Along with many others in the community, I was very saddened to see the headlines of the recent murder of a local woman, just after she was denied a Protection Order.
The court has explained their position. If what occurred was all they could do to protect her, we need the legislature to revisit the statute.
Offenders generally have more rights than victims in our court system due to the application of “innocent till proven guilty.” While this remains important, the legislature acknowledged the need for Protection Orders, but often when they pass a law to remedy a wrong, they have no idea how it will end up being carried out in court.
Several years ago, I learned that even if you can prove the legally required grounds for a Protection Order, receiving one isn’t a guarantee. The offender can be given a “second chance.”
I studied a year’s worth of protection orders in Richland County. For that year (2012), 215 Civil Protection Orders (relating to family members) and 177 Civil Stalking Orders (relating to non-family members) were filed in Richland County Domestic Relations Court. Only 24.6% of Civil Protection Orders and 20.3% or Civil Stalking Protection Orders were granted. Astonishingly, there were several occasions when Protection Orders were denied, even thought the offender was sitting in jail for domestic violence!
At our neighborhood watch meeting, I asked a Domestic Violence Shelter Victim Advocate whether their being present at a hearing would make the victim more likely to be granted the Protection Order. She said even when they were involved, Protection Orders are not always granted!
Anyone in a dangerous situation should contact the law enforcement and the Domestic Violence Shelter. Protection Orders are not often granted, and losing your case may embolden the offender.
This tragic death brought to the public’s eye a systemic problem. If the courts did all they could do, we need to beg our legislators to update the law to truly offer victims protection.
Deborah Mount
Cherry Hill Neighborhood Watch Group
Mansfield, Ohio
