Restraining Orders

A vulnerable adult is defined by law as a person who:

• is 60 years old or older and is not functionally, mentally, or physically able to care for themselves;
• is subject to a guardianship or conservatorship;
• has a developmental disability ;
• was admitted to any facility;
• is receiving services from a home health aide or agency, a hospice, or an individual provider; or
• is facing a functional disability but is still able to direct their own care by receiving services from a personal aide.¹

¹ R.C.W. §§ 74.34.020(21); 7.105.010(38); 74.39.007

Abandonment is an action, or failure to act, by a person who has a duty to care for the vulnerable adult that leaves them without the means or ability to get needed food, clothing, shelter, or health care.¹

Abuse is the intentional or reckless action, or failure to act, that causes injury, unreasonable confinement, intimidation, or punishment to a vulnerable adult. Abuse includes sexual abuse, mental abuse, physical abuse, personal exploitation, and improper use of restraint against the vulnerable adult, which are defined below.²

Financial exploitation is the illegal or improper use of, control over, or withholding of the property, income, resources, or trust funds of a vulnerable adult by any person or entity for the profit or advantage of any other person or entity. This includes:

• the use of deception, intimidation, or undue influence by someone in a position of trust with the vulnerable adult;
• when someone who has the legal responsibility to act in the best interest of the vulnerable adult (“fiduciary duty”) breaches that duty; for example, a person with power of attorney or guardianship over the vulnerable adult; or
• the use of the vulnerable adult’s property, income, resources, or trust funds by someone who knows the vulnerable adult lacks the ability to agree to that use.³

Improper use of restraint means the inappropriate use of chemical, physical, or mechanical restraints for convenience or discipline in a way that:

• is inconsistent with federal or state licensing or certification requirements for facilities, hospitals, or programs authorized by law;
• is not medically allowed; or
• is otherwise considered abuse.⁴

Mental abuse means an intentional or reckless verbal or nonverbal action that threatens, humiliates, harasses, coerces, isolates, unreasonably confines, or punishes a vulnerable adult. This can include withholding or tampering with prescribed medications.⁵

Neglect is when a person or entity with a duty to care for a vulnerable adult:

• engages in a pattern of conduct or fails to act in a way that provides the goods or services that are needed to keep the vulnerable adult mentally and physically healthy, or fails to avoid or prevent physical or mental harm or pain to the vulnerable adult; or
• acts or fails to act in a way that shows a serious disregard for the outcome, causing a clear and present danger to the vulnerable adult’s health, welfare, or safety, including but not limited to conduct that is not allowed under the law.⁶

Personal exploitation is:

• the act of forcing, compelling, or using undue influence over a vulnerable adult and causing them to act in a way that is different than related past behavior; or
• forcing the vulnerable adult to perform services for the benefit of another.⁷

Physical abuse is the intentional or reckless causing of bodily injury or physical mistreatment of the vulnerable adult, which includes but is not limited to acts like hitting, slapping, pinching, strangulating, suffocating, kicking, shoving, or prodding.⁸

Sexual abuse is any form of non-consensual sexual activity, including but not limited to:

• unwanted or inappropriate touching;
• rape;
• molestation;
• indecent liberties;
• sexual coercion;
• sexually explicit photographing or recording;
• voyeurism;
• indecent exposure; and
• sexual harassment.

If the vulnerable adult is in a facility or program, sexual abuse includes any sexual conduct between the vulnerable adult and a staff person, even if the vulnerable adult has “agreed” to it.⁹

¹ R.C.W. §§ 74.34.020(1); 7.105.010(1)
² R.C.W. §§ 74.34.020(2); 7.105.010(2)
³ R.C.W. §§ 74.34.020(7); 7.105.010(15)
⁴ R.C.W. §§ 74.34.020(2)(e); 7.105.010(2)(a)
⁵ R.C.W. §§ 74.34.020(2)(c); 7.105.010(2)(b)
⁶ R.C.W. §§ 74.34.020(15); 7.105.010(26)
⁷ R.C.W. §§ 74.34.020(2)(d); 7.105.010(2)(c)
⁸ R.C.W. §§ 74.34.020(2)(b); 7.105.010(2)(d)
⁹ R.C.W. §§ 74.34.020(2)(a); 7.105.010(2)(e)

The judge in a protection order case has broad powers to issues order that are appropriate to your situation, including:

• ordering the abuser:
  • not to do the following against you or anyone else protected by the order:
    • acts of domestic violence;
    • nonconsensual sexual conduct or nonconsensual sexual penetration;
    • sexual abuse;
    • stalking;
    • acts of abandonment, abuse, neglect, or financial exploitation against a vulnerable adult; and
    • unlawful harassment;
  • not to contact you or your children, your family members, or members of your household;
  • to stay away from your home, even if you share it with the abuser, as well as your work, school, or from the school or day care of your children;
  • not to come within a certain distance from a specific location;
  • to participate in a domestic violence perpetrator treatment program or a sex offender treatment program;
  • to get a mental health or chemical dependency evaluation;
  • not to attend the same school as you or your children, if the order protects your children;
  • to pay the court costs and fees for your petition, including reasonable attorneys’ fees;
  • not to harass you, follow you, keep you under physical or electronic surveillance, cyberharass you, or use telephonic, audiovisual, or other electronic means to monitor the actions, location, or communication of you, your children, or members of your household;
  • to submit to electronic monitoring, unless the abuser is a minor;
  • to surrender their firearms and prohibiting the abuser from having access to any other firearms if certain conditions are met; Note: See section (1) of RCW 9.41.800 on our Selected Washington Statutes page for these conditions;
  • not to engage in abusive litigation or make false reports to investigative agencies;
  • not to make false statements against you to damage your reputation (libel) or to send harassing communications to third parties;
  • to provide an accounting of the vulnerable adult’s income or other resources;
  • not to have or distribute intimate images of you, and to take down and delete any such images the abuser may have posted;
• making a temporary order about the living arrangement of your children, which can suspend visitation under a parenting plan if appropriate;
• making an order regarding possession of your essential personal property, including a pet owned by you, your children, or the abuser;
• making an order regarding the use of a vehicle;
• preventing the transfer of the abuser’s property, the vulnerable adult’s property, or anything jointly owned for up to 90 days and ordering any other financial relief.¹

Whether or not a judge orders any or all of the above depends on the facts of your case.

It’s also important to know that the law discourages the use of “mutual” protection orders of any type. Mutual protection orders are when a judge issues two orders at the same time, with each party getting one order naming them as the petitioner. It is a common tactic for someone trying to control a partner to ask for a protection order against the victim. However, if both you and the abuser file for an order, the judge should try to issue only one order against the person the judge believes is the abuser.² 

Note: The judge cannot require that you, as the petitioner, get any services, including drug testing, victim support services, mental health assessments, or a psychological evaluation.³

¹ R.C.W. § 7.105.310(1)
² R.C.W. § 7.105.310(6)
³ R.C.W. § 7.105.310(4)(a)