When a person is accused of domestic violence, the court will sometimes issue a restraining order, which is known as a protective order or peace order in Maryland. This is meant to keep the person accused of the crime away from the person who is named as the victim. If you receive one of these, make sure that you comply with it fully.
Initially, the court might issue an interim or temporary order. This is a bit different from a final order, so you should pay close attention to which order is present in your case.
A protective order is one that is issued to people who are spouses or ex spouses, resided in the same home during a romantic relationship, have a relationship through adoption or marriage or blood, have specific parent-child or stepparent-stepchild relationships, have a child together, have had a sexual relationship within the past year or have a vulnerable adult-caregiver relationship. Peace orders are used in other cases, including boyfriend-girlfriend relationships that don’t involve cohabitation or sexual intimacy.
The scope of the interim or temporary orders is much less than that of the final orders. While final orders can include things like orders for counseling, paying fees and other points, temporary or interim orders focus on keeping the alleged abuser away from the victim. This point is also included in the final order.
If you are facing domestic violence accusations, remember that you might have issues to address in the criminal court and family court systems. This can be a challenge, but you can’t ignore any of these points.