Orders of Protection: What Do They Do?
If you or anyone you know has been the respondent to an order of protection, you are probably at least generally familiar with the basic workings of such an order. If you have never been a respondent to an order of protection or have little familiarity with the topic, what an order of protection may specifically prohibit can be found in the Tennessee Code.
T.C.A. § 36-3-606 defines the scope of a protection order. The language of this statute is critical for many defendants who have been charged with violating such an order, because those defendants may have a valid defense to the charge if the conduct they engaged in is not actually prohibited by the specific order or by the terms used in the order that are referenced in the statute. An order of protection can, but does not have to, include language that does any of the following or any combination of the following:
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(1) Directing the respondent to refrain from committing domestic abuse, stalking or sexual assault or threatening to commit domestic abuse, stalking or sexual assault against the petitioner or the petitioner's minor children;
(2) Prohibiting the respondent from telephoning, contacting, or otherwise communicating with the petitioner, directly or indirectly;
(3) Prohibiting the respondent from stalking the petitioner, as defined in § 39-17-315;
(4) Granting to the petitioner possession of the residence or household to the exclusion of the respondent by evicting the respondent, by restoring possession to the petitioner, or by both;
(5) Directing the respondent to provide suitable alternate housing for the petitioner when the respondent is the sole owner or lessee of the residence or household;
(6) Awarding temporary custody of, or establishing temporary visitation rights with regard to, any minor children born to or adopted by the parties;
(7) Awarding financial support to the petitioner and such persons as the respondent has a duty to support. Except in cases of paternity, the court shall not have the authority to order financial support unless the petitioner and respondent are legally married. Such order may be enforced pursuant to chapter 5 of this title;
(8) Directing the respondent to attend available counseling programs that address violence and control issues or substance abuse problems. A violation of a protection order or part of such order that directs counseling pursuant to this subpart may be punished as criminal or civil contempt. The provisions of § 36-3-610(a) apply with respect to a non-lawyer general sessions judge who holds a person in criminal contempt for violating this subdivision (a)(8); or
(9) Directing the care, custody, or control of any animal owned, possessed, leased, kept, or held by either party or a minor residing in the household. In no instance shall the animal be placed in the care, custody, or control of the respondent, but shall instead be placed in the care, custody or control of the petitioner or in an appropriate animal foster situation.”
These requirements will be discussed in future blogs along with various defenses that a person charged with violating an order of protection can employ in order to avoid any possible punishments that may be imposed on the defendant. Additionally, punishments and the punishment procedure will be discussed in future blogs. Tennesseans who have been charged with violating an order should consult an experienced criminal defense attorney for assistance in resolving the case.
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