Tampa domestic violence attorneys are often asked about violations of domestic violence injunctions. More often than not, the question is posed by someone insuring they aren’t violating an injunction. If you are searching for potential violations of injunction, I am sure you are aware of what a domestic violence injunction is. By way of background, a domestic violence injunction is a court order prohibiting the respondent, the person the injunction is against, from contacting the petitioner, the person wanting the injunction. Many injunctions also list the petitioner’s home and work/school location as protected locations.
The most common means of violating an injunction is by the respondent contacting the petitioner directly through some means. It is worth noting though that many law enforcement officers will not even arrest the respondent or they will have a very strong defense, if the petitioner came to the respondent. For example, if the petitioner appeared at the respondent’s house resulting in an argument between the parties. If the petitioner calls law enforcement, many times law enforcement will not even arrest and/or the respondent will have a very strong defense to the charge in court. It is also worth noting that domestic violence injunctions are not mutual injunctions meaning that they do not necessarily provide protection to both parties. Only the petitioner enjoys the protection from the respondent under the injunction. We often describe injunctions as being more of a “shield” for defensive purposes than a “sword” for offense purposes.
Secondly, a domestic violence injunction can be violated by the respondent possessing a firearm. This is far less common than contact violating an injunction. As you can imagine, this is very troubling for the parties involved because of the often escalating nature of domestic violence.
If you have any questions concerning the violation of an injunction or if you believe you are violating an injunction, contact the Tampa domestic violence attorneys of Hackworth Law for a free case consultation. We have handled thousands of cases involving domestic violence throughout the Tampa Bay area. If you would to consult with one of our Tampa domestic violence attorneys immediately, please use the “contact us now” tab in the upper right hand corner of our website. We appreciate you checking out our Tampa domestic violence attorney blog and we look forward to hearing from you.