Where Do I Get a Restraining Order?

"Where do I get a restraining order?"  The Newton Falls Public Library staff member was unfamiliar as to where a patron would specifically go to get such an order, so this was a learning process for her as well.

An online search took us to the website for Ohio Legal Services. There we learned that there is a difference between a restraining order and a civil or criminal protection order (CPO). In Ohio, a "domestic relations court may issue a restraining order in a divorce or legal separation case to protect one spouse from the other, abusive spouse." Civil or criminal protection orders must be enforced by  law enforcement officers anywhere in the State of Ohio. Protection orders,  especially a civil protection order, may contain additional provisions.

We still did not have a definitive answer to our patron's question.  More information was found at the website of the Franklin County, Ohio Court of Common Pleas. The section about Protection Orders has a list of questions and answers. "There are four different kinds of protection orders. Criminal court may issue a Temporary Protection Order (TPO) or an Anti-Stalking Protection Order (SPO) depending on the type of charge and your relationship to the defendant. Civil (Domestic) Court issues Civil Protection Orders (CPO) if you are a family or household member of the defendant. If you are being stalked, Common Pleas Court may issue a Civil Staking Protection Order (CSPO)."  Our patron viewed the information to determine what type of order needed and the proper agency from which to request it.