The law firm of Marc A. Zeve, PA has represented over 750 people in the Ocean City, MD area as petitioners or respondents in domestic violence cases or peace orders. A peace order, like a domestic violence case, goes before a Judge on an Ex Parte basis. That is to say, the petitioner taking out the peace order or domestic violence order goes before a Judge after filling out a form and tells the Court what they say happened. The Judge will then often issue an order good for seven days. At the end of seven days, a hearing must be set.
During these seven days, you would not be permitted, if you are the respondent/defendant, to have any contact with the person who brought the domestic violence or peace order against you. This may involve you losing contact with your children for seven days, being ordered to stay out of the house and being ordered to have no contact with anybody related to the Petitioner, particularly the person who petitioned the Court. Contact means no contact at all with the Petitioner, no contact yourself, no contact through a third party, no contact whatsoever.
In domestic violence cases, the federal law requires that the Sheriff collect and hold all firearms in your possession. And again, if you feel you were the victim, get the names of all of the people that were present and their telephone numbers so we can speak to them and get photographs.
The dos and don'ts of domestic violence and protective orders are as follows:
- Don't violate the order by having any contact with the person who filed it against you. These are separate criminal offenses even though they are intermediate orders.
- Don't have a friend attempt to contact the Petitioner.
- Don't go to the school and try to see the children if so ordered.
- Don't text your former spouse or friend or parent of your children during this period. All this will be used against you in a future criminal proceeding.
- Don't talk to anybody about your case. Don't create witnesses. If the police come to talk to you, don't make any statements. They will serve you with the Order. Just say nothing.
- Do not take any vehicles, enter the property or go near the former residence that you once shared with the person. Do not even drive by.
- Do not post anything on any of the social networking sites about the Petitioner. All of these are violations of the Orders. These Orders are meant to be a cooling off period, so cool it.
Once you have the order, contact me immediately and do nothing else. If you feel that you can take the matter into your own hands by contacting the person who took it out against you, you are only creating a new and separate crime for which you can be prosecuted for. It is a big mistake to try to attempt to fix these matters, as separate criminal charges will arise.
There have been several changes in the domestic violence statute. For instance, if the Sheriff is not able to serve you within the seven days required under the Protective Order, you will be marked as non est (unserved) and the order may be extended for six (6) additional months so that you may be served.
Don't run from service. Sweeping your problems under the rug does not make them better. Temporary Protective Orders require you to surrender your guns to law enforcement.
If you are found not to have committed an act of violence as prescribed under the domestic violence statute, you will get your firearms back. There's a whole new section about violence and education and awareness courses.
If you have a child that's involved in a Domestic Violence issue, it's important that you contact me immediately. Domestic Violence Orders now may be extended to a maximum duration of two years. This must be done prior to the one year expiration date in the original order.
If you are incarcerated, the order will be served to you by the Department of Corrections and Public Safety.
Again, do not violate these Orders. Even though you are present, each violation constitutes a separate criminal offense.
Dos:
- Stay away. Don't worry about your personal property. It will be returned to you. You will just have to wait until the hearing. Remember, Domestic Violence Orders and Peace Orders are civil in nature and not criminal. They only become criminal when it is alleged you violated them.
- Do obtain counsel.
- Do take pictures.
- Do save all text messages and emails coming from the Petitioner, but do not respond.
- Do get names and addresses of witnesses that you think will be helpful to you in the future.
- Do contact me the day you receive the order so I can reiterate these points to you.
The natural human reaction to these Orders is to pick up the phone and try to fix the problem. That is punishable by a separate criminal offense carrying 60 days in jail for the first offense. Oftentimes people can't control themselves, so get yourself under control.
Contact Marc A. Zeve today at 410-208-4244 for all of your Ocean City, MD criminal law needs.
