Protective Orders Following Third-Degree Domestic Assault Arrests in Greenwich

When dealing with family violence in Greenwich, the party or parties involved will have to go to court to be issued protective orders following first-time third-degree domestic assault arrests in Greenwich. There are three types of protective orders. The most burdensome of which is a full no-contact protective order that prohibits any kind of contact whether in person, through a third party, or on social media. No contact whatsoever is allowed. It may be critical to contact a skilled domestic assault attorney who can help you defend your rights and reputation.

Full Residential Stay-Away Order

Full residential stay-away protective orders following first-time third-degree domestic assault arrests in Greenwich is when two people are allowed to have contact outside of the protected person’s home. They can go to dinner and the protected person can go visit the defendant at work. The defendant just cannot go to the protected person’s home.

Limited Protective Order

The least restrictive protective order is called the partial or limited protective order. In this one, the people are allowed to live together, allowed to go each other’s home freely, can communicate freely, and can see each other as often as they like. The defendant is just prohibited from assaulting, abusing, threatening or harassing, following, or interfering with the protected party.

Violating a Orders

If the police find out or a report is made, then the police will initiate an investigation. This typically leads to an arrest if the person has violated the protective order, even if the violation is something as simple as sending a text message when they are not supposed to have contact.

Even if the text message is not threatening and is not meant to harass, the violator can still be arrested for violating the protective order. Such an arrest is usually more serious than the underlying charges. Violation of a protective order is a Class D or C felony in Connecticut and so carries with it the prospect of potential jail time, fines, probation.

Child Custody and Visitation Laws

The criminal court does not deal with child custody or visitation, typically. However, it can issue a protective order that protects either the children of the defendant or the protected person’s children. So while the criminal court will not hash out exactly when and where the person can see their children, they might be prohibited from seeing the children in their home if that is where the protected person lives. They might also be prohibited from having contact with their children especially in cases in which the child is the alleged victim.

Benefit of an Attorney

It is always a good idea to hire an experienced Greenwich family violence attorney if you are facing protective orders following first-time third-degree domestic assault arrests in Greenwich. On the first court date, there should be a meeting with the family relations officer and it is helpful to have an attorney there to prepare the client for that meeting.

In court, many situations can arise such as getting removed from their home or having conditions imposed that might interfere with the client’s work schedule. Having an experienced attorney present can help a client argue against some of those really burdensome conditions.

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