Domestic Violence in the Military

In both the military and civilian justice systems, you can seek a protection order requiring the abuser to stay away from you, your children, your home, your workplace, your school, and to not commit any violent acts against you. Civil protection orders have different names in the various states, but the military protective orders (MPOs) are consistently called that among all the Services. You can have both an MPO and a civil protection order (CPO) at the same time.

However, the procedures for getting an MPO and a CPO and how long the orders may last are quite different. When a commander is issuing an MPO, the abuser does not have to be served with notice, does not have the right to a hearing, and does not have the right to testify. Military protective orders are indefinite, which means they will last until the commanding officer terminates the order or issues a replacement order.¹ An MPO can also terminate if a Service member is transferred to a new command, because the MPO is specific to the command that issued it.²

¹ 10 U.S.C. § 1567
² Department of Defense Instruction, Number 6400.06