Restraining Orders
-
Domestic Violence
View information on completing court forms, how to submit to the court, and how to get free help for domestic violence restraining orders.
-
Gun Violence Restraining Orders
View information on completing court forms, how to submit to the court, and how to get free help for domestic violence restraining orders.
Domestic Violence
If you are in immediate danger, call 911.
Get Help
You can find free and low-cost help in domestic violence cases, hotlines and other resources, resources to help children and teens, and guides to help you apply for a restraining order or respond to a request for a restraining order.
Warning: An abuser can tell what Internet sites you have visited on your computer. The safest places to find information on the Internet are at a local library or a friend's house.
There may be other ways to protect your safety on the Internet.
Services for Victims of Domestic Violence
National Domestic Violence Hotline
800-799-7233 or 800-799-SAFE or 800-787-3224 (TDD)
The National Domestic Violence Hotline links individuals to sources of help in their areas through a nationwide data base that contains detailed information on domestic violence shelters, other emergency shelters, legal advocacy and assistance programs, and social service programs. The hotline provides referrals in English or Spanish 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. The hotline also has interpreters available for an additional 139 languages.
The hotline can be called toll-free by phone from all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
Getting Help Right Now (Emergency Protective Order)
If you need help right now, you should call a local law enforcement agency ("911"), a domestic violence shelter, or the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 800-799-7233, 800-799-SAFE, or 800-787-3224 (TDD).
A police officer responding to a domestic violence incident can call a judge (anytime, day or night) and ask for an emergency protective order that goes into effect immediately. An emergency protective order lasts for up to seven days. The emergency protective order can make the abusive person leave the home and keep that person away from you and your children, for five to seven days.
Since you need a police officer's assistance to get an emergency protective order, it is important to describe to him or her the abuser's actions and why you are afraid.