Requesting a District Court Restraining Order Copyright July 2011, Legal Aid Society of Hawai i All rights reserved. These materials may not be reproduced without written permission of the Legal Aid Society of Hawai i. Under no circumstances are persons receiving these brochures to be charged for copies. This is meant to be an informational brochure, and is not intended to take the place of legal counsel. The distribution of this brochure by the Legal Aid Society of Hawai i does not imply that an attorney-client relationship has been formed. This brochure is not intended to be a complete statement of law nor intended to fully describe or evaluate your options. O19. Requesting a District Court Restraining Order. Created 7/20/2011.
How do I get a District Court Restraining Order ( RO )? 1. Apply for a 90 day Ex Parte Temporary Restraining Order ( TRO ). You may apply for a District Court temporary restraining order (TRO) if the person harassing or abusing you: Is not someone to whom you are married or were married. Is not a relative. Has never lived with you. Is not someone with whom you had a child. Is not a dating partner. If the person who is harassing or abusing you falls into one of these categories you must file a Family Court Temporary Restraining Order. Call 538-5959 for more information. A. Where to Go for a TRO: Please apply at the following locations: Oahu Honolulu District Court, Regular Claims Division, located at 1111 Alakea Street, 3 rd Floor, (808) 538-5151 Maui Service Center, located at 2145 Main Street, Room 141A, (808) 244-2706 Hawai`i Administration and Services Section, 777 Kilauea Avenue, Hilo, (808) 961-7430 Kauai Civil Division, located at 3970 Kaana Street, Suite 207, (808) 482-2303 Hours: 7:45 a.m. through 3:00 p.m., Monday through Friday, except for holidays and furlough days. No appointment is necessary. B. What you Need to Know About Filing for your TRO When you arrive at District Court, a clerk will help you fill out the necessary forms. Or, if you wish to fill them out ahead of time, please download them from the District Court website under the Forms section. You will be the "petitioner" and the defendant is called the "respondent." If the TRO is granted, the respondent must be served with a copy. Please explain to the clerk if you don't want the respondent to know your address or telephone number. More Details Give You Greater Protection Please be prepared to provide as much detail as possible. Your petition may be denied if not enough details are provided. Keep in mind, you are signing the petition stating that the evidence you are providing is true under the penalty of perjury. Examples of important details include: Dates of abuse or threats. Description of physical or psychological abuse. Information about property damage. Documentation about abuse, including medical and police reports. Information about whether the respondent owns a gun or has threatened you with one. Name of parent or guardian, if the respondent is 17 or younger. 2
Filing Information for Juveniles If you are 17 or younger, one of your parents or a legal guardian must accompany you to file the TRO on your behalf. If you are filing against a minor, please provide the names of the minor's parents or guardians. If you cannot have a parent or legal guardian come with you, explain why in your petition. If you are 17 or younger and you are married, you can file a petition in your name alone. Fees There is a $15.00 filing fee for the TRO, which can be waived in exceptional circumstances. Personal checks are accepted. If the TRO is granted, the clerk will give you certified copies of the TRO. Ask the clerk to "conform" all copies by stamping the Judge's signature and the date of signing on all orders. Let the clerk know how many copies of the TRO you will need. The Judge will decide whether to grant the TRO without a hearing. It may take up to a day for the Judge to decide be patient. After the TRO is Granted If the TRO is granted, a TRO/Injunction hearing will be scheduled within 15 days. The purpose of the hearing is to determine if you can extend protection beyond 90 days. A District Court clerk will give you a hearing date and time, which will appear on the TRO. You do not have to have an attorney at the TRO/Injunction hearing, but you may want one, especially if you think the respondent will obtain legal counsel. Your TRO will not take effect until it is served on the respondent. ***Keep a copy of your TRO with you at all times*** 2. Have the police serve the TRO on the Respondent. A TRO is effective when the Judge signs it, but it is only enforceable against the respondent once they have a copy of it. This copy is also the respondent s notification to appear for the hearing for the long-term Protective Order. DO NOT TRY TO SERVE THE RESPONDENT YOURSELF! It s dangerous and the court will not accept that as legal service. First Circuit (O`ahu): Take the TRO papers to the police station in the same area where the respondent resides. Give the police the exact addresses where the respondent can be located and the times you expect the respondent to be at those addresses. They will then "serve" the respondent, which means they will give the respondent a copy of the TRO. There is no charge for this service. Call the police every 24 hours until they tell you they served the respondent, or give them a self-addressed, stamped envelope and they will mail you the date and time served. The most dangerous time for a victim is right after the respondent gets a copy of the TRO. You need to know when the TRO is served on the respondent so you can protect yourself (see plan for your safety on the bottom of page five). 3
