Personal protection orders or PPOs. They are legal measures that were created with good intentions. It originated from abusive wives’ defense. Someone required a court injunction to prevent their spouse from seeing the victim. When the law was approved, it was done so with good intentions. It was created to shield potential victims. The statute’s flaw is that it was abused. There’s always a risk of abusing PPO to keep the ex away from the child.
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People appear in court stating that they need defense against another. The PPO is intended to prevent anyone from approaching their children. The PPO must be issued or granted by the court acting under caution. Now, it obstructs parenting time. The court is already wise enough to understand that PPO is being abused to jockey for child custody. You can be prevented from visiting your children while you deal with the PPO. Be more cautious if you think your spouse might ask for a PPO or if you are at risk of receiving one. Avoid engaging in activities that would justify the awarding of a PPO. Any problem that calls for the issuing of a PPO should not be escalated.
What is a restraining order? What is a personal protection order or PPO?
Domestic relationship personal protection order. Domestic relationship PPO is what Michigan refers to as a restraining order. This is in situations of domestic abuse. It is an order from a civil court. It is more popularly known as personal protection order (PPO). It is intended to stop violent and harassing behavior. To protect you and your loved ones from an abuser. You must have a particular relationship with the abuser. They must have performed or be likely to commit certain acts for you to qualify.
A judge may grant you an ex parte domestic relationship PPO when you petition for one. The court can grant this without holding a formal court hearing or having the abuser appear. The judge must decide whether to grant your request for an ex parte order. The judge has to do this within one business day of the petition’s filing. You have to show the delay caused by notifying the abuser will result in immediate and irreversible injury. It can cause loss or damage. Before a PPO is granted, you must demonstrate that the notification itself will hurt you. An ex parte PPO should be issued and effective without prior notice to the abuser or his or her attorney.
A PPO for an ex parte domestic relationship must be in effect for at least 182 days or around six months. A hearing can be requested by the abuser to amend (alter) or revoke (cancel) the PPO. It would be referred to as a final domestic relationship PPO if the judge granted you one following this hearing.
How do you get a PPO?
Ask the court for a PPO. File a petition. Using the petition, the judge will get important data. It will aid them in determining whether to execute your order request. As well as you can, describe the abuser’s actions toward you and how they affected you. Try to recollect the days or times of the year that the incidents took place. You can get a PPO without a police report or any extra paperwork. If you do, you should provide them with your request. They might make it easier for the judge to understand your predicament.
You may have to worry about the risk of the abuser doing something harmful to you. You might not feel safe if they don’t get a PPO immediately. The victim may become paralyzed by fear. There’s always a risk an abuser will hurt you if that abuser finds out about the PPO. If so, you may submit a request for an ex parte order, a unique kind of urgent order. If you get an ex parte order, you can save time by not having to go to a hearing. Information about the PPO will be kept private by the court.
Serve the abuser with your PPO and petition. When a court signs your PPO, it becomes enforceable throughout Michigan. The PPO can be enforced Anywhere in the country once it has been delivered. Although there are various options, you cannot serve the PPO and petition yourself. To keep you secure, someone else must serve the order. The court clerk must receive a Proof of Service form after the PPO has been served.
A copy of your PPO and Proof of Service should always be carried on you. Keep extra copies of your PPO in a safe and secure location. You can get more copies of the order from the court clerk. You can print more copies for your children’s schools or daycare facilities. You can provide copies to your employer, and other people who need notice of it.
How can you prevent PPOs from being abused?
You may experience severe repercussions if a PPO is filed against you. PPO cases are not criminal cases, and they do not affect your criminal history. But it might limit your freedom. PPOs are public information. They are recorded in the police Law Enforcement Information Network (LEIN).
If you are the subject of a PPO, you may be prohibited from taking certain actions, including:
[ a ] Appearing in specific places, such as your home
[ b ] Communicating with the Petitioner and the other individuals specified in the PPO. This can include your children.
