Know the Laws: Missouri
UPDATED October 20, 2008
An order of protection is a civil order that provides protection from harm by a family or household member.
- Basic Information
- Can I get an Order of Protection?
- What are the steps for getting an Order of Protection?
- After the Hearing
Basic Information
back to topWhat is an order of protection?
An order of protection (due to domestic violence) is a court order that is designed to stop violent and harassing behavior and to protect you and your family from the abuser. You are eligible to file for an order of protection if the person abusing you is/ was a family or household member.* See Who can get an order of protection? for the definition of family or household member.
Please note that in MO, restraining orders for domestic violence and stalking are called orders of protection. We have used the term "restraining order" generically in some places, but in MO, the proper term and the term you should use in court is "order of protection."
* Mo. Rev. Stat. § 455.020(1)
back to topWhat is the legal definition of domestic violence in Missouri?
This section defines domestic violence for the purposes of getting an order of protection.
In general, if a family or household member hurts you or tries to hurt you (with or without using a weapon) or gives you reason to believe that they are going to hurt you in the near future, that person has committed an act of domestic violence. For the purposes of getting an order of protection based on domestic violence, you must have a specific relationship with your abuser (see Who can get an order of protection?).
This type of behavior is illegal, and there are laws to protect you.
Domestic violence includes:
- Assault — threatening someone with physical harm
- Battery — physically injuring someone with or without a weapon
- Coercion — using force or threats to compel someone to engage in conduct against their will, or using force to prevent someone from conduct in which they are entitled to engage
- Harassment — behavior which disturbs another person, such as following them, looking in their windows, or lingering outside their residence
- Sexual assault — forcing someone to engage in any sexual act against their will
- Unlawful imprisonment – holding, confining, detaining or abducting another person against their will
- Under certain circumstances destruction of property may also constitute domestic violence.
back to topHow can a full order of protection help me?
A full order of protection can:
- Forbid the abuser from abusing you, threatening to abuse you, or harassing you while the order is in effect
- Forbid the abuser from entering your home while the order is in effect
- Forbid the abuser from having any contact with you while the order is in effect.
- Award you temporary custody of your children
- Award you child support
- Award you spousal support if you are married to the abuser
- Order the abuser to pay rent or your mortgage payments, under certain circumstances
- Order the abuser to participate in a court-approved counseling program
- Order the abuser to pay a reasonable fee for housing and other services by a shelter for victims of domestic violence
- Order your abuser to hand over any firearms in his possession and forbid him from buying firearms
- Order your abuser to pay any uninsured medical expenses you incurred as a result of the abuse.
Whether a judge orders any or all of the above depends on the facts of your case.
back to topIn which county can I file for an order of protection?
You can file a petition in the county where you live, in the county where the abuse took place, or in any county where the defendant can be served with the petition.*
* Mo. Rev. Stat. § 455.015