final until your court engagement. The court date will exist on the paperwork. These temporary orders can include issues like:
- Ordering the restrained person to have no contact (including no phone calls or e-mails) with the protected person (and other protected people); or
- Ordering the restrained person to stay away from the protected person (and other protected people).
4. The person asking for protection will accept to "serve" the other person with a copy of all the restraining gild papers before the court appointment. This ways that someone 18 or older (NOT involved in the case) must paw-deliver a copy of all the papers to the restrained person.
5. Both sides go to the court hearing.
- If the protected person does not go to the hearing, the temporary restraining order will usually end that day and at that place will no longer be a restraining gild.
- If the restrained person does non go to the hearing, he or she will have no input in the case and his or her side of the story volition not be taken into account.
6. At the hearing, the judge will decide to continue or cancel the temporary restraining guild. If the judge decides to extend the temporary order, the "permanent" order may last for up to 5 years.
Read Ask for a Restraining Gild for detailed instructions on how to ask for a civil harassment restraining order.
Read Respond to a Restraining Gild for detailed instructions on how to respond a request for a civil harassment restraining society.
Getting Aid
You do non need a lawyer to ask for (or respond to) a restraining guild. BUT it is a good idea to have a lawyer. Click for help finding a lawyer.
The court process tin can exist disruptive and intimidating. Both people will have to come across each other in court, and both will have to tell the judge details of what happened in a public court. Having a lawyer tin can assist brand the process easier to handle.
If you would like information almost trying to resolve your civil harassment dispute out of courtroom, click to lookout the video Resolving Your Civil Harassment Case in the California Courts (also bachelor in Spanish).
For the person asking for protection
Your city or county may have legal aid agencies that help people ask for ceremonious harassment restraining orders, but it commonly depends on the type of abuse or harassment. For example, if you lot take been sexually assaulted, you may be able to go help from legal help or a domestic violence bureau. Sometimes, these agencies volition as well help with stalking cases. And they may help in other situations. It is hard to know whether yous will qualify for assistance without knowing the specific situation you are in.
So if yous need a ceremonious harassment restraining guild, no matter why, offset try to go help from your local legal aid bureau. If they cannot help you, they may be able to transport you to someone who can.
Click for assistance finding a legal aid agency in your area.
Your court's self-assist eye may also be able to aid you with the civil harassment restraining guild or refer you to someone who can.
For the person responding to a restraining order
It is more difficult to detect costless or low-cost legal help if yous are responding to a request for a civil harassment restraining order. But yous should nonetheless try since legal aid agencies accept different guidelines, and your local bar association may have a volunteer lawyer plan that tin help you. Click for help finding a lawyer.
Your court'south self-help center may too be able to help you reply to the restraining order or refer you to someone who tin can.
Other resource
For victims of corruption:
- National Domestic Violence Hotline
1-800-799-7233
TDD: 1-800-787-3224
Call 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. They can aid you in more than 100 languages. It is free and private.
The National Domestic Violence Hotline links you to the following resource in your community:
- Emergency shelters
- Legal help
- Social service programs
The website also provides a lot of data to assist y'all get protection.
- California Department of Public Health Violence Prevention Resource Directory
This site lists aid by county, like:
- Legal aid with your restraining social club
- Victim witness assistance programs
- Counseling services for victims of violence
- Crisis hotlines
For perpetrators of violence and abuse:
- California Department of Public Wellness Violence Prevention Resources Directory
This site lists help by county. - If you need an "approved" batterer intervention program, contact your canton probation section.
Source: https://www.courts.ca.gov/1044.htm?rdeLocaleAttr=en