Restraining Orders

For the purposes of getting an order for protection, “domestic abuse” is defined as any of the following acts if committed by a family or household member:

• causing physical harm, bodily injury, assault or making you afraid of immediate (imminent) physical harm, bodily injury or assault;
• terrorist threats, such as threats to commit a crime of violence, bomb threats, or showing (brandishing) a firearm;
• criminal sexual conduct in the 1^st, 2^nd, 3^rd, 4^th, or 5^th degrees;
• sexual extortion; and
• interference with an emergency call, which includes preventing someone from calling 911 or other emergency phone numbers or interrupting/ending an emergency call.¹

¹ Minn. Stat. § 518B.01(2)(a)

You can be granted the following protections in an ex parte order for protection:

• that the abuser not abuse you or your minor children;
• that the abuser be removed from the home that you share and that s/he stay away from a reasonable area surrounding the shared home or your own home;
• that the abuser stay away from your place of work;
• that the abuser not contact you, either in person, by telephone, mail, email or other electronic devices, or through another person (a “third party”);
• that any insurance coverage currently available to you remain unchanged – for example, if you get health insurance through the abuser’s work, s/he won’t be able to remove you from the insurance plan;
• giving either of you possession or control of a pet or companion animal owned, possessed, or kept by you, the abuser, or a child of you or the abuser, and ordering the abuser to not physically abuse the animal.¹

If you get an order for protection that is issued after the respondent/abuser is given notice and the chance to appear in court at a hearing, you can get the following protections as part of a full order of protection:

• all of the ex parte protections listed above; and
• the following additional protections:
  • temporary custody of your children and/or establishing temporary parenting time giving primary consideration to the safety of you and your children; Note: The judge can restrict parenting time as to the time, place, duration, or supervision, or deny parenting time completely if necessary to protect the safety of you and your children;
  • temporary child support and/or spousal support;
  • counseling or other social services for you and the respondent if you are married or if you have minor children together;
  • an order for the abuser to participate in treatment or counseling services;
  • temporary use and possession of property that you share with the abuser, such as a car;
  • an order that neither party sell, damage, or get rid of property, or use it as the basis for a loan;
  • restitution paid to you from the abuser to compensate you for your medical bills and/or lost income as a result of the abuse, for example;
  • an order that the abuser not possess firearms for the time that the order is in effect; Note: The judge is supposed to include this prohibition against possessing firearms in all situations where the order:
    • instructs the abuser to stop harassing, stalking, or threatening you, or from engaging in other conduct that would place you in reasonable fear of bodily injury; and
    • includes a determination (“finding”) that the abuser represents a credible threat to your physical safety or prohibits the abuser from using, attempting to use, or threatening to use physical force against you; and
  • an order for any other relief that is necessary to protect you and your children, including ordering the sheriff or other law enforcement to act in a certain way – for example, to accompany you to the home to get your belongings.²

Whether or not a judge orders any, or all of the above, depends on the facts of your case. To read about what will happen to the firearms if the abuser is prohibited from possessing them, go to What will happen to the abuser’s firearms if the judge includes a firearm restriction in my order for protection?

¹ Minn. Stat. § 518B.01(7)(a)
² Minn. Stat. § 518B.01(6)(a), (6)(g)

When you and the abuser live in different states, the judge may not have “personal jurisdiction” (power) over an out-of-state abuser. This means that the court may not be able to grant an order against him/her.

There are a few ways that a court can have personal jurisdiction over an out-of-state abuser:

1. The abuser has a substantial connection to your state. Perhaps the abuser regularly travels to your state to visit you, for business, to see extended family, or the abuser lived in your state and recently fled.
2. One of the acts of abuse “happened” in your state. Perhaps the abuser sends you threatening texts or harassing phone calls from another state but you read the messages or answer the calls while you are in your state. The judge could decide that the abuse “happened” to you while you were in your state. It may also be possible that the abuser was in your state when s/he abused you s/he but has since left the state.
3. If you file your petition and the abuser gets served with the court petition while s/he is in your state, this is another way for the court to get jurisdiction.

However, even if none of the above apply to your situation, it doesn’t necessarily mean that you can’t get an order. If you file, you may be granted an order on consent or the judge may find other circumstances that allow the order to be granted.

You can read more about personal jurisdiction in our Court System Basics - Personal Jurisdiction section.

Note: If the judge in your state refuses to issue an order, you can file for an order in the courthouse in the state where the abuser lives. However, remember that you will likely need to file the petition in person and attend various court dates, which could be difficult if the abuser’s state is far away.