Second and Third Circuits (Maui and Hawai`i): Contact a Process Server from the list of Process Servers provided to you. Provide the Process Server with one copy of the TRO. Give the Process Server the exact addresses where the respondent can be located and the times you expect the respondent to be there. The Process Server will then "serve" the respondent. Check with the Process Server to find out when the respondent was served. There is a $25 charge per complaint served plus a $.40 per mile mileage charge that is paid to the Process Server. You also have the option of having the TRO served by any person who is not party to the case and who is not less than 18 years of age. Fifth Circuit (Kaua`i): Take the TRO papers to the Lihu`e Police Station. Give the police the exact addresses where the respondent can be located and the times you expect the respondent to be there. They will then "serve" the respondent a copy of the TRO. There is a $15.00 for each respondent served. Check with the police to find out when the respondent was served. For all circuits: Your TRO is not officially in effect until the respondent receives a copy. If the respondent has not been served by your hearing date, you need to go to Court and ask for a later hearing date, so that the police can serve the respondent. Your TRO orders the respondent not to contact you but keep in mind that the TRO does not guarantee your safety. Please take proper precautions. While the TRO is in effect, there should be no contact either by the respondent or by anyone acting on the respondent's behalf. Report any violations to the police immediately. If you initiate or invite contact with the respondent, your TRO is still valid, but the court and police may question your actions. Keep a copy of your TRO with you at all times and report violations to the police immediately. 3. TRO/Injunction Hearing A temporary restraining order is valid for 90 days from the time the respondent is served with the TRO papers. If you want to extend the order, a TRO/Injunction hearing is required. The date and time of your TRO/Injunction hearing appears on your TRO. During this hearing, you need to present the court with information about continued abuse and threats. Based on your testimony and documentation, the Judge decides whether to extend your protection beyond 90 days. The Judge can issue an injunction for up to three years. The respondent will be ordered by the court to appear for the hearing. If you do not appear, your petition will be dismissed, even if the respondent has not been served with a copy of the TRO. If you have not been able to serve the respondent, you need to appear at your hearing and ask the Judge for more time to 4
serve the TRO and reschedule your hearing. If you fail to appear at your hearing, the TRO ends the day you miss your hearing. You will have to start the process over if you do not attend your hearing. Presenting Your Evidence At the hearing, the respondent has the option to agree to the TRO. Otherwise, the respondent will have a chance to defend against the claims you have made. Be prepared to present clear and convincing evidence about the abuse. In your case, you may need to: Bring witnesses. Provide personal records, medical and police reports. Report any TRO violations that occurred after the respondent was served. If the respondent has an attorney but you don't have one, you may ask the Judge for a continuance, or another court date. This will give you time to get an attorney. The Judge may or may not grant your request. If the Judge denies your request, proceed with presenting your evidence. If you win, the Judge will order the respondent to turn his/her firearms over to the police. If Respondent Fails to Appear in Court If the respondent is not at the hearing because he or she was not served, ask the Judge to temporarily extend the TRO and get a new hearing date, which will usually be two weeks from the original date, but may be extended for a longer time period. Give your original TRO to the law clerk so your TRO is officially extended to the new hearing date. Then, request an extra certified copy and two copies of the "Return of Service." Take these documents to the police so they can serve the respondent with information about the new hearing date. If the respondent was served but fails to appear, the Judge is likely to issue an injunction for up to three years. The court will give you two copies, one to keep and one to take to the police so the respondent can be served with this injunction. After the Decision If an injunction is ordered to replace the TRO, stay in the courtroom until the Judge gives both you and the respondent certified copies of the new court order. You can ask the Judge to allow you to exit the courtroom first. If the Judge issues an injunction, read it carefully. It may be different than what you asked for. To change a TRO for any reason, you need to go back to Court and ask the Judge to amend the TRO. Keep a copy of your TRO with you at all times and report violations to the police immediately. Remember, a TRO or injunction does not necessarily make you safe. Please take proper precautions. Plan for your Safety: Tell everyone you know that you have a TRO (employer, church members, friends, family, babysitter, etc.) Change the locks on your doors and windows as soon as possible. Install a security system if possible. Purchase additional locks, window bars, poles to wedge against your doors. Install smoke detectors and keep fire extinguishers on every floor. 5
