Conozca la Ley: Vermont
ACTUALIZADA 23 de julio, 2007
A Relief from Abuse Order is a civil order that provides protection from a family or household member.
- Basic Information
- Can I get a Relief from Abuse Order?
- What are the steps for getting a relief from abuse order?
- After the Hearing
Basic Information
arribaWhat is the legal definition of domestic abuse in Vermont?
This section defines domestic abuse for the purposes of getting a relief from abuse order.
Domestic abuse means the occurrence of one or more of the following acts between family or household members:
- attempting to cause or causing physical harm
- placing another in fear of imminent serious physical harm
- abuse to children
- stalking
- sexual assault*
* Vermont State Code 15-21-1101 Defintions
arribaWhat are relief from abuse orders?
A relief from abuse order is a court order that is designed to stop violent, harassing and threatening behavior. It can also stop the abuser from any contact or communication with you, and protect you and your family from the abuser. These are sometimes called protection orders or restraining orders.*
* Vermont State Code 15 § 1101
arribaHow can a relief from abuse order protect me?
A relief from abuse order can:
- Order the abuser to stop contacting you and/or your children;
- Order the abuser to stay away from your work, children's school or other locations you specify;
- Order the abuser to stop abusing you and/or your children and interfering with your or and/or your children's personal liberty;
- Order the abuser to vacate immediately any residence you share with him or her;
- Award temporary rights and responsibilities (temporary custody) of minor children to you or other persons;
- Order the abuser to pay you spousal support for up to three months;
- Order the abuser to pay you child support;
- Deny the abuser the right to visitation of your children if he has been convicted of committing or attempting sexual assault, lewd and lascivious conduct, kidnapping or sexual exploitation of children;
- Order your abuser to hand over any firearms in his possession to the authorities and forbid him from buying firearms for the length of the order;
- Note: To read more about how to get firearms away from your abuser when you have a RFA order, please see our VT Gun Law Info page.
- Decide the possession, care and control of any animal owned or kept in the home; and
- Anything else you need to keep you and/or your children safe.
Whether a judge orders any or all of the above depends on the facts of your case.*
Note: The court should grant orders to protect you, your children, or both, if the judge finds that the abuser has abused you, and there is a danger of further abuse; or the abuser is currently incarcerated and has been convicted of one of the following: murder, attempted murder, kidnapping, domestic assault, aggravated domestic assault, sexual assault, aggravated sexual assault, stalking, aggravated stalking, lewd or lascivious conduct with child, use of a child in a sexual performance, or consenting to a sexual performance. **
* VT ST T. 15 § 1103(c)(2)
** VT ST T. 15 § 1103(c)(1)
arribaIn which county can I file for a relief from abuse order?
You can file a petition in the county where you live. If you’ve left home to avoid further abuse, you can file the petition in the county where you lived previously, or in the county where you currently live.* However, if you are trying to keep your address confidential, filing in the county where you have fled to would likely not be a good idea since it would alert the abuser to the fact that you are living in that county.
* 15 VT ST § 1102(c)