[ c ] Owning a gun (even if doing your job necessitates it)
The PPO may also come into play while determining child custody during a divorce. If you are accused of breaking a PPO, you may be detained without a warrant. If a judge finds that you broke the PPO, you may be subject to penalties and jail time. You might wish to speak with a lawyer because being the Respondent in a PPO lawsuit can be detrimental. You can submit a motion asking the judge to change the PPO’s provisions or to end the PPO before its expiration. There’s a form you can use for this purpose.
This form can be used by petitioners or responders. The judge may also be asked by petitioners to postpone the PPO’s end date. The court that issued the PPO is where you should file your motion. There will be a court hearing. Both you and the Petitioner will have the opportunity to present your arguments. The judge will decide whether to prolong, change, or end the PPO at the hearing.
After learning of an ex parte PPO, you have just 14 days to make a request to alter or end it. Ex parte PPOs are PPOs that judges sign without conducting hearings. The judge solely relies on the petitioner’s filing when approving the PPO. The 14-day period begins after you are aware of the PPO. You received the paperwork through a service. You might have learned about the PPO by another means.
The judge will hear your motion to amend or terminate the PPO. You must have good cause and file your motion within 14 days. You must have good cause if you didn’t file your motion earlier or didn’t show up for the court hearing. Your motion will be denied if the judge does not think you have a good reason.
There will be a court hearing within 14 days if you submit your motion by the due date. The hearing will take place within five days if you are a law enforcement officer. The PPO forbids you from possessing a firearm. You have to be ready seven days before the hearing date. You must make arrangements to serve the Petitioner with your motion and the hearing notice.
If you want the PPO amended or terminated, let the judge know. If you want it altered, specify which PPO clauses you want to be changed. Describe to the judge why you want the PPO modified or terminated. Tell the judge if you think the petitioner made any untrue claims in your opinion. Tell the judge about any supporting documentation you have. This can be witnesses, documents, emails, and text messages. If you have hard copies of your evidence, you can affix them to your motion.
You should try to be as accurate and truthful as you can. You will be required to testify at the hearing about the matters covered by your motion. The simplicity and regularity with which a PPO is abused are both well-known to the family law court. Police often tell citizens to try and get a PPO. Use a PPO rather than ask for a criminal warrant for the respondent. This is a customary procedure among the neighborhood police. This feeds the PPO engine in family courts.
There are various ways that the unfeeling petitioner can manifest. The conflicting neighbors are one example of this pattern. Each neighbor is causing the other party just as much trouble. Finally, one of them requests a PPO based on the idea of harassment. When that occurs, it’s critical to show how the petitioner agitated the respondent. Introduce the petitioner’s own abusive or threatening remarks if you can during the hearing. When this occurs, the petition forfeits the presumption of being a victim. A petitioner must feel intimidated, unsafe, or harassed before they can request a PPO.
Someone can present themselves as a victim in court while being an active combatant at home. The reviewing court will have little sympathy for them. Another illustration of an unkind petitioner is a woman who obtains a PPO. This woman then toggles the PPO like a light switch. This behavior is more frequent when a PPO is broken. To put it simply, the petitioner entices the respondent to violate the PPO.
The petitioner offers a dinner invitation to the respondent. The parties start arguing throughout supper. The petitioner then requests PPO enforcement the next day. After the argument, the petitioner switches the PPO back on. This is after having turned it off before dinner. Once more, you must constantly present yourself as the victim if you ask for a PPO in court. A PPO can be defeated by proving that the petitioner is an unsympathetic party.
A PPO hearing is subject to the rules of evidence. The petitioner is likely to violate the norms of evidence if they are unfamiliar to them. In particular, a petitioner’s case may be dismissed due to the hearsay restrictions. In a PPO hearing, there’s a clear advantage of having a lawyer present. A lawyer who can navigate the way around the rules of evidence. One effective strategy for thwarting a PPO is to hire a lawyer. Apply the rules of evidence to restrict the petitioner’s testimony during the hearing.
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Goldman & Associates Law Firm is here to with information about Child Custody and Divorce in the State of Michigan.