Install extra outside lighting include motion-activated lighting. Decide where you and your kids would go and what you would do if you were in an unsafe situation. Think about who to call: give your kids numbers to call/places to go in emergency situations. Teach your children their name, address, phone number, the phone number of a safe friend/relative and how to dial 911. Have a code word you use with family or friends that lets them know to call the police. Keep essential items accessible, (medication, important phone numbers, cash, extra clothes, important papers, keys, shelter number, I.D., etc.). 4. Enforcing the TRO Breaking a TRO is a misdemeanor criminal offense. Depending on the specific conditions of your TRO, the respondent could be breaking the law by: contacting you by phone, coming to your workplace or home, destroying your property, threatening to hurt you or others, coming within a certain distance, or any other act prohibited in the restraining order. If you are unsure whether your TRO has been broken, read it to see what the Court has ordered. Keep a copy of your TRO with you at all times, and be familiar with what it says. If you call the police about a violation they will need to see the Order. Do not contact the respondent. The TRO is also binding on you. If you contact the respondent, you are violating the TRO. Police and the courts will be less sympathetic to your complaint if you have invited contact. The Respondent Broke the TRO No matter what the violation (even calling or texting you), call 911 immediately to report it. If you are not near a phone at the time of the violation, call as soon as you can get to a phone. Call 911 immediately to report any TRO violation. HPD will send an officer to your house. If the violator is still in the area, the police should make an arrest if there is evidence of a violation. Get the police officer s name, badge number, and the report number. Whether or not the violator is arrested, the police must file a report. Tell the officer that you would like to write a statement for the report. In your statement, give a brief summary of what happened. If no arrest was made, call the Division of the Prosecuting Attorney s Office (OAHU: 523-4158, MAUI, MOLOKAI, LANAI: 270-7777, KAUAI: 241-1888, KONA: 322-2552, HILO: 961-0466) and report the violation after reporting it to police. If the P.A. feels there is enough evidence they will issue a penal summons on the violator to appear at court. If a penal summons is issued you may not drop the case. Write down exactly what happened, what the respondent did, what time, names of witnesses, police officers and report numbers. Keep this information for future use. 6
If you have questions about an arrest, call Victim/Witness Assistance (OAHU: 523-4158, MAUI: 270-7695, KAUAI: 241-1888, HILO: 961-0466, KONA: 322-2552) and tell them you reported a TRO violation to the police. The Respondent Was Arrested for Breaking the TRO The violator will be taken to the police station and booked. Bail is set from $50-$1,000, and they will be required to appear for an arraignment hearing within 7 days of arrest. At the arraignment, the violator can plead guilty and be sentenced, or can plead not guilty and request a trial. If a trial date is set, you will be subpoenaed to appear as a witness at the trial. If convicted, the violator will be sentenced to anything from probation to counseling to jail. Calling the Police Safety issues are considered a priority call by the police. Here are some tips on how to make sure that when the police are involved they follow proper procedure. You can help by remaining calm when talking to them. You can ask them to take you to a shelter, hospital or other safe place if you do not feel safe at your house. Call 911. If police do not respond within 10 minutes call again. When police arrive, tell them in detail what happened. Show them your injuries and describe any pain you are in. Tell them about previous incidents of abuse, reported or not. Show them any court documents like TROs. Let them know if there are any witnesses. This information can determine whether or not an arrest will be made. Make sure to file a police report. Officers must file a report whether or not they make an arrest. The police should interview you, the Respondent and any witnesses. You can ask to be interviewed away from the Respondent. Sign a Victim s Voluntary Statement. The officers should ask you to complete and sign a Victim s Voluntary Statement which describes the incident in your own words. Police may also take photographs which will be included in the report documents. If police do not make an arrest they must still file a report. The police should make an arrest if they have enough evidence of abuse. If they do not make an arrest their report is sent to the Family Abuse Detail for follow up investigation. Request a Stay Away Order to keep the Respondent off the premises for 24 hours. Police can arrest someone for breaking a stay away order. (A Stay Away can also be issued if the person is arrested.) Call the Victim/Witness Protection Division of the Prosecuting Attorney (OAHU: 523-4158, MAUI: 270-7695, KAUAI: 241-1888, HILO: 961-0466, KONA: 322-2552) if the police do not make an arrest. The police won t do anything. If police are not doing what they are supposed to (e.g. fill out a report, offer you protection you need, etc.), call 911 while they are there and ask for a supervisor. If they have already left: OAHU: call the Internal Affairs Division at 529-3286 to file a complaint. MAUI: call 244-6480 and ask for the Domestic Violence Unit to complain. On the Big Island, call the Hawaii County Police Commission at 961-8412. 7
Legal Referrals Legal Aid Society of Hawaii 536-4302 Volunteer Legal Services Hawaii 528-7046 Domestic Violence Action Center 531-3771 Important Phone Numbers: OAHU: Victim/Witness Assistance Division 523-4158 of the Prosecuting Attorney s Office Prosecuting Attorney 768-7400 Honolulu Police Department 529-3111 Legal Aid Society, Oahu 536-4302 MAUI/MOLOKAI/LANAI: Victim/Witness Assistance Division 270-7695 Of the Prosecuting Attorney s Office Prosecuting Attorney 270-7777 Maui Police Department 244-6400 Legal Aid Society, Maui 242-0724 BIG ISLAND: Victim/Witness Assistance Division and Prosecuting Attorney Hilo: 961-0466 Kona: 322-2552 Kona Police Department 326-4646 Hilo Police Department 961-2244 Legal Aid Society of Hawaii: Hilo: 934-0678 Kona: 329-8331 KAUAI: Victim/Witness Assistance Division 241-1888 and Prosecuting Attorney Kauai Police Department 241-1711 Legal Aid Society, Kauai 245-7580 8