Illinois Domestic Violence Restraining Order Basics

 Posted on July 11, 2016 in Domestic Violence

If you or your child has been the victim of violence from a family member, you may be considering getting a restraining order to help protect yourself and other family members at risk of being victims of violence. Indeed, it is important to have a basic understanding of domestic violence and restraining order laws in Illinois.

What is a Restraining Order?

A restraining order, formally called an “Order of Protection,” prohibits a person from engaging in abusive or harassing behavior. Orders of protection are issued after there has been evidence of domestic violence. In Illinois, domestic violence is defined as abuse by one family or household member against another family or household member. “Family or household member” includes a spouse or ex-spouse, children, stepchildren, people who share a child, parents, people who are dating each other or used to date, and people who live together or used to live together. Domestic violence also includes a person with disabilities and his or her caretaker.

Abuse includes physical abuse or harassment. It also includes making a child or another person watch while abuse is occurring, and/or forcing someone to do something they don’t want to do. A caregiver withholding needed care from a person with disabilities is also considered abuse.

Of course, abuse is always illegal, but a restraining order makes someone legally obligated to do or not do certain things that may be otherwise legal. For example, an order of protection can make it illegal for a specific person to go within a certain distance from the workplace of someone who they abused. So if the victim of abuse works at a store, it would usually be legal for the abuser to go into that store and buy something. However, an order of protection can make it so that it would be illegal for the abuser to enter the establishment.

Why Would I Need a Restraining Order?

People get restraining orders to help protect themselves from family members who have abused them and may be continuing to engage in a pattern of abuse or intimidation. In the example above, the abuser may be going into the store and buying things as a pretext to intimidate and harass the family member working there, and a restraining order can help prevent that kind, and other kinds, of behavior.

Restraining orders can also make abusers go to counseling, make them stay away from certain places, make them pay child support, make them stop contacting their victim(s) and make them move out of the house.

How Would I Get a Restraining Order?

To get an order of protection you must first go to the circuit court to request and fill out a petition. Then a judge will review your petition and have a hearing to decide whether he or she should grant the order of protection.

DuPage County Restraining Order Attorneys

If you are thinking about getting a restraining order against an abusive family member, you should have a knowledgeable attorney to help you navigate the process and explain all the relevant laws and conditions that a restraining order creates when it comes to contact between you and your family member. Our skilled DuPage County restraining order lawyers at Davi Law Group, LLC can help you get a restraining order that will protect you.

Sources:

http://www.womenslaw.org/laws_state_type.php?id=509&state_code=IL&open_id=11067
http://www.cookcountyclerkofcourt.org/?section=SERVRESPage&SERVRESPage=order_prot